| French Restaurants |
| Cafe Rouge |
| Pierre Victoire |
| The Blue Bicycle |
| Francois |
Another chain attempting to strip the last vestiges of originality from English town centres. It's still one step up from McDonald's I suppose, and the food on offer here is refreshingly different from the unchallenged stranglehold of the Indian/Chinese/Italian axis. Don't like the downstairs seating much, as you can find yourself almost in another couple's lap as the place gets busy and people shuffle up. Ask to be seated upstairs, it's much better. Menu changes every so often, so don't count on ordering that lovely dish you had in London, or the last time you visited. It's also quite expensive for what you get, and they have an annoying policy of writing in service charges. Now I don't mind tipping for good service. I used to be a waiter myself, so this predisposes me to leave 10% or more. But there is such a thing as lousy service, and that shouldn't be rewarded. Neither should we be subsidising crap wages. Espescially in big, successful chains like this.
Another French "chain" that's not quite as trendy as it used to be and is now struggling as a franchise. The thing that I dislike about this restaurant is that it's too dark and never seems to brighten up, which is a shame as the food is quite good. Depending on when you go, it offers value for money too - like their two courses for £5.99. Cafe Rouge please take note.
This restaurant has quite a reputation of being one of York's best, so clearly they were having an off night when we visited. My starter, haddock cakes wrapped in parma ham, consisted of luke warm lumpy potato wrapped in tough over-done pieces of ham. My main course was an incredibly bland lamb in lentils. Karen had smoked duck to start off and spring rolls filled with smoked cheese to follow. She didn't finish either. We shared a selection of ice creams to finish, and they were superb. Wine list was top notch too, but only if you're not paying for it. Overall we were disappointed. The restaurant has a lovely cosy ambience and it's not difficult to see why it might be popular, but on our experience we won't hurry back. Not at £35 a head, excluding wine, anyway.
Francois, 28 Castlegate, 612 744
Establised in York for over ten years suggests a loyal clientelle. Kind of reminded me of "Robin's Nest", for those of you who can remember it. Small, intimate, unpretentious and offering pretty good value for money, Francois is a nice change from plastic chain fodder and you feel sure that the food has been prepared from scratch to your order. I had the impression that it's running like a 2CV when what York needs is a French restaurant that performs like a Roller. At the least, I'd like them to have a go at being a pretender to Blue Bike's crown.
