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If you are staying
in the station area
, there are a couple of reasonable places to
eat
. The best is the oak-beamed, rustic-looking
Auvergnat
, 27 av de l'Union Sovietique (from 75F/ˆ11.43), whose repertoire includes standard Auvergne dishes like
truffade
. Less expensive and very friendly, with a terrace at the back, is the
Hotel des Commercants
, opposite the station (from 65F/ˆ9.91).
In
the centre of town
, the best of the cheaper places is the ever-popular
Creperie 1513
, 3 rue des Chaussetiers, opposite the cathedral, which occupies a superb Renaissance mansion built in 1513 (lunchtime menu at 55F/ˆ8.38), while in the same street, at no. 29,
Le Bougnat
offers local regional cuisine at affordable prices (closed Sun & Mon lunch; from 78F/ˆ11.89). Close by at 36 rue des Gras, there's good pizza and pasta at
Le Bistrot Venitien
from 79F/ˆ12.04 (closed Sun). On the other side of the cathedral, you can get first-class Vietnamese cooking for around 50F/ˆ7.62 at the
Mai Lan
, 41 bd Trudaine (closed Sun & Mon lunch), and crepes for 35-60F/ˆ5.34-9.15 at the
Pescajoux
in the old rue du Port at no. 13.
For a more specialized gastronomic experience, there's nothing to beat the refined and inventive cooking of
Gerard Anglard
at 17 rue Lamartine, off place de Jaude, especially the lunchtime menu at 110F/ˆ16.77 (tel 04.73.93.52.25; closed Sun & first two weeks Aug). Also good value, especially at lunchtime, is the
Clos St-Pierre
, next to the St-Pierre market below the cathedral (closed Sun and Mon; 60F/ˆ9.15 at lunchtime, otherwise 205F/ˆ31.25 plus). And, if you don't mind the drive - barely 5km southeast off the old N9 Issoire road - the
Petit Bonneval
at
Perignat-les-Sarlieve
makes a delicious stop for dinner on a summer evening (tel 04.73.79.11.11; closed Sun evening; menus from 125F/ˆ19.06).
For a daytime
drink
,
Le Suffren
, on the corner of place de Jaude, is one of the most popular places to hang out. More unusual is
Les Gouters de Justine
, a
salon de the
, tucked away in old rue Pascal and furnished with antique chairs, old sofas and oriental carpets. At night one of the most fashionable places is studenty
Le Derailleur
, 9 av Georges-Clemenceau, while young rockers head for the suburban village of Orcines, beneath the Puy de Dome, to long-standing
Phidias
, aka
Boudu's
, on route de la Baraque (tel 04.73.62.18.34; until 5am; closed Sun & Mon).
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