South Kensington, French Restaurant Guide

“Reliable, comforting French fare” and a predominantly Gallic wine list keep well-heeled locals comfortably fed and watered at this “candle-lit and romantic” wine bar and restaurant on the border between Earls Court and Kensington.

“Changing very little over the years (which is one of its strongest points!)” – Didier Garnier’s “Grande Dame”, tucked away in a quiet Chelsea backstreet at the back of the Royal Marsden Hospital, “sails serenely on, in its unapologetically old-fashioned manner”. “It’s a classic French upmarket bistro of the sort you find serving traditional French dishes in prosperous towns and cities all over France”. The food is “perfectly good without being startling – just what the customers expect – and by Chelsea standards, is reasonably priced”; service, in the Gallic style, is “impeccable”; and “it has a good buzz and is busy” with a silver-haired clientele who “love it”. Top Tip – “the wine list has to be one of the best-priced in London… unlike many places fleecing their ‘cash cow’ clientele, Le Colombier is the polar opposite and clearly prices wines to attract those who appreciate their excellent list and strong cellar”.

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.

“A love letter to Claude Bosi’s Lyonnaise grandmother” – this “Francophile’s dream” near the Chelsea & Westminster Hospital is not just “a great addition to the neighbourhood” but also one of London’s most commented-on and best-liked venues in our annual diners’ poll. At heart, it’s a “classic French bistro” and fans adore its “quite, quite dreamy combination of to-die-for food, attentive and cordial service”, all at “sensible prices that won’t shock you”: so “ideal as a regular haunt, if you’re well-heeled [as, indeed, most of the customers appear to be]”. That much of the menu is “heavy and calorific” is “heartwarming” for its huge fanbase (although one or two spoilsports “don’t get it”). Fans do admit that “tables are too close together” and that it’s “noisy” (“it feels like you can’t have a private conversation even if you whisper”), but they just don’t care, such is the “real buzz”. See also Josephine, Marylebone. Top Menu Tip – “French onion soup to die for”.