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Bourbonnais specialities in Gannat: markets, artisans and produce to take home

Published 13 September 2021

In Gannat, local cooking is first and foremost from the Bourbonnais: pâté aux pommes de terre (potato pie), piquenchâgne with pears, poultry and Charolais beef. The easiest way to discover it is to shop at the market in the town centre, then fill in the gaps at the artisan shops in town and in the neighbouring villages. Here is what to look for and where.

Specialities to look out for

Gannat lies on the border between Auvergne and the Bourbonnais. On the market stalls, you will therefore find both Auvergne cheeses (Saint-Nectaire, Bleu d'Auvergne) and traditional recipes from the Allier:

• Pâté aux pommes de terre: a pie filled with sliced potatoes, onions and cream. It is eaten hot, as a main course, with a salad. Bakeries and delicatessens sell it by the slice or whole.
• Piquenchâgne: a brioche made with whole pears, mainly baked in autumn. Ask your baker for it, as it is not always on display.
• Bourbonnais poultry: free-range birds raised in the department, with a protected designation of origin. A chicken bought at the market is easy to roast if your property has an equipped kitchen.
• Charolais beef: the Allier is a major livestock area, and local butchers sell it all year round.

Gannat market

The market is held in the town centre on Wednesday and Saturday mornings. You will find producers from the plain and the Val de Sioule: seasonal vegetables, cheeses, eggs, charcuterie and honey depending on the time of year. Come before 10 am for the best choice, and bring a cool bag if you are heading off on an outing afterwards.

Days and locations may change during holidays or events such as the summer festival. If in doubt, the Val de Sioule tourist office keeps an up-to-date list of the week's markets in the neighbouring villages.

Artisans in and around Gannat

To complement the market, several addresses are featured on this blog:

• a butcher's in the town centre, in our article Boucherie Maison Lafarge;
• a wine merchant who champions grower-winemakers, in Les Caves Naudot;
• an organic beer brewed just outside Gannat, in the Jugement Dernier brewery.

For Saint-Pourçain wines, Charroux mustard and Vensat oils, read our dedicated article flavours of the Val de Sioule.

Shopping well during your stay

A few practical tips:

1. Arrive on Tuesday or Friday evening so you can enjoy a market the very next morning.
2. Keep one "home-cooked" meal in your plans: a reheated potato pie and a salad are enough for a group dinner without booking.
3. Ask the shopkeepers where their produce comes from: many work with farms less than 20 km away.
4. Check shop opening hours on Sundays and Mondays, which are often closing days.

Cooking on site

Shopping at the market only makes sense if you can cook. Our apartments and houses in Gannat all have an equipped kitchen, and most are a few minutes' walk from the shops in the centre. For a family or friends, La Grande Maison and L'Annexe sleep up to 10 people around a large table. All can be booked from one night, cleaning and linen included.