Hoddesdon, French Restaurant Guide

After working alongside Gary Rhodes and serving as Head Chef at Tom Conran’s Notting Hill venue The Cow, chef James Rix launched this smart Home Counties pub (replete with a large beer garden and heated gazebo) together with wife Bianca in 2004. Its rustic Italian- and French-inspired cuisine attracts reviews ranging from “good quality” to “excellent” – with meat (including Josper-grilled steak) a standout, and starters and desserts that are “not too shabby” either.

“Traditional village pub” serving “very good classic French food (“frog’s legs, boeuf bourguignon, crème caramel as a sample three-course lunch”) at a good price” – “Laurent [Brydniak, le patron] runs it very well and always makes a good occasion”. “Hidden down a quiet lane, it’s well worth the journey” – and makes a handy option if you’re visiting nearby Brocket Hall.

“Excellent French bistro cooking at realistic prices” are the prime ingredients of this “great local restaurant on the leafy streets of Wanstead” – “more neighbourhoods need places like this”. Industry legend Max Renzland was a co-founder back in 2011, but the “reliable fare and service with a smile” have carried on since his retirement. Top Tip – “prix fixe is fantastic value”.

This “cosy neighbourhood bistro with good French-inspired food” and “very knowledgeable staff” has been a Crouch End fixture since 2002, from chef-patron Lynne Marie Sanders, who trained under the great Alain Ducasse. With its inviting warren of rooms and striking, colourful wall murals, it’s “perfect for date night”.

“Wonderful French food” in a “very attractive restaurant” guarantees reliably satisfying meals at this East Finchley fixture – “we always come away feeling we’ve had a lovely evening”. It “remains a top local” in the area, and “the set-price lunch menu is particularly good value, with no extras added to your bill”.

“Love JC and Robert!” – this “ideal neighbourhood restaurant” in Crouch End “punches well above its weight” thanks to its “ebullient service” and “proper French food done to perfection”. “The two owners not only greet you when you arrive, they take your order and serve you in the flamboyant style of the past when ‘Haute cuisine’ was in vogue”. This is “French cuisine as we imagine we remember it” – “absolutely superb”. Top Menu Tips – “delicious Côte de boeuf (presented raw to you for your approval before being flamed!) and the best Rum baba ever (again with the obligatory flaming of the just-poured alcohol at your table!)”; “my go-to for Fish soup” and “the Onion soup is spot-on as are the fish dishes”; “beautifully rich pear Tarte tatin”.