Le Chardon

After not having been back for a while it's still simply the best and my favorite . Great food - service - ambiance. Keep it up Le Chardon, ...............
Comment on this reader review

sean - View all reviews by this user
Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 10
Thursday, June 05, 2008

my husband and i ate here last night, and it was horrible! scallops and salmon were overcooked, the rice tasted like bachelors savoury packet stuff, and the creme brulee was......unbelievably bad, an complete insult of a dish. service was peremptory to say the least. two mains, one dessert, and one bottle of wine came to nearly £80, which was, given the abysmal quality of the food, just ridiculous.
Comment on this reader review

kitty
Overall rating
Food 3 | Service 3 | Atmosphere 3 | Value for money 0
Sunday, June 01, 2008

As a university student currently i don't get to dine out that often, so therefore when i do i look forward to a spectacularly good meal. I was very happy to eat at Le Chardon as straight away from even the exterior of the restaurant and the friendly waitering staff the moment i entered the restaurant i knew it would be a very high standard restaurant and a great night.

I'm not a massive fan of seafood so i was pleasantly suprised to see the large variety of options available on the menu and the descriptions practically made my mouth water, it was very hard to decide!! I ordered the steak and it tasted like heaven, it was cooked just how i enjoy it and with the side vegetables and melted cheese potatoes aka dauphinois it was very very enjoyable!! by the way the dauphinois are too die for i could eat them all day, hehe.

I couldn't resist dessert (obviously) and again there was so much to choose from, crepes, chocolate this honey that.... i was tempted to get it all. the presentation of the dessert was beautifully done i didn't want to ruin it and eat it!....however the taste and heavenly smell of a sweet crepe.... i had to enjoy it! and eat it anyway!

i was so impressed by this restaurant that i regularly go there now for lunch too and breakfast is also very nice. The service is good and the environment is very pleasant not to mention the delicious food!

the selection of wines are also very well chosen with the house red being a very good choice for a fair price. A large variety to suit all wine taste desires!

the prices are excellent value for the fine dining that you recieve and a night out at this restaurant can be guaranteed to be a very enjoyable night. well... my belly certainly thought so.....

P.S. As for that paul smith guys comment you obviously should've gone to specsavers as its not that dark in the restaurant that you can't see your food, and you shouldn't be moaning so much about a clearly fantastic restaurant, i like to see you launch a better one, it would be very difficult. And also the restaurant reviews on this page is for the Le Chardon in Dulwich not Abberville Road.....you definitely should've gone to specsavers.....
Comment on this reader review

Toni Laser
Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 7 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 8
Friday, May 16, 2008

Three refugees from The Palmerston sought comfort in Le Chardon. And very comforting it was too.

I claimed birthday extravagance and started with a crab. Fresh and lovely, big and bold. Helen's little fish cakes were equally scrummy. Helen followed up with coq au vin; served in a cute copper casserole it was the real deal, with separate flavours jostling for attention. Betty skipped a starter and sipped a kir.

I had perfectly pink calves liver. Perhaps best of all were the vegetable sides - fantastic mash with chives, almost-crunchy carrots with garlic herb butter, a gratin dauphinoise to die for (or from), green beans and broccoli at the point of just cooked and a side salad that looked like fresh splashes of bright paint. (Betty ordered three sides instead of a main without complaint either way.)

We finished off with pancakes, just to add a few last calories.

All in all a top class meal, served with style. It all seemed very good value too. We'll be back for more.
Comment on this reader review

Jes - View all reviews by this user
Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 9
Monday, April 28, 2008

The Dulwich restaurant has a gorgeous dining room that looks like an old butcher's shop. Good value and exceptional desserts. The duck was ok, not great, but the steaks and tuna steaks seemed to be winners for my companions.
Comment on this reader review

Dud
Overall rating
Food 7 | Service 6 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 7
Monday, April 28, 2008

I went to Le Chardon restaurant In Clapham last evening...

What a very charming establishment.

A very good mix of Superb food....Friendly staff and fabulous settings...

Its like dining ina very smart Bond Street Gallery.

I was most impressed by the Art and will be going back with my Wife to veiw in more detaii..

I recommend this Restaurant for anyone seeking a lovely meal or requiring an instalation of Art.

Well done Mr Paul andre on your canvas
View/Add comments (1)

Peter Black
Overall rating
Food 5 | Service 6 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 7
Wednesday, April 23, 2008

I had heard many good comments about the local French restaurant in East Dulwich and so was eager to try it out. The interior of the restaurant is nice and welcoming but when we said we did not have a reservation we were seated next to the kitchen door even though the restaurant was virtually empty (and it never did get more than a quarter full while we were there). The staff were freidnly enough although a little slow.

