A newcomer’s guide to visiting Burgundy like a local
In this detailed travel guide, Sara Keene gets under the skin of the region that makes the world's most coveted wines, bringing you insider tips on the trendiest places to seek out on your next Burgundy wine trip.
I arrived in Burgundy for a two-month stint in late spring of 2024 with only a limited understanding of the region, and even less sense of how to navigate it.
It wasn’t until a couple of weeks into living in Chalon-sur-Saône that I went to Beaune for the first time.
I soon realised that the key to enjoying Burgundy at its best was to think – and drink – like a local.
Burgundy is small enough, and its wine community close enough, that it doesn’t take long to notice how everyone is connected – winemakers, importers and friends-of-friends all circle back to the same handful of addresses.
Spend just a few evenings in Beaune’s wine bars and that web starts to reveal itself.
Get to the beating heart
Saint Romain coffee cart in Beaune, beloved of Burgundy's winemakers
The centre of that web is Beaune’s Saturday market – and more specifically, the Saint Romain Coffee cart in front of the giant panda statue.
Matt McClune, an artist from Boston, moved to France in 2004 with his wife, eventually landing in St-Romain, where he started a coffee roastery.
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Saint Romain Coffee fuels the wine world in Burgundy and beyond. The coffees, which are all sourced from independent farms in Ethiopia, are carefully roasted in small batches at Matt’s shop, located in a cellar-like space on a steep hill just above a sea of vines.
The shop is open Mondays and Tuesdays, but it’s best to find Matt on Saturdays, pouring perfectly extracted espresso into ceramic mugs among a swarm of winemakers and market-goers.
It’s from this point that the world of Burgundy – its goings-on, its stories, its secrets – opens up.
Ease into local life
The Beaune market
The market itself is one of the region’s best. Stalls of spices, cheese, fruit, bread, vegetables and cured meats roll into town before sunrise and take over every street, only to roll out again by midday.
Beaune’s narrow cobbled roads buzz with food and wine lovers.
Afterwards, with bags of Comté and produce in hand, locals retreat to Beaune’s brasseries for lunch. Crème Comptoir, an all-day café and wine bar on Rue Paradis, is a favourite – an easygoing spot, where bar seating wraps around an open kitchen.
Here Saturday afternoons reliably draw a crowd of local winemakers and wine professionals catching up over a bottle.
Listen in for long enough and you’ll pick up on the region’s rhythms. The Côte d’Or’s large expat community makes it an easy place to navigate without French, and postings for local wine and food fairs and concerts are usually pinned in the window.
In Burgundy, it’s nearly impossible to turn over every stone in a single visit – there is always another producer, another café, another thread to follow.
What remains constant is the promise of a region that opens itself up to those patient and curious enough to seek out its local community, not just its cellar doors.
Knowing where to begin is the hardest part – and that’s exactly what this guide, and the recommendations below, are designed to help with.
Many of the villages in Burgundy are accessible by train – the same line that carries you south to Lyon and north to Paris.
Having a car isn’t really necessary, but it’s helpful for organising vineyard visits and exploring the region beyond its towns.
Wineries to visit
The wineries listed here are a great start to discovering the wines of the region. Always try and book in advance, some wineries are open by appointment only.
Where to stay
Boutique hotels and guest houses are the perfect place to base yourself when travelling in Burgundy. Many of them marry historic touches and original features with contemporary decor and a sense of understated luxry.
Chic rooms at Alfred Hotel in Beaune
A boutique hotel on the edge of Beaune that opened in early 2026, its 49 rooms are the perfect jumping off point for exploring the local town and the region beyond.
It seamlessly blends old and new, offering a comfortable stay while remaining enmeshed in Beaune’s historic landscape.
A historic guesthouse in Beaune’s city center with five independent apartments and a great wine bar that opens onto the iconic cobblestone streets.
Maison le Chevreuil, Meursault
Sleek interiors at Maison le Chevreuil
Luxury 10-room inn and restaurant surrounded by the beautiful vineyards of Meursault.
A series of four design-forward homes and apartments located around a beautiful mill, offering longer-stay rentals. There is also a beautiful café.
An 18th-century château converted into four distinct guest rooms which overlook a quiet courtyard.
Ô Cœur de Chalon, Chalon-sur-Saône
There are some amazing homes for rent in downtown Chalon-Sur-Saône, and this is a great option for something central.
