Paper short abstract:

This paper explores the complex intersection of policy and patrimony surrounding the construction of culinary heritage in Lyon. Considered the birthplace of French cuisine, Lyon provides an excellent case study of the heritigization of gastronomy and its use as an instrument of identity-building.

Paper long abstract:

In recent years, a concerted effort between tourism boards, private funding bodies, and cultural organizations have produced a paradigmatic example of the partimonialization of culinary heritage Lyon, France. Often considered the birthplace of French gastronomy, Lyon as a city, boasts both historical ties to gastronomic excellence and a current thriving food culture, important for foreign tourism and local, regional, and national identity alike. A unique factor making Lyon an excellent case-study for the heritigization of gastronomy is it's position as forerunner of the four French "cities of gastronomy," which were selected and established following the inscription of the gastronomic meal of the French into UNESCO's list for intangible cultural heritage in 2010. In recent years, Lyon (through various endeavors of funding partners, patrimonial boards, governmental support, to name a few) has further promoted the heritage of it's traditional restaurants (bouchons) and local gastronomy, and has expanded it's food markets Les Halles de Lyon Paul Bocuse. Significantly, in 2019 the city launched the Cité Internationale de la Gastronomie, a museum dedicated to the culinary heritage of the region, while a new UNESCO bid for intangible cultural heritage was initiated to inscribe the art of French butcher. In another approach, Lyon has also fostered different events such as the street food festival which engage, rather than exclude more diverse communities, contrary to the rather single-narrative hegemonic discourse surrounding French cuisine as a powerful culinary identity maker.