Abbaye Collonges - Paul Bocuse

Why Paul Bocuse Was the Most Famous Chef in France

"On the property he ran and maintained as an event space sat a curated collection of festive barrel organs whose centerpiece is a rare Grand Limonaire—an imposing mechanical instrument 18 feet tall and 32 feet wide. At full volume it can resemble a 110-piece orchestra, its dozens of humanlike automatons clanging cymbals, wringing accordions and beating drums; the massive façade even bore the red, capital words “BOCUSE CIRCUS,” a fitting, circuslike emblem. The Limonaire had been sealed behind a wall in Lyon during World War I until it was dramatically unsealed and painstakingly restored by its owner, who spent large sums to bring the tomblike relic back to life, creating a lavish, theatrical focal point for events held there." - Hugh Merwin, Hugh Merwin