Top 10 culinary specialities in Besançon

In this pretty town in eastern France, you’ll find plenty of local specialities to delight and tantalise your taste buds. Besançon is a popular tourist destination, a welcoming place to live… and eat! The most common local speciality is certainly cheese. In fact, the town is renowned for its wide variety of local cheeses, all with their own unique taste.

If you’re still wondering what Besançon’s culinary specialities are, what kind of meat is eaten, what’s the most common drink, what’s the tastiest dessert? Then you’ve come to the right place, Navaway tells you everything!

What to eat in Besançon

1. La Griotte Bisontine

We’re not going to start with a dish just yet. First of all, we need to introduce you to the famous Griotte Bisontine, a delicious sweet delicacy. Easy to make, these are little cherries that have been carefully covered in dark chocolate: the juiciness and sweetness of the fruit combine perfectly with the tasty chocolate, and it’s a very famous dessert in Besançon. These little sweets are a treasure of the region, and a must-try!

2. Cancoillotte

We’ve already told you about the city’s local cheeses. Cancoillotte is a melted cheese made from pasteurised cow’s milk. It is made by mixing a little water, milk and butter. With its sticky texture, it’s a perfect topping in the morning when you’re looking for something to put on your toast. With its fine flavour, it’s considered a low-fat cheese, with around 5% fat. So you might as well have a spoonful or two!

3. Coq Au Vin Jaune Et Aux Morilles (Rooster with Yellow Wine and Morels)

Here’s an exquisite white meat dish that you’ll want to try once you arrive in Besançon. In a large casserole dish, leave the poultry soaked in wine to marinate for a while. Then carefully remove the lid. The mouth-watering aroma of tender meat will escape, ready to be savoured. The locals usually accompany this dish with a little rice, which goes very well with the wine-based sauce!

4. Comté cheese

Another star cheese! Comté cheese, made from raw pressed cow’s milk from the Jura region, has quickly become a must-try in Besançon. So much so that you’ll find it in every corner of the town! With its little holes in the cheese, which are simply the result of a particularly careful maturing process, this is one of the smoothest cheeses you’ll ever taste. One bite and you’ll be blown away to seventh heaven! Fragrant and a little spicy, this aromatic dish is a nugget!

5. Morel crust

Do you know what morels are? They’re a small ascomycete mushroom that’s very common in Besançon. Particularly tasty, they are regularly cooked as an accompaniment to a variety of dishes. With their fine aromatic qualities, they impregnate the dishes before conquering your stomach. The morel crust is a heavy cream sauce made from morel mushrooms, which is carefully placed on a crusty loaf of bread. Paired with a glass of vin jaune, it’s a dish that’s unanimously acclaimed by the people of Bisont, and certainly by you, dear visitors!

6. Blue trout

You’re probably wondering why this dish has been given such a “special” name. Well, it’s actually quite simple: during cooking, the scales of the trout, when mixed with the added vinegar, take on a slightly bluish hue, hence the name “trout au bleu”. Cooked in a court-bouillon with a little wine, this dish can be served with rice or vegetables such as potatoes. It’s the kind of meal you like to eat hot in the evening, after spending the day visiting Besançon.

7. Vin Jaune

Vin jaune is considered the king of Besançon nectars. This drink, with its delicate notes of almonds, walnuts and toast, is the most widely drunk in the whole region. Made from the Savagnin grape variety, it’s the kind of nectar that goes perfectly with everything you’re likely to eat: savoury, sweet, spicy, cold or hot! In fact, many people like to add a few generous spoonfuls to their dishes, such is the reputation and appreciation of this refined dish.

8. Smoked Mountain Ham

The so-called “Jambon de Morteau” from Franche-Comté is one of the main meats eaten in Besançon. Its pretty pink colour is enough to make you want to eat it, and it’s made from the best parts of the pig, such as the shoulder and the belly. Cooked and smoked, it’s one of the tenderest meats you’ll find anywhere… and it’s in Besançon! In a dish of rice, mashed potatoes or vegetables, or on a slice of bread, smoked ham is absolutely exquisite.

9. Blueberry Tart

Yes, we’re sure you’ve enjoyed a blueberry tart at least once in your life. But have you ever taken a bite of the legendary Besançon tart, the one you remember for the rest of your life? This blueberry-filled pastry is simply delicious. With its thin, slightly crunchy pastry and sweet fruit on top, the Besançon blueberry tart has a secret that the rest of us have no idea about. We can’t explain why it tastes so different from other tarts, but one thing’s for sure: it deserves its place in our list of the best culinary specialities to try!

10. Gougères

This Burgundian speciality is very popular in Besançon. It’s made from choux pastry and cheese. Less hearty than a main course, it is usually served as an aperitif. There’s a certain mystery surrounding Gougères: we don’t really know when they were invented. So much so that their origins could go back a very long way! All the more reason to take your time when tasting them and enjoy this gourmet moment.