Greater London, French Restaurant Guide

From a French family who have operated in this corner of Kennington for almost 35 years – this brasserie with an upstairs jazz club on a corner near Elephant & Castle remains “a great neighbourhood choice”. The brothers behind it, Noland & Florent Regent, grew up next door in the Lobster Pot, which their parents ran for 25 years until 2016. The Gallic menu – snails, foie gras, cassoulet and madeleines – is complemented by “great beer”, including Meteor from France and Orbit from less than a mile away.

“Good pre-theatre option very close to the Royal Opera House” – this Covent Garden fixture is “not overly expensive”, and even if its French brasserie food is sometimes “OK but uninspiring”, it “hits the spot for a quick dinner” and provides a very “buzzy” launchpad for an evening in the West End. Top Menu Tip – “excellent onion soup”.

The Balthazar website promises an ‘elegant evocation of a traditional French brasserie with an authentic Parisian feel’, and many reporters feel that this “big” Covent Garden destination delivers just that: “good Gallic classics, a bustling (noisy) atmosphere all in a touristy area” (“with a wide menu for everyone, kids included… French onion soup and steak frites excellent!”). But while fans say that “if you go with that in mind, it’s a good choice for the right occasion”, there’s a persistent minority happy to write the place off (“very disappointing food and rushed service trying to get you out ASAP”, “at a high price”).

“Is there better value in London?” query fans, than the £54.50, 5-course tasting menu at this intriguing, “discreet” converted Georgian auction house in Chancery Lane, from Pascal Aussignac’s Club Gascon group, where the elegant, light-filled interior with large roof-light hints at its former purpose. The “simple southern French cuisine” is “precise, cleverly flavoured and pleasantly served”, while the wine list offers equally “good value”. Top Tip – head down to the vaults for an end or two of indoor pétanque in Baranis cocktail bar.

“Famous for being London’s top romantic dining spot with good reason” – this bewitching Covent Garden “haven” comes complete with an “exquisite” rear conservatory, with “a glass roof that opens in summer” and “the treat of a log fire in winter” – and “on the first floor you dine under a vibrant canopy of flowers”. By most accounts the European cuisine is “beautifully presented and tastes as good as it looks” too, although a slight slip in its ratings of late supports those who feel that “it’s more hit and miss since the pandemic”. No change in its “wonderful wine selection” however: “a surprisingly eclectic list of wines, alongside the bonus of an extensive cognac offering (and Armagnac dating back 70 years!”). “A must for a special celebration”.

“Chef Anthony Demettre will often come out and have a chat” if you dine regularly at this “good stand-by in the heart of the West End”, where “beautifully presented dishes with hints of France are served by smiling waiting staff” in a stylish and “well-spaced” chamber convenient for Trafalgar Square and Theatreland. Long-term fans remember the two smaller, more personal incarnations of his Wild Honey project (“I was concerned its spirit would have been lost in the move to a Sofitel. I need not have worried: Anthony Demetre was very much at the stoves and it was clear his enthusiasm for French regional cooking was still reflected in a range of memorable dishes of some skill, using top ingredients: no corporate corner-cutting here!”). Top Tips – “a new, more informal bistro sits alongside the main restaurant and offers a similar authentic menu for a more modest outlay”; “great-value lunch menu”.

“Hidden away in a basement at the side of Leicester Square”, “a marvellous little subterranean wine bar with a decent selection of mid-range wines that are not too overpriced for central London”. A “wide-ranging” food menu (including the famous ham-and-cheese pie that has been on the menu since 1971, of which about 1,000,000 portions have been sold) makes it a “great pitstop in tourist central – happily off the radar for most of them”. “You can’t drink in this place without feeling part of the iconic venue’s history”: its “tried and tested reputation” was established by founder Don Hewitson and is maintained by his successor Will Clayton.

“Magical Korean/French food delivered with precision and style that blows your mind with its brilliant combinations of flavours” continues to win acclaim for Woongchul Park & Bomee Ki’s “very likeable” passion project near The Shard (which was hailed as Top Newcomer of the Year by Harden’s after it opened in 2020). The cuisine is “reasonably unique for London with its fusion of European and Korean traditions” and the resulting dishes are a “delicate” and sophisticated combination of the two, with pastry (prepared by Bomee) a particular strength. Opinions on the room differ: to fans “beautifully decorated in quite a subtle style”, to others “comfortable if plain”.

2023 Review: Rihanna celebrated her birthday in February 2022 at this lavish Creole haunt next to The Ivy, in Covent Garden, where the former site of L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon nowadays combines a restaurant (ground floor), bar (first floor) and roof garden. Whether the tastes of New Orleans are faithfully replicated is a matter of some dispute – there is the odd take-down of “overpriced and under-seasoned dross”, but most reports actually say its gumbo, Louisiana crab cakes and other eclectic dishes are “very good”.

“Everything is comme il faut” at this “rapid-service and good-value” duo from Lyon-born Aurelia Noel-Delclos, which capture “something of the style and liveliness of a French bistro”. The newer branch, in Victoria, has “clearly been discovered by Civil Service bods, so is often full” (and the “excellent breakfasts” there are an added bonus). Covent Garden is easily overlooked in the tourist ‘Ground Zero’ at the heart of the market itself. Top Menu Tip – “well-flavoured chicken breast with a good piperade and smoked new potatoes; good example of duck confit; decent creme brulée”.

A set from ’Allo ’Allo would struggle to seem more French than this “classic brasserie” near Covent Garden, billed as the capital’s oldest French restaurant and now under only its third family ownership in 74 years. But “pretty ordinary food and service” often undermine “the Gallic charm of yesteryear”, leaving some diners reporting a “rather a sad come-down from the glories of long ago”. More romantic types, though, feel that “holding hands in this legendary space still works at whatever age… with traditional brasserie food, good wines, and a pleasant atmosphere”.