Troisgros

The Troisgros family achieved culinary fame generations ago in the Loire city of Roanne, before undertaking high-profile projects in Paris and even Tokyo. But it’s in Ouches, mere minutes outside of Roanne, that Marie-Pierre, Michel, César and Marion established what’s simply known as Troisgros, a masterful small hotel to go along with the enormously successful restaurant.

As in all the finest projects of this type, it’s difficult to say which is more impressive. Safe to say the lodging is anything but an afterthought; here an antique farmhouse and estate was transformed by architect Patrick Bouchin into an inspired and inspiring contemporary hotel, one that remains connected to the past but is firmly rooted in the present.

Its 15 rooms, suites and apartments are luxurious, but understatedly so, and are as confidently stylish as any city-center design hotel. The look is neither too rustic nor too avant-garde, but perfectly judged as a subtle supporting act to the stunning glass-walled Le Bois sans Feuilles, the Troisgros family’s Three-MICHELIN-Star restaurant.