2015 Peugeot Foodtruck Concept

The PEUGEOT Foodtruck: the Lion launches a bistro

PEUGEOT unveiled its take on the food truck on 2 April, at a special preview hosted by popular Paris event venue Le Carreau du Temple. The vehicle combines innovative new experiences to deliver high-quality food on the go. The PEUGEOT Foodtruck was dreamt up and designed by Peugeot Design Lab, the carmaker’s Global Brand Design studio, and dubbed Le Bistrot du Lion. The new restaurant on wheels will take up residence at Milan Design Week 2015 on 14 April, before heading to the French Pavilion at the 2015 World’s Fair, Expo Milano, where the theme will be “Feeding the Planet, Energy for Life.”

PEUGEOT’s story began over two hundred years ago in France, a country now known for both its culinary delights and automobile industry, and it is no coincidence: both fields are underpinned by precision, chemistry and innovation. As early as 1810, the PEUGEOT family’s grain mill was converted to begin manufacturing saw blades. From there, the brand continued to expand at a swift pace; the first PEUGEOT coffee mill was sold in 1840 and in 1874 the first PEUGEOT pepper mill—whose mechanism has a lifetime warrantee. In 1882, the first PEUGEOT vehicle, the Grand-Bi Penny-farthing bicycle, made its debut, followed shortly thereafter by another visionary machine: the first PEUGEOT automobile. Since then, PEUGEOT has sent more than 65 million motor vehicles out onto the world’s roads.

In 2015, PEUGEOT is the only brand in the world that continues to manufacture tableware while also designing and producing vehicles—automobiles, bicycles and scooters—by the millions.

These two centuries teeming with ideas, ingenuity and bold design have now given rise to an innovative take on the food truck: PEUGEOT’s unique vision for a roving restaurant that caters to the senses to keep customers coming.

"Since it was founded, PEUGEOT has designed and manufactured thousands of domestic objects and vehicles. They are proof of our multifaceted industry expertise and our ability to reconcile new forms with function. The PEUGEOT Food Truck is an obvious heir to these traditions: a mobile object, an automobile, which, once parked, becomes a food truck unlike any other. Our goal is to appeal to all the senses—sight, taste, smell, hearing and touch—through the unique combination of modernity and harmony only Peugeot can offer."

Gilles Vidal, PEUGEOT Design Director

For a successful recipe, you have to use the best ingredients

As Cathal Loughnane, Head of Peugeot Design Lab, explains, “The end-users are always at the heart of all of our designs. For the PEUGEOT Foodtruck, we wanted to create a complete food truck experience, not only creating a kitchen for the chef but a restaurant and cafe for the customers. A lot of attention was given to opening up the kitchen and allowing the chef and food preparation to be as close to the public as possible. We also wanted to create a real sense of surprise as the compact Peugeot Foodtruck transforms into amphitheatre like dining space Le Bistrot du Lion”

The PEUGEOT Food Truck is compact and perfectly suited to an urban environment. Its short front and rear overhangs providing enhanced manoeuvrability, while its long wheelbase offers considerable load volume.

Once on site, the PEUGEOT Food Truck spreads its wings to double its width to offer a versatile space that can easily be adapted to a variety of environments and events.

Le Bistrot du Lion includes areas for food preparation, dining and refreshments, as well as a DJ booth—capitalizing on the new digital music platform launched by the brand, PEUGEOT MUSIC, which offers web radio and exclusive playlists (http://peugeotmusic.com).

To make sure everyone gets the most out of the experience, the PEUGEOT Foodtruck comes equipped with everything needed to feed 30 patrons comfortably inside Le Bistrot du Lion, with a collection of standing tables all shaded under Umbrosa parasols. A responsible attitude: Le Bistrot du Lion is designed to recuperate and recycle all waste and insure that once folded up Le Bistrot Du Lion leaves the city in exactly the same state as when it arrived.

Foodies can watch the chef’s every move thanks to a 46-inch screen and a sound system by leading French speaker-maker Focal. The speakers retransmit even the faintest sizzle of the food on the stovetop with astounding accuracy and are great for live sound when hooked up to the Le Bistrot du Lion mix table, which French DJs Adriano and The Reflex took for its first spin.

To ensure the PEUGEOT Food Truck was completely functional and in compliance with all standards and food hygiene regulations, Peugeot Design Lab turned to Euromag, the French food truck specialist. The professional-grade preparation and cooking appliances are all designed to be multi-functional, in order to adapt to the inspiration and talents of any chef and type of cuisine, from fine dining to fusion and molecular gastronomy.

On board, chefs enjoy two grilling plates grilling and 4 induction burners as well as a deep fryer. The ventilation system ensures optimum air quality and a 400-litre refrigerated under-foot compartment makes sure food stays fresh. A 350-litre refrigerator keeps the drinks cold, and a professional espresso machine by Rocket Espresso provides patrons with delicious coffee to conclude their meals.

Chef Sven Chartier takes the reins of Le Bistrot du Lion for launch

Peugeot has selected the talented French chef Sven Chartier, of Saturne and Le Clown Bar in Paris, as the first culinary tenant of Le Bistrot du Lion. An ideal pairing of the brand’s first mobile restaurant with a chef who respects and believes in local sourcing and organic farming.

Chef Chartier will be using the new PEUGEOT salt and pepper mill set, which was designed to accompany the truck in all his culinary travels. The duo, dubbed Milan, is the brand’s latest homage to the alliance of the culinary arts and design.

The Milan set are the first mass-market mills designed by Peugeot Design Lab. They will initially only be available for purchase at the French Pavilion during the 2015 Milan Expo, and then will subsequently be distributed through PSP Peugeot (Poivrières Salières Production) sales outlets.

The Milan set, which is made at the PSP factory in Quingey, in eastern France, is made beech wood locally sourced in Franche-Comté forests and boasts the unique U-Select system, which allows the user to precisely adjust the size—and thus taste—of the grounds using six size settings.

Peugeot mills are sold worldwide, with 2.5 million units manufactured each year. They hold a prized place with the world’s chefs thanks to the precision of their gears and their remarkable longevity.

The PEUGEOT Foodtruck makes its first trip: Italy

Following its unveiling in Paris, the PEUGEOT Foodtruck will take up residence at the PEUGEOT stand during the 2015 Milan Design Week, before travelling the few miles across town to set up outside the French Pavilion for the 6 months of the 2015 World’s Fair Expo Milano. It is sure to be one of the Pavilion’s stars.