Restaurant : La Forge (71)

Pierre Granger and his wife Élodie.

Reception/setting: a small room, on "Île" Saint-Laurent, a lively district of Chalon. Attentive welcome from Élodie, the chef's partner.

La Table: Pierre Granger retrained as a chef after a first career in the French national education system. He trained under two Michelin-starred chefs, Jean-Michel Carrette (Aux Terrasses, in Tournus) and William Frachot (Le Chapeau). Rouge , has Dijon It offers high-quality bistronomic cuisine with a touch of originality. The set evening menu (€46) includes: scallops, cranberries, chestnuts, and a spider crab bisque flavored with gin; cod loin marbled with black trumpet mushrooms and hazelnuts, lemon-infused meat jus and quince paste; and delicious desserts (for example, beetroot and balsamic chocolate, a daring but very successful combination). Don't miss the chef's signature dish: chicken liver pâté with ivory sauce. With a maximum of fifteen covers, reservations are recommended.

The Wine Cellar: a short (less than 100 references), but relevant selection, which gives pride of place to Burgundy: Droin Bart, Cheveau, Lumpp, Jacqueson, etc. Prices are average, with, for example, the Saint-Véran 2023 by Jacques Saumaize at €39, the Bourgogne Côtes d' Auxerre blanc Goisot's Gueule de Loup 2020 at €48 or the Gevrey-Chambertin Vieilles Vignes 2018 from Domaine Marc Roy at €105. Outside the region, a good Saint-Joseph. rouge 2023 (Verzier) at €48. No half-bottles but four wines served by the glass.

21, rue de Strasbourg, in Chalon sur Saône (71). Tel. 09 83 99 05 58.

Jean Philippe Chapelon

Freelance Journalist