All reader reviews by johnboy

Charlotte's Bistro

A summary review of the good and the bad:

The greeting: Just ok, we told the two bar staff we had a reservation and they nodded us toward another chap who in turn said the manageress would be with us in a moment. Surely one of the three of them could have shown us to our table or offered a drink?

The Decor: Reminded me of GBK, dark wood and rather unimaginitive stylings.

The service: Our waiter (French guy) was excellent, knowledgable and pleasant. The other waitress who served us was not so good. On the night we were there another table of about 14 was in so there were understandably quite busy but there's no excuse for plonking the missing sugar I asked for on my table without a word and steaming away.

The food: The mackerel starter was poor, beetroot was tasteless, potato salad undercooked, portion was tight and there was too much endive. The Reblochon tartiflette was very nice. the selection of starters left us struggling slightly as nothing sounded that great.

For main we both plumped for the onglet which was offered either pink or well done. I really wouldn't fancy eating an onglet well done so I found that strange. Having said that the meat and sauce were delicious and packed with the correct characteristic flavour I expected. The home cut chips on the side were a bit greasy and messy for my liking.

We shared a chocolate fondant for desert which was dry, heavier than expected and sadly not that good.

On the whole we agreed that the meal was reasonable but totally overpriced. We could have had much better quality food for the same price at a number of other restaurants (Le Vacherin, La Trompette, Villandry) all withing ten minutes walk. Charlotte's will need to revamp their menu and raise the standard if they want my custom back I'm afraid.

Friday, March 19, 2010
Overall rating
Food 6 | Service 7 | Atmosphere 5 | Value for money 4