My partner had the snails which were quite tasty and as good as any I have had in Paris but my french onion soup tasted like it was straight out of a packet and was so salty that I couldn't even finish it. The mains were better although my Ostrich was not to my taste.

For a half botle of wine, starters, mains, and coffees at the end out bill came to over 80 pounds surprisingly so I would say that the value for money was not good. I have had better 3 course meals with house wine and champagne in central Paris for less!

All in all not a restaurant I will be returning to in the near future.
Comment on this reader review

Overall rating
Food 6 | Service 7 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 4
Tuesday, April 22, 2008

I'm a regular of Le Chardon Dulwich and Clapham. What a pity some people were disappointed... what's wrong with some people - spoilt rotten, got out of the wrong side of the bed, don't appreciate garnishes, surprised at garlic butter on the veg - at a French restaurant?! haha. Sorry - some reviews upset me because I'm basically pleased with the food, the price and surroundings, and have had appalling experiences at similar priced restaurants. Maybe they just need a good... holiday. Chill out!

Le Chardon know the difference between steak served rare, or blue (which is rarely served in many restaurants). I prefer fish, and there's lots of it, prepared and presented well. Both restaurants offer good value, freshly prepared food (not brought in like some chains!). Not having loads of money to spend, it's a relief to have an extensive, affordable menu with authentic French soups and sauces, big enough portions, interesting starters, proper crepes suzette, tarte tatin with a generously high pile of apple on a tasty, wafer thin base - cooked just right with flaming Calvados to boot (watching the waistline, me.) When I've been treated to dinner, the house red was UNsurprisingly good (didn't give me a headache like other house/pub reds immediately do), the Fruits de Mer platter was impressive, the high-content chocolate mousse to-die-for. They also serve more vegetables than Chez Bruce. This is important because we are a nation of overfed, undernourished fat people and need at least 5-a-day! In France, the fruit-veg recommendation is 7-a-day. No wonder French women are so good-looking.

Le Chardon Dulwich feels like a bistro in France, with its French street signs and music. Reminds me of holidays. The French Manageress is extremely proficient yet charming and warm.

Le Chardon Clapham (I work on Abbeville Road) really needs this place; it's somewhere chic and Smart to hang out (yet not snobby) during the day, sans trop de baby buggies or sticky surfaces - I can comfortably wi-fi, have a business meeting or chat with a friend; it's big enough to hide at the back or pose in the afternoon sun at the front. The bread is organic from a local supplier (less food miles) - I know because I asked. I asked because "ordinary" bread and flour/pasta makes me sleepy!

Love the original paintings of London and the Med - wish I could afford a couple; apparently they'll change the artwork every few months.

Re. service: I get what I ask for, with a smile and a quick chat, in the time I expect to wait for my order.

Ladies: the loos are really clean, and so is the open kitchen which is interesting to see on the way upstairs. Real napkins at dinner.

Felt Le Chardon needed a nice review because they're doing a good job serving real food and should have more good reviews!

Could do with real flowers. Someone rich send them a big bunch - they deserve it.

No, I don't work for them by the way.
Comment on this reader review

Kathy
Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 8
Monday, March 31, 2008

A party of 2, we returned to Le Chardon having been on 3-4 occasions previously. The food as ever was delicious and the service was again impeccable. The final price is reasonable for the food and drink consumed and the service provided.

The tables are close together, and frankly you could mistake your potato Dauphinois for your neighbour’s, but all in all, I will return again and again.
Comment on this reader review

Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 8
Tuesday, March 25, 2008

Went to Le Chardon in Clapham last night and was hugely disapointed, so much so that I don't believe that the positive reviews on this site can possibly be genuine. This is the darkest restaurant I've ever eaten in, couldn't even see the food properly (have they done this on purpose?). The bread that came with my (mediocre) foie gras starter was stale, and my partner's onion soup was lacking any depth of flavour. My steak was undercooked (and I like it rare!) and came with some unadvertised carrot and potato mash, particularly annoying when we'd ordered side dishes as the waiter didn't make us aware of this. The vegetables were swimming in the same over-powering garlic butter that came with my partner's steak (which was well cooked). I didn't risk dessert, my partner's chocolate mouse tasted like angel delight. Service was ok. Didn't have the wine I ordered. Another terrible restaurant on Abbeville Road, I'll be sticking to Pizza Express! Le Chardon, did you write the positive reviews on this site yourself? Disgraceful, a sure sign that you know you're running a below par restaurant.
View/Add comments (1)

Adam Smith
Overall rating
Food 2 | Service 5 | Atmosphere 3 | Value for money 2
Sunday, March 23, 2008