monsieur paul bocuse. the brigade.ne since escoffier instituted a military-style hierarchy into the kitchen. where the only acceptable response to any question or any command is "oui, chef." this is the special forces, the s.a.s. of cooking. and these cooks live to avoid, under any circumstances, disappointing their comrades, the hierarchy or monsieur paul. daniel worked here and so have many, many who have gone on to run their own celebrated kitchens. >> hello. [ speaking french ] >> in the '70s as a young wanna-be cook, i managed to lay hands on a french copy of paul bocuse's classic cookbook "la cuisine de marche." and i gaped in wonder at the photos. struggled to translate the descriptions of dishes so fantastic i was quite sure i never, ever in my life would cook, much less eat. if you could please say how honored and grateful i am to be here. this is a dream come true. over the years, how many great chefs have come through this restaurant and gone on to open great restaurants? >> [ speaking french ]. >> he always

chappell, bocuse, toisgros, bocuse, and most importantly, influenced nearly all the rest of them. >>h a gastronomic capital? why bocuse here? why troisgros? why all of these great chefs? >> because lyon is really positioned between the north and the south. >> right. >> you're locked in between burgundy and rome. >> lyon is the second largest city in france, situated in the southeast of the country midway between the alps in the east and the mediterranean to the south. >> this was also a bottleneck when cars became the mode of transportation. >> goes right to the heart of the michelin driving the destination on the way to -- >> completely. >> out of that system came chefs like this guy, daniel boulud. like prince or madonna, he needs really only one name. in new york or anywhere in the chef world, daniel. the name of his three-star eponymous restaurant in manhattan, one of many in an empire that stretches from london to singapore. he came from here, a farm outside the city of lyon, through the city's great kitchens to la cirque in new york, then his flagship. >> when did you start wor