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Centre-Val de Loire
In Berry, veal is not called ‘veau’ but ‘viau’ — and since 2006, an entire brotherhood has ensured that its head is never forgotten, simmered just as it should be.
Traditional dish from Centre-Val de Loire.
In Berry, veal is called ‘viau’ — a word documented in the traditional vocabulary of Berrichon cuisine. In the local dialect, ‘tête de viau’ is therefore nothing other than tête de veau: a dish known across France in various forms, but one that Berry has made so thoroughly its own that it is known by its dialect name rather than in French.
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Since 12 July 2006, an association has watched over this dish: the Confrérie berrichonne des mangeux de tête de viau, headquartered in Châteauroux, in Indre. Its statutory purpose is explicit — to promote the terroir specialities of central Berry, and more particularly tête de viau in all its culinary forms, whilst rediscovering, preserving and passing on the old and new recipes associated with it. Still active twenty years after its creation, it renewed its declaration in April 2026.
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The dish has not remained frozen in the rural past. At Maison Médard, a Michelin-starred restaurant located in Boulleret, in Cher, on the edge of the Sancerrois, chef Julien Médard also revisits traditional tête de veau, serving it as a pressé accompanied by its roasted tongue. A sign that this rustic dish continues to inspire the gastronomy of Berry, from the family pot-au-feu to the gastronomic table.
Appearance
Tête de viau brings together several cuts from the same piece — cheek, snout and ear — served in slices after long cooking.
The recipe from chef Julien Médard, who revisits the dish at Maison Médard in Cher, documents the basic method common to this type of preparation:
the calf's head is deboned; the cheek, snout and ear are kept.
a few minutes in boiling vinegared water, then refreshed.
the meat is drained, seasoned and served in slices; some chefs now press it for a more contemporary presentation.
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At Julien Médard's restaurant, the tête de veau pressé is accompanied by a gherkin condiment sharpened with shallot and mustard, and a chive oil that brings freshness; the reduced cooking juices provide crunch in the form of delicate crisps. A contemporary way to experience, at the table, the dish that the Berrichon brotherhood has kept alive in Châteauroux since 2006.
Tête de viau du Berry is not protected by any official quality sign. Its transmission relies on family tradition and the work of a dedicated brotherhood, founded in Châteauroux in 2006.
Brotherhood
Fine dining
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