Aldwych, French Restaurant Guide

A “Covent Garden staple” for 33 years, this “bustling French bistro with packed tables but speedy service” serves “good-value, reliably cooked traditional Gallic fare” that belies its somewhat touristy looks. Top Tip – “a wide-ranging menu and the set menus and special deals add to its appeal; and it’s a good choice for families with children”.

A glass-ceilinged former auction house in Chancery Lane is home to this homage to Provençal cuisine from Pascal Aussignac’s Club Gascon group – making it an “excellent place for a business lunch in an otherwise under-served area”. Plus points include an interesting list of southern French and Corsican wines, and the downstairs cocktail bar Baranis. Top Tip – “ask for a booth to celebrate a special occasion”.

“On more than one occasion we have observed someone ‘popping the question’ here!” – the “magical” setting “never fails to impress” at this Covent Garden oasis, yet again voted London’s No.1 venue for romance in our annual diners’ poll. “Sitting in the conservatory is a joy, especially in good weather when the retractable roof is open” and its “most beautiful interior courtyard is tailormade for a date”. “The largely Provençal and Tuscan cuisine is good but the star of this show is the magnificent wine list, with choices from around the world and prices to suit all budgets. The only recommendation is to read the wine list at home in advance, otherwise you’ll spend the first hour ignoring your date!”.

“The charming warren of rooms helps make for a happy experience” at this “nostalgic”, and “immensely charming” Gallic super-bistro, near Covent Garden, which opened just after WWII and which has rambled over the years into neighbouring buildings. “For many decades the menu has hardly changed and continues to reflect Parisian bistros with confit de canard, steak grillé and a fine chariot de fromages... warming in winter and equally welcoming the rest of the year”. New owners, Fabio Lauro and Family took over in 2022 from Alain Lhermitte (who owned it since 1972) “leaving some people worried this place has gone off”. But “the food was not what it was” before Alain retired, and ratings improved here somewhat this year – hopefully the start of a positive new chapter for this old veteran.

2021 Review: “Images redolent of ‘Le Gai Paris’ (the naked bottoms went perfectly with my slow roasted pork belly!)” grace the muralled walls of this “friendly and efficient” Gallic corner bistro, near the British Museum: “a reliable and enjoyable choice”, serving affordable classic French dishes.

“Beautifully decorated”, this small, gold-decorated jewel box of a restaurant in the Savoy opened in 2022 (a location that in days gone by was a cheaper eatery called ‘Upstairs’, long RIP). A major plus is its bird’s-eye view of the comings and goings at the hotel’s main entrance, providing a superb talking-point for your date: the best use for the place as its few tables are mostly doubles and space is tight. The main kitchens are elsewhere in the building, so the menu is “limited” but “very good if you like what you receive”.

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”.

A back-to-basics offshoot of Tom Seller’s celebrated Restaurant Story, this new Covent Garden venue opened in April 2023, inspired by his love of Parisian brasseries. Dine on rotisserie chicken (the big deal here) or other brasserie fare including large cuts of meat from the grill to share. Most of the ground floor is counter seating, with more conventional tables in the cellar. It’s an atmospheric winner on most accounts, and – when it came to the food – The Standard’s Jimi Famurewa awarded it full marks, applauding “a careful Jenga tower of elements” that transforms “a deceptively basic concept” into “stylish, subtly affecting excellence”. Not all our early reporters are quite as wowed though – it can also seem “perfectly good if expensive; and unclear what the Michelin background really adds to this type of cooking”.