French Restaurants in Fetcham
1. The French Table
French restaurant in Surbiton
85 Maple Rd - KT6
“A local treasure” – Eric & Sarah Guignard’s long-established “little gem” in “a tree-lined road 10 minutes walk from Surbiton station” (“handy if you wish to enjoy their brilliant wine list”) remains a shining and much commented-on beacon in the ’burbs. “Eric and his team consistently create high-class modern French cuisine while Sarah and her front-of-house team provide very professional, very genuine service – dining here is first-class”. Even those who note “the somewhat unpromising shape of the room” say it “continues to provide an excellent experience year after year” and one that’s “very good value”. Top Tip – “they also have a great little pastry counter next door”.
2. The Cricketers
French restaurant in Cobham
Downside Common - KT11
Given its attractive setting on Downside Common, this “lovely country pub” (part of Raymond Blanc’s White Brasserie chain) in the heart of plush stockbroker belt would likely be a local destination come what may. But it also goes the extra mile and – though it’s not particularly ‘gastro’ – wins consistently high acclaim for its “cheerful welcoming staff” and high quality of cooking. “It was done up over the winter; and although there is no longer a set menu, the prices are reasonable in the current climate”. Top Menu Tip – “well-prepared steak and very good tartiflette starter”.
3. José Pizarro at The Swan Inn Esher
British, Modern restaurant in Esher
2 Hare Lane - KT10
Food TV staple José Pizarro’s first outfit outside the capital – and first gastroboozer (with rooms) – is set in “a not-completely-obvious location” in the Surrey ‘burbs. Reviews were slightly muted this year: while most praised the “great modern Spanish food” (including “fabulous tapas”), others noted a lack of atmosphere (“wouldn’t be hard to make it feel a bit more intimate”).
4. Colette
French restaurant in Wimbledon
77 High Street Wimbledon - SW19
2022 Review: ‘A taste of rural France on the Fulham Road’ is the promise at this ‘gourmet traiteur’ in Chelsea: an early 2020 newcomer where dishes (to go or for delivery within 4 miles) are designed for reheating at home and prepared by Chris Hill, who most recently worked as a senior sous chef at The Ritz. It’s owned by Dimitri and Mira Plaquet, of a high-quality Belgian food group called La Villa Lorraine. They must be doing something right, as in mid 2021 they launched a second store in Wimbledon.
5. Le Salon Privé
French restaurant in Twickenham
43 Crown Rd - TW1
For a quality meal out St Margaret’s way, this conventional French restaurant – set in agreeably old-fashioned Victorian premises – provides a traditional and enjoyable experience that’s consistently well-rated in our annual diners’ poll. Top Tip – good-value ‘menu du jour’ available at lunch and at dinner early in the week.
6. Chez Lindsay
French restaurant in Richmond
11 Hill Rise - TW10
This “friendly family bistro serving classic” Breton galettes, seafood and cider has been a fixture near Richmond Bridge for 35 years, and is for many local reporters “a go-to restaurant for lunch or dinner” – whether at one of the “far tables which overlook the Thames” or in the “private room upstairs, ideal for parties”. In early 2023 founder Lindsay Wotton put the business up for sale so she could retire.
7. Chez Vous
French restaurant in Warlingham
432 Limpsfield Rd - CR6
2022 Review: The French cuisine may not be cutting-edge, but it is both consistent and highly accomplished at this ten-year-old restaurant with rooms in north Surrey. Chef owners Laurent Pacaud and Martin Bradley ran the business as a catering company for ten years before that.
8. Gazette
French restaurant in Putney
147 Upper Richmond Rd - SW15
This popular small bistro group is “so very French”, especially when eating at the original “buzzy” Battersea branch, which opened in 2007 “at an attractive location near the river”. The other branches – in Putney, Wandsworth Common and the City (plus one inside the Institut Français in South Kensington) – are also applauded as “good value” options, but results can also seem a little “unadventurous”.