What to do
Go to the Friday market in Nuits-St-Georges, the Saturday market in Dijon or Beaune, or the Sunday market in Chagny.
Attend a concert in the courtyard of Le Boule d'Or.
Visit Le Comptoir des Tontons, a legendary wine shop in Beaune on the main road Rue du Faubourg Madeleine, founded by Pepita del Rosario and her husband Richard Grocat as a wine bar and restaurant. After Richard’s death, Pepita stayed on, running the wine shop where you can find one of the best selections of natural wines anywhere in the world.
Shop for wine in downtown Beaune at Mes Bourgognes or Cave Avintures
Schedule a tour with Haute Côtes – Tours are a great option to explore the area and there are tons of amazing guides who can take you to explore the region. A favourite among both Burgundy veterans and newcomers is Hautes-Cotes, founded by Milena Berman and Loï Lamy, an art and wine travel company that offers curated experiences of the region.
Pick up a cortado and a bag of coffee from Saint Romain Coffee.
Take a cooking class at The Cook's Atelier or simply stop into their shop to pick up kitchen essentials in that classic French-countryside aesthetic.
Explore Bouzeron, Burgundy’s only appellation dedicated to whites made from the Aligoté grape.
Visit the Abbey of Cluny, a 10th-century Benedictine monastery, it was destroyed during the French Revolution but remains a deeply spiritual and historic place of pilgrimage.
Attend a wine and music event, such as Montrachet Jazz Weekend in late May or Vin & Hip Hop in October.
Where to eat and drink
Unsurprisingly good wine is not hard to come by in Burgundy, but the suggestions for restaurants and wine bars below offer something a cut above the rest; a well-measured combination of excellent wines, thoughtful and sensitive food and great atmosphere.
All-day café and wine bar serving seasonal fare in a laid back setting.
Wine bar serving natural wine and French classics with a Japanese influence.
Often considered one of the best restaurants in Beaune for its hyper-local classic cuisine and amazing wine list. Make a reservation far in advance to get a seat.
The Publican, Beaune
Local evening haunt serving great local wine and beers on draft.
A quaint inn and bistro set inside a gorgeous, sun-yellow home. Both the food and wine menus rotate daily – farm to table takes on a new meaning here, with deliveries being made by local farmers and winemakers at all hours of the day and night.
Opened in 2024 by wine writer Aaron Ayscough, it serves foremost as a wine shop offering unique and fan-favourite bottles alike, alongside a menu – written on the mirror of course – of classically French small bites.
Emma Borgeot, co-founder of Colette
Set among Chassagne’s beautiful vineyards, this is a wine bar, wine shop and coffee shop from Clément Colin-Morey – son of local legendary winemaker Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey – and his partner Emma.
One of the region’s best boulangeries and chocolate shops.
Located in a former winegrower's house in one of Burgundy’s most iconic villages, the atmosphere here is relaxed and comfortable, but the food is refined and delicate, paired with an excellent wine list.
Haïka Coffee, Chalon-Sur-Saône
A great local roastery in the town center with a lovely terrace where you can catch the goings-on of the town while you sip.
La Maison Romane, Nuits-St-Georges
Restaurant, bakery, brewery and cellar, La Maison Romane is a true hub for community and connection in Burgundy, founded by Oronce de Beler, who decided to leave Paris in 2004 to learn winemaking.
An intimate wine bar helmed by Bruno himself, a local legend in Dijon, who has curated one of the most refined wine lists in Burgundy, serving charcuterie, cheese, anchovies and other great delicacies to regulars and tourists alike.
A new-wave bistrot serving refined seasonal fare inside of a stunning 17th-century stone building in downtown Dijon.
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Sara Keene is a writer, creative strategist and sommelier based in New York. Previously the digital editor at The New Wine Review, her work has appeared in VinePair, YOLO Journal and BYOB Magazine. She currently consults on a number of projects with US-based wine importers helping them to tell the stories of their producers through writing, photography and graphic design. She is also the founder of Amuse-Bouche, a weekly newsletter on Substack exploring food, wine and culture. When she’s not working at a wine bar in Williamsburg, she can usually be found traveling between Paris and Burgundy, where she previously lived. Her work primarily centres itself around the intersection of craft, community and storytelling through wine and the people who make it.