Rouen, gastronomic city: the 6 best restaurants in 2023

Recently updated on July 6th, 2024 at 08:09 pm

This is a recurring question that my tourists ask me when they are in my pretty town: where to eat in Rouen? And you too would like to know where to taste the best local cuisine, or perhaps, to know the place in which to enjoy a unique culinary experience during your stay. Good news, the guide you are reading is there to help you according to your tastes and your budget. When you have finished reading this article, you should be able to know which restaurant is right for your taste buds!

If you are in a hurry, you will find at the end of this file a table with a list of restaurants classified by type of cuisine.

If you are completely lost in the face of the gastronomic diversity offered by my city, don’t worry, I will share with you the essential ingredients to make your choice as well as my favorites of the moment. This will allow you to avoid tourist trap restaurants and industrial dishes. What’s more, you would be wrong not to have lunch or dinner in the first and only French city, for the time being (November 2021), to have joined the Unesco “Creative City” network in the field of gastronomy.

Take the time to digest this article (sorry for the pun hehe) before making your choice.

The essential criteria for choosing a restaurant

In my opinion, there are 4 important criteria for choosing a restaurant.

• The type of cuisine
• The atmosphere in the restaurant
• The quality of food
• The price

And as far as you are concerned, there will also be a criterion: the location of the restaurant because when you travel, in general, you want to optimize your time there and not engage in an endless search through the city.

The type of cuisine

French cuisine, traditional Norman cuisine, Asian or African cuisine? Here, no culinary journey to the 4 corners of the world. I will focus on French cuisine and local cuisine (in the sense of Rouennaise or Norman).

Let us recall the definition of gourmet cuisine.

It is a form of cooking inspired by traditional cooking. Its particularity lies in the use of rare and high quality ingredients. Gourmet dishes are often prepared with fresh and healthy products. Therefore, within these establishments, you will not find frozen products.

In the sense of French cuisine in this article, we must understand a cuisine that will revisit classics of French gastronomy such as calf’s head, sweetbreads or Millefeuille And by Norman or traditional cuisine, we must understand local cuisine and which highlights emblematic dishes and desserts such as duck à la Rouennaise, pigeon à la Rouennaise or apple pie and its variations.

The atmosphere in the restaurant

Dining in a noisy atmosphere can harm your culinary experience because when you taste a dish, many of your senses are awakened: sight to identify colors, shapes but also the creative and artistic talent of the chef, touch because you will be you may have to take part in your meal, for example by manipulating a pepper mill to play on the seasoning of a dish, hearing to perceive the crispness of bread or the lightness of a chocolate mousse and the smell to smell the different flavors and spices of a dish.

On this subject, I recommend that you read an article published on RTBF: Noise can change the taste of food, science says so! The frame is therefore an important element to take into account.

The atmosphere is therefore an important element to take into account.

The quality of food

You will no doubt agree with me. The first bite of a dish immediately sets the tone of a dish. In a few seconds, you can guess if you are going to feast or not. Nevertheless, any good dish needs healthy and quality products. It is for this reason that the choice of a restaurant must take into account short circuits, the use of local products distributed by regional producers.

In this regard, get into the habit of looking at the menu to detect mentions such as “selection of our master cheesemaker, François Olivier”, “meat of French origin” or “meat from Normandy”. Restaurant owners who are proud of their products will highlight them on their menu.

Having quality products is good, but having a cook who will sublimate them is better. Thus, if a restaurant has a starred or formerly starred chef, signature dishes or a mention in a gastronomic guide such as the Michelin Guide or the Gault et Millau, it is a reference to take into account.

If you want to become a specialist in dish analysis, follow the advice of Chef Éric Briffard, Meilleur Ouvrier de France, at Le Cordon Bleu in Paris

The price

The value for money of a restaurant is another important element that you should consider in order to have a quality dining experience at a reasonable price. Good value for money means that the price of the dishes is justified by the quality of the ingredients used and the careful preparation of the dishes. This can include fresh, seasonal food, cooked-to-order meals, and attentive, caring service from staff.

In contrast, poor value for money can involve lower quality food at high prices, slow and unattentive service, and an unwelcoming setting.

5 – Where to eat in Rouen?

By the question “where to eat in Rouen?”, we must in fact understand: “in which district have lunch or dinner?” Indeed, it is excluded to embark on a 2-hour walk after your trip or your day of excursion through the city. Therefore, the keyword here is proximity. And you will see that this criterion will take on even more importance if you are in Rouen on a Sunday.

First information, all the restaurants mentioned are located on the right bank (this is the bank on which the cathedral is located). Exit therefore the left bank, not because there are no good restaurants but as I told you, the restaurants must be a few minutes from your accommodation. Of course, I infer that your accommodation is located on the right bank.