9. Petit Ma Cuisine
French restaurant in Kew
8 Station Approach - TW9
This “retro neighbourhood French bistro” in a parade of shops near Kew station is “massively popular with the locals due to its competitive prices” for “Gallic classics with a little twist” (and gets “very crowded at lunchtimes”).
10. Gazette
French restaurant in Battersea
79 Sherwood Ct, Chatfield Rd - SW11
This popular small bistro group is “so very French”, especially when eating at the original “buzzy” Battersea branch, which opened in 2007 “at an attractive location near the river”. The other branches – in Putney, Wandsworth Common and the City (plus one inside the Institut Français in South Kensington) – are also applauded as “good value” options, but results can also seem a little “unadventurous”.
11. Soif
French restaurant in Battersea
27 Battersea Rise - SW11
With its charcuterie, gutsy small plates, cheese and wacky vintages, this venture from Les Caves de Pyrène (est 2011) helped inspire the current vogue for low intervention wine bars in the capital. Feedback is scarce nowadays, but still suggests it’s worth a try if you’re in the vicinity of Battersea Rise.
12. Brasserie Blanc Fulham Reach
French restaurant in Hammersmith and Fulham
Goldhurst House, Parr's Way - W6
“For a reasonable pre-theatre/concert meal” on the South Bank, the SE1 branch of this Gallic brasserie chain is “a useful option behind the Royal Festival Hall”; its City and Legal-land outlets are serviceable for a working lunch; and its W6 branch has a “classy” position on the river. Over time, though, it has “declined from being one of the better multiples” and is nowadays “very, very average indeed” – with the possible exception of Hammersmith, you wouldn’t make them a destination in their own right. BREAKING NEWS. In October 2023, a third branch was announced on the South Kensington site that – appropriately – traded for yonks in time gone by as La Brasserie (long RIP).
13. Le Vacherin
French restaurant in Chiswick
76-77 South Parade - W4
“The French bistro at its best”, this “reliable” Gallic fixture by Acton Green is “a small bit of Paris in Chiswick”, with “perfect food (including oysters) and an atmosphere for romance”. Top Menu Tip – “delicious soufflés”.
14. The French Tarte
French restaurant in Surbiton
83 Maple Road - KT6
2023 Review: This “lovely local friendly coffee shop” with a French accent and pastries is a spin-off from Eric and Sarah Guignard’s French Table next door, and does a particularly good Gallic take on the English afternoon tea.
15. Le Petit Nantais
French restaurant in East Molesey
41 Bridge Road - KT8
Still on top form after 27 years, scrum-half-turned-chef JP (Jean-Philippe) Gravier and his FOH English wife Kim won particularly strong feedback this year for the “fresh and creative dishes in a charming environment” at their classic Gallic bistro across the river from Hampton Court Palace. It’s “family-run from top to bottom”, with daughter Victoria working in the kitchen these days – so “what’s not to love”?
16. Gazette
French restaurant in Wandsworth
218 Trinity Road - SW17
This popular small bistro group is “so very French”, especially when eating at the original “buzzy” Battersea branch, which opened in 2007 “at an attractive location near the river”. The other branches – in Putney, Wandsworth Common and the City (plus one inside the Institut Français in South Kensington) – are also applauded as “good value” options, but results can also seem a little “unadventurous”.
17. Colette
French restaurant in Wandsworth
142 Northcote Road - SW11
2022 Review: ‘A taste of rural France on the Fulham Road’ is the promise at this ‘gourmet traiteur’ in Chelsea: an early 2020 newcomer where dishes (to go or for delivery within 4 miles) are designed for reheating at home and prepared by Chris Hill, who most recently worked as a senior sous chef at The Ritz. It’s owned by Dimitri and Mira Plaquet, of a high-quality Belgian food group called La Villa Lorraine. They must be doing something right, as in mid 2021 they launched a second store in Wimbledon.
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