This pleasant French eatery is housed in a building that once served as horse stables. The long, narrow space is both elegant and intimate, featuring subtly decorated walls and large windows that afford terrific views of the St. Marylebone Church gardens, and the terrace is delightful. The menu gets high marks for creativity, beckoning with temptations like: roast chicken with hot-smoked pomme purée, baby leeks and jus gras; red mullet with bitter lemon purée and saffron emulsion; and Royal Donnach lamb with aubergine purée and olive jus. Prix fixe lunch menu from £24.50; prix fixe dinner menu from £43. TUBE: Regent's Park
This debonair restaurant serves dishes that are classically French. This of course means that some of the menu items are not for wimps: brains and gizzards are there a-plenty, and most of the other internal organs feature shamelessly in concoctions that, once you forget their ingredient's provenance, can verge on beautiful. Among the numerous delights are the feuilletés, but don't strike out on main courses; save for dessert such as an exquisitely simple poire belle-hélène. This is a place to come to for a treat. TUBE: South Kensington
A modern setting and fabulous lineup of New French fare help make this West End brasserie a favorite of diners planning to catch a show later in the evening. The subtly lit dining room is conducive to intimate conversations, and mirrors open up the space while adding a contemporary touch. On the food front, regulars laud the menu for such delicious selections as osso bucco, steak béarnaise, and shoulder of lamb. Excellent wine list. TUBE: Leicester Square
Le Garrick is a little bit of France in the heart of the theatre district and Covent Garden. It's tiny tables and cosy ambiance means it's a perfect place to warm you up in winter, or chill out outside in summer. Perhaps because of the French influence of the place, it's very romantic, but also great for catching up with friends. The menus are classic French, with delicious Soupe a'lOignon (French onion soup) steak and pommes frites all cooked to perfection. The excellent wine list means you can pop in for a simple aperitif and a salad or nibbles if you want, and then roll on through the evening with a good bottle of red and a hearty cassoulet. After 25 years, it's just been taken over, by a couple who met in the restaurant. He's French and kept coming back to Le Garrick when he was over in London, and she's been working in the restaurant for the last 10 years and is now the restaurant manager. According to their newly vamped website, the chef, Rocco has just been sent to the owner's mother in South West France to enhance his French repertoire even more, so long may the romance and the delicious cooking continue.
Local Expert tip: Even though it's in the heart of the west end, if you wait a little bit later than the majority of diners, you can often pop in and find a cosy table downstairs without booking. Great for a romantic tete a tete, or perhaps on your own, you never know, like the owners, you might meet your life partner there too!
Criterion serves unpretentious French-British cuisine in a setting of unrivaled Byzantine opulence. Golden ceiling mosaics, Venetian glass lamps, and gilt-trimmed furnishings establish a luxurious backdrop for classic dishes like roast suckling pig with apple sauce and jus à la marjoram, or fillet of beef Rossini. Dessert tarts are delicate, and toffee pudding with caramel ice cream offers a rich ending as well. TUBE: Piccadilly Circus
This wood-wrapped dining room rests a flight of stairs down from street level, a setting which lends it a dark, quiet feel. The restaurant is known for classic French cooking, impeccable service, and London's finest selection of cheeses and wines. The traditional menu is as rich as they come: think creamy soufflé Suissesse, hot foie gras with crispy duck pancake, or roast rib of French veal with morel mushroom sauce and a chartreuse de legume with mash mousseline. TUBE: Marble Arch