Second information, in order to help you in your orientation in my city, I will take as a point of reference a famous monument in Rouen: the Gros-Horloge. As its name suggests, it is located rue de Gros-Horloge and a few steps from the main street, rue Jeanne d’Arc. On the google map but, below, I have positioned the reference point for you.

Third information, the restaurants that I recommend are in the following districts: the Vieux-marché district, the Stock Exchange quays and the Saint-Maclou/Cathédrale districts.

3 additional recommendations to narrow your culinary search

1 – Consult the restaurant’s website

First, consulting the website of the restaurant you are interested in will serve you for several reasons:

• Know if the restaurant is open or closed. The holiday period (August), embellishment work or an unforeseen event may lead to the temporary closure of an establishment.

• Know the menu of the moment to awaken your appetite and see if the restaurant respects the seasonality of the products. Take the opportunity to spot the “homemade” mentions, a guarantee of quality.

2 – Browse social networks

Then, exploring social media and recent customer reviews will allow you to:

See photos of signature dishes and desserts of the moment

To have the feeling of customers on a dish, a dessert, the setting or the service via Google or TripAdvisor

If you use Instagram, you can use the following hasttags: #Rouenfoodie, #RouenRestaurant, #MangeràRouen and #BonnesAdressesRouen.

3 – Ask for good gastronomic plans from the locals

Finally, ask the locals for their tips or simply for advice to direct you to a restaurant they like. There are regularly new gastronomic addresses that open in Rouen so you too can benefit from word of mouth. If you rent an apartment, your landlord might recommend a restaurant. If you are staying at the hotel, the reception staff will be happy to recommend some good restaurants. And more generally, during your stay and your meetings with the locals, some people from Rouen may share their gastronomic tips.

What are the best restaurants in Rouen?

Before sitting down to eat and giving you a list of the best restaurants in Rouen on a plate, I must warn you that only the restaurants I have tested are on this list. There are many restaurants in Rouen that I have not yet tested (La Marmite, Les Petits Parapluies, La Couronne) and others that have just opened at the start of 2023 (Pottier Frères, Tempo). Therefore, this list of restaurants is subjective, not exhaustive and reflects my personal tastes only. For each restaurant, I will take the 5 criteria mentioned at the beginning of the article with my little grain of salt. For the sake of fairness, the following list of restaurants is listed in alphabetical order.

1 – Boma

Type of cuisine: French The setting of the establishment: pretty, uncluttered The quality of the food: local products and creativity through the prism of sweet and salty The price: midday main course and dessert (11 euros); The neighborhood: Old Market Info: 4 Rue L’Ancienne prison, 76000 ROUEN – www.leboma-restaurant-rouen.fr

2 – Gill

Type of cuisine: French and traditional The setting of the establishment: sober and bright The quality of the food: local products and a mastery of French and Rouen dishes The price: Menu (89 euros); The district: Quai de la Bourse Info: 8-9, quai de la Bourse, 76000 Rouen – www.gill.fr/en

3 – The Odas

Type of cuisine: French The setting of the establishment: sober and bright The quality of the food: only seasonal products and refined and artistic dishes The price: Appetizer, starter, main course and dessert (44 euros) The district: Saint-Maclou/Cathedral Info: Passage Maurice Lenfant, 76000 Rouen – lodas.fr

4 – Lé là

Type of cuisine: French and traditional The setting of the establishment: friendly and intimate The quality of the food: homemade dishes that tastefully mix Reunion and Normandy The price: dish (from 15 to 23 euros); dessert (from 8 to 10 euros) The district: Quai de la Bourse Info: 37 Rue Saint-Etienne des Tonneliers, 76000 Rouen – lela-restaurant.fr

5 – 6th sense

Type of cuisine: French The setting of the establishment: pleasant made up of pretty stone vaults The quality of the food: homemade dishes with a touch of originality from fresh products The price: main course – dessert (25 euros) The district: Saint-Maclou/Cathedral Info: 2 rue ThomasCorneille, 76000 Rouen – le-sixiemesens.fr

6 – Tandem

Type of cuisine: French The setting of the establishment: uncluttered and attentive service The quality of the food: well-cooked homemade dishes with great flavors The price: flat (from 19 to 24 euros); dessert (9 euro) The district: Saint-Maclou/Cathedral Info: 11 rue Damiette, 76000 Rouen – tandem-rouen.fr

Conclusion

Choosing a restaurant, especially when you are a tourist, is not an easy thing. However, I hope that this little guide will help you in your choice of a restaurant. Below, I present a summary table of the restaurants that I have tested and approved. These restaurants are listed in alphabetical order. As my gastronomic discoveries progress, this article will evolve to mention my new favourites. And you, what is your favorite restaurant in Rouen and why?

Enjoy your food !

Table of the 6 best restaurants in Rouen