Chez Gerard (Rupert Street)
our comments
This, the newest member of the Chez Gerard group, is modern light and bright and with windows that open up on to the street when summer comes. The group made its name with steak and chips ‘the best this side of Paris’ the adverts rather cockily promise and that’s still what the punters pop in for. However Gerry’s also draws on French influences from around the globe such as Morocco, Montreal, Italy and New Orleans to create a contemporary, light and diverse menu. There is a somewhat confusing choice with so much diversity as to make the head spin rather, but on the positive side it does mean few people will fail to find something they fancy.
Forest mushrooms cooked in a rich garlic laden butter, layered with puff pastry and jauntily topped off with a well-poached egg worked well. At least three types of mushroom, each with decent bite to them benefited from the pool of golden yolk that flooded around once the egg was broken. A starter for dedicated plate lickers, as running the bread around to soak up the tasty butter, garlic and egg mixture was all but obligatory.
Steaks normally leave me cold, but Chez Gerrad serves onglet steak, the secret steak of the connoisseur. Sirloin, rump, fillet are all well and good but M.Onglet is the daddy. It actually hangs from the diaphragm of the animal, hence its alternate name of ‘hangar steak’. It needs to be cooked quickly and rare and Chez Gerard make this clear on the menu so that no one need be surprised at what arrives on their plate. Indeed cook it any longer than for rare and its tough and unpalatable. Mine was delicious, especially with the fine fries that I bundled onto my fork between bites of onglet. A simple salad of green leaves was good for contrast and again for picking up the juices on the plate.
Crème brulee slightly failed the tap test, my spoon went through on the first strike, but the custard base was creamy although not flavoured with as much vanilla as I would have liked. Very more-ish, very filling.
With this new restaurant Chez Gerard is continuing to provide a decent alternative to the bland chains around, and around the theatre land of Shaftsbury Avenue it offers reliable, honest food at a good price
N.H. - October 2007
your comments review this restaurant and win a bottle of champagne
V disappointing meal. Had 50% off voucher so tried finest steaks incl Wagu beef. Steaks were overpriced and very ordinary. Starter of Salmon salad was bland. Service was average. Wine was nice but at £28 a bottle was expensive. Whole meal came to £78 for 2 with 50% off! Would def not recommend to a friend. Much nicer and cheaper restaurants around. Another example of the need to stay away from chain restaurants.
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Overall rating 
Food 4 | Service 5 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 1
Thursday, August 14, 2008
Our second visit to the Rupert Street brasserie was probably less successful than the first although I remain quite a fan of the CG concept, apart from a dire experience at the Covent Garden branch.
A happy hour bottle of house wine for under a tenner was a bonus but deafening background music wasa turn-off. My medium rare steak was more like "blue" but was tender and tasty. Wife's longer cooked version and daughter's steak hache were both well received.
Manically busy when we arrived, the place was almost empty by 8 on a Saturday, presumably a result of the pre-theatre scramble although neighbouring eateries looked crowded.
To her credit the waitress cancelled the gratuity space before handing me the chip and PIN machine as service was already included.
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Kentishwanderer
Overall rating 
Food 8 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 5 | Value for money 7
Monday, April 14, 2008
We visited Chez Gerard in Rupert Street last week just before the theatre and were very happy with our choice. This is definitely the best option for exquisite food and lovely surroundings in the West End. The happy hour offer certainly helps to start your evening in jolly good mood!
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Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 7 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 7
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Last night I had the worst food experience in a restaurant for many years. The menu at Chez Gerard is different - on paper a bistro type one. I had tiger prawns for a starter. They were a bit leathery and tasteless but inoffensivethough boring. My steak ( yes - I succumbed to meat, having initially gone there for fish - but the ad said it was the best steak outside Paris ! ) was dreadful. The taste might have been reasonable but 80% of the steak was unchewable. The pepper sauce was greasy tasting and did not appear to have seen a peppercorn. The portion of chips was minute. My wife was slightly better off with her soup that did actually taste of a vegetable as described.
We had a glass of Sancerre each. The wine was far too acidic, reminiscent of wines at a fraction of the price we were paying. Then we had a glass of Rioja each. This did not have the depth you would have expected from the description and price.
