Cote (Soho)

Tasty food, pity about the service.

I had a dinner with my Husband on New Year Eve (31. 12. 20011).

Food was very tasty, nicely presented. Person who took the order had knowledge about the food and drinks served in the restaurant. Unfortunately, He was not our waiter. The latter looked like he would serve the life sentence in the place. I guess he wanted to send the message: Do not come here again!

Cote tries to be associated with France and French cousins, which surely is reflected in the menu but…. hello? ! Aren't French supposed to be masters in the art of waiting tables? In Cote, you will wait… wait… wait and wait. There is a clock behind the bar so i can exactly tell you that we waited for 45 min to get and pay the bill. It was while other people were waiting for tables to be sited at. We were losing our time and restaurant money.

So yes, I would not recommend it for a pre-theatre dinner venue. However, if you are for the dinner with a lot of booze when nap is required before heading home: spot on!
Comment on this reader review

Anabel
7 Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 0 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 9
Sunday, January 01, 2012

They used to do a really good breakfast here. Nice grilled sweet cured bacon and sausage with all the usual full english elements, I especially liked the freshness of ingredients and lack of grease (even though the staff have always been generally baffoon-like).

This is sadly not the case anymore and hasn't been for a while.

After multiple mishaps I had my last ever breakfast here yesterday. Cold toast again and fatty flacid bacon covered in white water/fat juice which had clearly never been near a grill. That's 11 quid with service charge and a coffee. Eggs were ok.

Will not be going back.. Avoid for breakfast.
Comment on this reader review

Hopey - View all reviews by this user
3 Overall rating
Food 2 | Service 3 | Atmosphere 6 | Value for money 2
Monday, August 01, 2011

I visited the Soho branch of Cote last Thursday, on a lovely balmy summers evening, with a largish crowd of around 10. We arrived pretty much on time for once and we were swiftly shown to our table in the basement area. Even though it was only 7pm the restaurant was pretty full and there was a nice buzzy atmosphere.

Bottles of the house white and red were quickly provided while we were giving the classic French bistro style menu, which has plenty of choices to suit most tastes, the once over. I think it's always a bit of challenge for staff when dealing with a large group but we were handled beautifully all night, and without too much stress we had soon been cagouled into making our choices - no mean feat with this crowd.

I was sitting with my old pal Broggy and we decided to split our starters, so we shared a goat’s cheese tartine with sourdough bread and a crab mayonnaise. Both were nicely presented, well-seasoned, very tasty and a very decent size portion.

I then moved onto a main of the 10oz rib eye steak which came with a dainty portion of frites on the side; I teamed this up with some béarnaise sauce which was an extra and added a couple of pounds to the bill. My steak came medium rare as I had requested, this was well-seasoned and had a good char. It was a very tasty piece of the meat and a pleasure to eat, which is more than I can say for some steaks I have had the misfortune to order in other chain restaurants in central London. Our group ordered a pretty wide variety of dishes from the menu and everyone seemed pretty pleased with their meal. By this point I was a bit too stuffed for dessert but I did try a spoonful of Broggy's crème brulee which was perfectly ok but nothing out of the ordinary.

Throughout the evening all our dishes were served at the same time, came to the table hot, were cooked as ordered and came without too much of a wait; in my experience this kind of service is something of a rarity when you are dining with a large party in central London. The wine list is good if you are keeping an eye on your wallet with house wine under £15 and plenty to choice from under £20.

As far as chain restaurants go this is my favourite in London by a country mile and it does what it says on the tin: "simple, freshly prepared French food at value for money prices".

We left sometime around 10.30 with the restaurant packed and folk queuing up for a table as we stumbled out into the crowded Soho streets in fine spirits.
Comment on this reader review

Ninhead Neil
8 Overall rating
Food 7 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 8
Friday, July 08, 2011

We enjoyed a very good value 3 course meal from the early bird set menu at Cote on Sunday.

