The idea, which goes back to 1997, is brilliant. The Lyon area, which one can believe is entirely devoted to Beaujolais and the Côtes du Rhône wines, has also a solid reputation of a city in which beer is liked.

A drink which does not like travelling very much and which is never as good and creative as when it is brewed and produced on the spot.

The concept sprang from the minds of a Frenchman and of an American, fresh from Ecole Supérieure de Commerce, and it will be Ninkasi which is the name of the Sumerian goddess of beer (Nothing less!…) remains only to find the right spots.

It started in the Gerland quarter and the Kafés, as they are called, sprang up. At Ampère, Ferrandière, Opéra, Gratte Ciel in Villeurbanne and the last lucky find, is Saint Etienne.

At the best location in the city, Place Jean Jaurès, where there are terraces, cinemas, kiosks, Ninkasi is very close to the new cinema Méliès, which proposes, precisely, a very rich programme, with meetings with film directors, projections of lesser known films and other curiosities. It fits perfectly with the rest, and the Ninkasi spirit. 

Like all the others, this Ninkasi is both linked to the location where it is, and has its own temperament, its own identity. Close to Ninkasi Gratte-Ciel , by its very contemporary interior architecture, it extends over 400m2 and is broken up into two distinct spaces (a snack bar area and a restaurant space) with a 150m² terrace.

One of its originalities is its chef Stephan Granger, from Boà«n, with a gastronomic background. One will thus taste top rate dishes and steam cooked sandwiches, low calorie menus and gourmet recipes.

Like the loup en croûte de sel (bass with a salt crust), the pavé de saumon mi-cuit aux mousserons (semi-cooked salmon with meadow mushrooms), and spit-roasted meats. With, as always, live music and spectacles and the home-made beer, tasty and refined which is the first raison d’être of Ninkasi. Ready to make more Ninkasi. Other Ninkasi…