Our history

Key dates in our history

• 1990
  Under the initiative of Jack Lang, the Minister for Culture and the honorary patronage of Paul Bocuse, the Ecully Culinary Arts and Hospitality State School was opened, with the objective of promoting French gastronomy across the globe.
• 1998
  Gérard Pélisson becomes President of the Governing Body alongside Paul Bocuse.
• 1999
  Backed by Hervé Fleury and with Jean Moulin Lyon 3 University, Institut Paul Bocuse becomes the first-ever school to introduce hospitality and cooking into a university’s programme portfolio by creating a professional degree course in the subject. 
• 2002
  Paul Bocuse gives his name to the school, which becomes Institut Paul Bocuse 
  With the support of AccorHotels, our 5-star training hotel Le Royal is opened 
• 2004
  Creation of the Alliance, a network of renowned university partners and the force behind our Institute’s international development strategy. 
• 2008
  Opening of our Center for Food & Hospitality Research, the first-ever in Europe.  With doctoral students on campus, our learning community now has access to the highest level of studies and benefits directly from a centre dedicated to researching new trends and whose work inspires the content of our courses.

• 2013
  Launch of the 4th year specialisation and MSc in International Hospitality Management in partnership with emlyon business school.
  Creation of l’Institut Restaurant, located on place Bellecour in Lyon.
• 2015
  Creation of the Foundation, under the patronage of Gilles Pélisson. Hervé Fleury becomes Delegate General.
• 2018
  Institut Paul Bocuse becomes the first-ever hospitality and food service higher education institution to be awarded dual recognition by the French State. In addition to its original certification (RNCP) by the Ministry of Labour, the school becomes fully certified by the Ministry of Higher Education, Research and Innovation.
  Launch of the 1st Bachelor in Hospitality & Food Service Management.
• 2019

  Our 3-year and 4-year diplomas are registered and approved by the French Ministry of Higher Education, Innovation and Industry.
  Institut Paul Bocuse thus becomes the only management school in the hotel, restaurant and culinary arts sectors to obtain state recognition for its 3-year and 4-year degrees.

• 2020
  Our training restaurant Saisons obtains its Michelin star. The Institut Paul Bocuse thus becomes the only French school to have a starred training restaurant.

• 2021
  Launch of the Bachelor’s degree in International Pastry Management, the only state certified level II degree in pastry.
  Our school obtains THE-ICE accreditation, in recognition of its international academic excellence in the hospitality sector.
  Davy Tissot, our MOF Chef Instructor wins the Bocuse d’Or, the most prestigious award in the world of food.

An 80M2 immersive multi-sensory room opens its doors:  spatial audio, scents, temperatures, HD projections, 360° or interactive video. This room enables our students to freely express their creativity in setting up temporary restaurants and provides our research centre with fertile ground for study and innovation.

•  2022
  Saisons, our star-rated restaurant, becomes the 1st educational restaurant in the world to join Relais & Châteaux’s group of 580 luxury hotels and gourmet restaurants across the globe.
  The Institut Paul Bocuse is chosen to host a centre of excellence for the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes gastronomy and food industry, enabling French professionals from these sectors to prepare for international competitions in the best possible conditions.
  Nais Pirollet, who graduated from our school in 2017, becomes the 1^st woman and the youngest candidate to represent France at the 2023 Bocuse d’or where she finished 5th.
•  2023
  Institut Paul Bocuse renews approval for its Bachelor programmes for a period of 3 years. 
  The Bachelor’s programme in International Hospitality Management is ranked 1^st in its category in the Eduniversal ranking for the 13th consecutive year.

Institut Paul Bocuse opens a new page in its history :
New chapter, new name, new ambition.
The Institut Paul Bocuse bacome the Institut Lyfe!

A new extension for Hospitality and Catering professions, located in the Château de la Roseraie, next to our Château du Vivier, opens its doors. With 22 classrooms equipped with the latest learning technology tools, an amphitheatre open to its local ecosystem, a bar for students, and co-working areas, this new centre doubles our accommodation surface area, giving us a unique campus of 17,000 m² and continuing to enhance the student experience.