The food was good, starters of mussels and the lentil and bacon salad were very tasty and our steak frites was probably the biggest minute steak I have ever seen, it almost covered the whole plate and was very tender. Our desserts, crème caramel and chocolate pot were good although not great.

I was impressed by service which was excellent, friendly, quick and attentive. Would definitely consider going again for the set menu.
Comment on this reader review

Annie - View all reviews by this user
8 Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 8
Monday, February 21, 2011

I went to Cote today for lunch and I must say I was pleasantly surprised by the quality and presentation of the meal. It's more in the old style of a French bistro you would find in any town in France 20 or 30 years ago. A good standard with excellent service. My only criticism is the ambiance could be a lot better; table layout not so great and should be round with a bit more colour and warmth in the eating area. But hey it's a BISTRO so what really counts is the food, a chance to talk and good service from the waiters.
Comment on this reader review

Colin Jones
8 Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 5 | Value for money 8
Monday, January 10, 2011

Went here for a Sunday breakfast, a little risky anywhere in London but given the decent review this place has had we felt it would be safe.

My eggs Benedict left a lot to be desired, the hollandaise was tasteless and almost solid (clearly not fresh) while the ham was cheap and nasty. Having said that, the eggs themselves were quite nicely cooked. My companion's croque monsieur was completely drowned in a béchamel that tasted a bit chemical and wasn't very pleasant to eat. The coffee was OK, but I found the strange filtered water they had very difficult to drink.

Service started very well but deteriorated as soon as we got our food, and they tried to take our change as a tip without asking - despite the fact that the bill already contained a service charge. The interior was relatively pleasant, if a little sterile.

Given the failure of both the food and the attempt to keep the change, the chance of us returning here is just about zero.
Comment on this reader review

P Brown
4 Overall rating
Food 2 | Service 3 | Atmosphere 6 | Value for money 4
Thursday, December 16, 2010

I've eaten at Cote numerous times now and always enjoy my meal and the general atmosphere. The staff are generally friendly and prompt.

You basically know you're going to get a decent meal for a decent cost considering London prices. Just up the road you have Ed's Diner which will charge you more for a pretty standard hamburger and some cheesy fries.

I don't drink alcohol, so this is partly the reason it's relatively inexpensive when I eat here.
Comment on this reader review

Bob Johnson
8 Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 8
Friday, November 05, 2010

Went to Cote for the first time with my boyfirend and had a good experience. Although the restaurant was busy we were quickly seated, service was nice and prompt. The food was really good quality and not too pricey unlike other restaurants in the area. For starters I had seared scallops which were cooked to perfection a dish i definately recommend. My boyfriend had the seafood linguine which was tasty and my chicken was very succulent. Offering the free water is a nice touch something other restaurants should take notice of. The only downfall is that there isn't a waiting area or a bar to sit at which meant because it was busy people were hanging about near tables. I suggest going when they have offers on such as the early evening menu which is 2 courses for £9.95 or 3 for £11.90.
Comment on this reader review

9 Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 10
Thursday, October 28, 2010

Nice place for a group of friends - my steak tartare was the highlight washed down with a not inexpensive (£16) but perfectly balanced Merlot. The fish pie (something much more French on the menu) was hearty with chunks of fish but the sauce was too thin for my liking.

I would go back but agree with the other reviewer that there were echos of Cafe Rouge however the food was better - good enough for lunch but a group needed to justify an evening visit.
Comment on this reader review

BigRedonCheese - View all reviews by this user
8 Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 6
Friday, May 14, 2010

Good food - not exceptional, but nice - and a nice atmosphere.

I had the terrine for starter and sea bass for main - both were pleasing, the fish came with a nice slightly cheesy sauce and was cooked to a good standard.

Away from the food everything was faultless. I was there on a date and it was perfect for the occasion, not too loud, good service, good food, good value... would recommend it to most people. just don't expect a gourmet banquet - its about 8/10 for food, but it's probably not going to break into your top 5 of all time meals.
Comment on this reader review

9 Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 9
Tuesday, January 12, 2010