La Buvette

Very nice early dinner for 2 on a Sunday evening at La Buvette in Richmond. Tucked away around the corner next to the church. Really lovely cosy & intimate atmosphere. Good attentive staff and good table service.

Tremendous value for money. Good sized portions and really great food. Nicely prepared and presented.

Overall highly recommended and would love to go again!
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SimonaB
Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 10
Sunday, December 13, 2009

Four of us took my mother to La Buvette for her birthday lunch today and had an excellent time. Overall the food was very good. Our starters of beetroot-cured salmon and creamy celeriac soup were simple and delicious. The main courses of gigot of lamb and cod with lentils were good, but suffered in comparison with the lovely starters. Puddings, including a gorgeously soft spiced poached pear, interesting chocolate and cardamon pot and strawberry ice-cream, finished the meal very nicely. Good coffee was a bonus - though we weren't sure about the chunks of milk chocolate on top of the capuccino. Service was very efficient and friendly enough, and the restaurant had a nice level of buzz - business enough not to be too quiet. The outside loo was a bit odd though.

A very good lunch, which was also very good value for money.
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Victoria
Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 9
Tuesday, October 13, 2009

A visit last Tuesday evening was a welcome treat. As ever, La Buvette comes out on top for just about everything: sheer professionalism, friendliness, quality, and excellent value for money.

Have been to this gem of a restaurant many times now, and it loses nothing with familiarity. If anything, it's very nice (and a great relief) to find a place that is so reliable in Richmond.

Richmond is difficult when it comes to eating out, as too many premises rely on the mystique of the nearby river and the proliferation of noisy bars and clubs to paper over the cracks in what they offer.

La Buvette is quietly and pleasantly run, and the perfect place for an evening or lunchtime that will pamper your tastebuds and not bankrupt you.

Long may it thrive. It deserves every one of the many excellent reviews on this site.
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Franco - View all reviews by this user
Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 10
Friday, October 02, 2009

Five of us went to La buvette for the first time for dinner on a Saturday night in May 2009. It is located on a footpath that runs past a church and offers a quaint, village house atmosphere. It is a small restaurant and was fully booked but very quiet and peaceful that evening. The service by the mostly but not entirely French staff was discrete, friendly and quite efficient; one order was misunderstood and the wrong kind of fish served. The menu is probably representative of the 'average ' family small-town restaurant in France (though I have not tried all of them!) offering 7 or 8 main courses including a vegetarian option. Everyone enjoyed their food - the classic bistro menu of soupe de poisson, steak (onglet cut) & frittes and creme brulee doing its job well. The wine list is 100% French of course with around 12 on offer for each colour ranging in price between £15 and £50, a large proportion of those available by the glass and 250ml carafe (including some fairly good ones and desert wines), which is very handy. Quite interestingly, one might say, American-style wine-food matching notes can be found next to some of the wines. The list seems thoughfully designed to complement all the dishes very specifically, but also makes sure that all the classic styles are covered.

We paid £42/person including wine and service, having shared the equivalent of 2.5 bottles of wine in the mid-price range and three enjoyable hours. We all felt it was good value, except for the person who end up with the wrong fiss and later admitted that he had made the wrong choice of dishes from starter to desert as it sometimes happens when one wants to venture outside their comfort zone.
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LL
Overall rating
Food 7 | Service 7 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 8
Monday, May 04, 2009

I took my wife here on the 8th of April for her birthday. It was great. We were greeted by a very friendly young french man who was very accomadating. The food was fantastic and the staff utterly helpful and unpretentious. Beautiful inside just the odd posh person too many eating there for me but i suppose this is Richmond. Great value and fantastic food and wine. Will be back soon hopefully when another traet comes up!
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Paul Spear
Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 10
Monday, April 20, 2009

Visiting Richmond normally raises the question of "where do you eat?" but having read Matthew Norman's review I booked La Buvette. Saturday lunch was packed. How so many people could find this tiny place, I don't know. Entering through a walled courtyard full of daffodils set the tone rather well, although still a little brisk to eat outside. We were greeted with a convivial smile and taken to our simply laden table of white cloth. We chose their "bistro menu" of fish soup, steak and chips and creme brulee, that was superb value at £18.50. They offer a prix fixe menu with a selection of 6 choices on each course aswell. The food was simply presented and packed with flavour. We shared a bottle of Rhone at £17, from a small and predominantly French list. The outstanding part of the experience was the ambience (always difficult to describe, but when a room is full of people enjoying themselves, it became difficult to leave them all, to return to the shopping). We will return soon, next time I find an excuse to go to Richmond.
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Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 10
Tuesday, March 24, 2009

We decided to go here having read the glowing reviews here and we were very happy that we did. A charming, nicely lit restaurant, friendly and efficient service, excellent food and a good (if quite short) winelist. I'm sure it comes into its own in summer, with the lovely outside courtyard area. We went on a Saturday night in February - it was busy and had a very good atmostphere.
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Jeremy - View all reviews by this user
Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 8
Sunday, February 22, 2009

La Buvette is a really chain eaterie who handle large bookings very well. I held a surprise party there last week for a party of 10 and everything from the food to the service was faultless. Although they only served orders from the fixe price menu this menu contained more enticing options than almost any other set menu I have seen. I had the sauteed king scallops served on a roast carrot and ginger puree to start which were prepared so well that the delicate flavour of the scallops was not overpowered by the delicious pureer, nor the madira jus. Incidentally they also happened to be the largest scallops I have seen served in a restaurant, certainly no complaints there! My main course was the chargrilled onglet steak which they, as they advised me, prefer to prepare rare, and although I would usually have gone for medium-rare I was very impressed with the end result. The meat was very good quality and cooked to absolute perfection. I wasn't terribly keen on the shallot and red-wine sauce, usually preferring creamier sauces with my steaks (I am a die-hard bearnaise fan), but it was in no way overpowering so easy to overlook. I have no doubt that it would suit the tastes of others as noone else at the table had anything bad to say about it. I must also state that the mixed grill as enjoyed by some other diners was described as being fabulous.

Dessert for me was the creme brulee which tasted as good as it looked. The caremlised sugar topping had no hint of burnt taste, and the creme itself was very rich, sumptuous and not-too-sweet.

The staff were very courteous and efficient, considering our large party, all courses arriving at the same time and leaving us alone to enjoy the meal, I personally am not wild about "over-hosting"! They also gave us complimentery chocolates on a plate with "Happy Birthday" and the name of the birthday girl written in chocolate, a very nice touch!

I will definitely be going back there again and again as I cannot wait to try the other dishes on the menu, particularly when served so nicely in a pretty restaurant at a price that provides excellent value for money!
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ITM - View all reviews by this user
Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 10
Saturday, January 31, 2009

I last visited La Buvette in the summer and had a lovely time in their courtyard with my partner on a Saturday afternoon. My work colleagues and I got together just before Christmas and they looked after our party of 16 very well. We ate off their prix fixe menu which was fantastic value for money and it offered plenty for quite a difficult bunch. Service was charming. Can't wait to get back there when the weather warms up to enjoy there beautiful courtyard.
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Laura
Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 10
Monday, January 05, 2009

Just what you want for an intimate night out. Very French, surprisingly helpful staff who offer a warm welcome. Very comforting "bistro" type food - very satisfying as the cooler days set in, with a lovely terrace to finish off your coffee on. Very reasonably priced and an easily understood very French wine list.
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Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 10
Friday, October 17, 2008