This disaster came in at over £ 100 without any dessert or coffee
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TN from Hertfordshire
Overall rating 
Food 1 | Service 6 | Atmosphere 4 | Value for money 0
Wednesday, December 05, 2007
Went last night and liked the look of the restaurant as it looked modern and well thought out. We were met with smiles and shown to our table upstairs which we were informed was booked for 7pm (We'd just come from a matinee showing of Lord of the Rings - V Good). Two of us went for the Wagyu Steak, which at over £27, meant high expectations. My mum went for the fillet. Our steaks arrived on their own and a couple of minutes later our sides and saucse arrived. I would have like them the other way round as the steak had cooled a bit whilst waiting. Having heard tha Wagyu steak means that the cow has been massaged and treated like royalty all of their lives I was expecting the best steak of my life. I bit in to it and it was more like an average chewy rump. My mum's fillet was melt ion your mouth however. I'm not the sort to moan, but when you spent nealy £30 on a piece of meat you expect big things so we mentioned it to the waitress who was apolgetic and understanding. We had it replaced with the Fillet which was outstanding. The staff were very helpful and didn't make us feel bad for complaining. The Chef was ok too as we had ordered our steaks medium rare so could not be blamed for have them cremated.
Overall, we all had great food (inc creme broulee - yum) and settled the bill for just shy of £200 for 4 of us. A tad expensive considering no starters. One huge rip of was a cover charge of £1.95 EACH for a few nuts and olives and bread. We thought it was £1.95 for the table.
If you're looking for a comforatble restaurant with good service and a great fillet, try this. Dig deep, but avoid the Wagyu.
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roussel chevalier
Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 4
Sunday, November 04, 2007
We'd intended having a pre-theatre dinner at Cafe Fish in Rupert Street - but when I phone to book I discovered it had recently become part of the Chez Gerard chain (and booked anyway). We ate at the downstairs bistro thinking it would be fairly quick. Even though only a handful of tables were occupied (compared with Cafe Fish which was always busy and lively with a pre-theatre crowd), the service was quite slow - it was lucky we'd allowed almost an hour and a half. The food was pleasant enough, although the seafood casserole (Tuesday's blackboard special) came without the advertised garlic bread, and eventually turned up without an apology - a long time after a reminder - just as my husband finished his meal. My crevettes were excellent. The new ambiance (whatever happened to all the tiles!) is bright and modern, but the crowds seem to have disappeared!
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Overall rating 
Food 6 | Service 5 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 5
Thursday, September 20, 2007
I took my wife, uncle, and his partner to this restaurant last sunday evening after being handed a 2 main courses for 1 voucher the previous afternoon whilst passing by. Inside looked promisingly stylish and the waiting staff were vary polite.all was well until 3 of our starters arrived. We had all ordered the foie gras with fig, i think it was the most expensive starter on the menu so expectations were high. When it arrived it was a large slice of lightly toasted bread surrounded by figs and sauce with one very small piiece of foie gras per portion, all overcooked. The smallest not much bigger than a stack of 3 or 4 50p coins, the largest smaller than a round tea bag. Having been given the smallest i complained to the waiter who returned it to the chef only for the chef to return it to me saying it was the correct portion size. I asked to speak to the manager, which ended with me being cooked a fresh serving, this time around the tea bag size and better cooked. For the main course 2 of us decided to try the most expensive steak( the chateau briand) medium rare. This turned up raw in the middle and physically cool to the touch as though it had been cooked a long time before( despite the fact the restaurant was quite empty at that time). I returned it to the kitchen and it came back several minutes later luke warm, un seared, medium to well done, and lloking like it had maybe just come from a microwave. I refused to eat it, declined an alternative as i now had no faith in the abilities of the kitchen, and rightly told the manager there was no way i would pay for such a poorly executed dish. He did not argue, was very polite, but seemed unable to demand the level of skill required from his chef who seemed to be the true boss.The final insult came with the bill which included a service charge for all the atrotious workings of the kitchen we had endured. With the steak supposed to cost over £40 for 2, and the foie gras around £12 each i would expect solid execution from the kiitchen of a restaurant chain with listings in the Zagat guide. I have never seen so much asked for so little so badly prepared. My dining experience ended just down the road at Eds' diner where the meet was hot and tasty! Getting on for Michelin prices, but standard of a bad college canteen during my visit!
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Mr A Mason
Overall rating 
Food 0 | Service 1 | Atmosphere 5 | Value for money 0
Friday, September 14, 2007
