HIDDEN GEMS: SALVADOR DALI ate there whenever he took the road from Paris to Le Havre to travel to the US by transatlantic liner.
He timed his journey to be certain he'd arrive punctually for lunch. And he always ate the same dish, canard à la Rouennaise- which gives a hint about the location of the restaurant.
La Couronne is the oldest inn in France, dating back to 1354. It overlooks Place du Vieux Marché in Rouen, a university city perched on the banks of the River Seine, halfway between Paris and the Atlantic coast.
Rouen is best known not for this historic restaurant but as the city where Joan of Arc was burned at the stake, in May 1431.
Her execution took place right on Place du Vieux Marché, and the records of La Couronne, which had already been open for almost 100 years, report that the inn was particularly busy that day, because of the large number of spectators.
Joan of Arc may never have had an opportunity to try the canard à la Rouennaise, or pressed duck, but the list of celebrities who have made the pilgrimage goes on and on.
Gen Douglas MacArthur and Lord Louis Mountbatten ate there in 1941, during the second World War. Haile Selassie, last emperor of Ethiopia, visited in 1953.
From the silver screen came Sophia Loren, John Wayne and Princess Grace of Monaco. French men-about-town included Jean-Paul Sartre, Maurice Chevalier and Serge Gainsbourg. The discreet Politicians' Lounge on the first floor has traditionally allowed well-known political faces to dine and chat away from prying eyes.
Leaf through the La Couronne visitors' book online and browse the impressions of the rich and famous as though you were looking over their shoulders.
• La Couronne, 31 Place du Vieux Marché, Rouen, France, 00-33-2-35714090, www.lacouronne.com.fr
• Do you know of a hidden gem? E-mail us at go@irish-times.ie