Brasserie St Quentin

[Andy Lynes]

An enjoyable lunch today at Brasserie St Quentin in the Brompton Road. Its a lovely room in the manner of a classic French brasserie - red leather banquettes, wooden chairs and stripped oak flooring enlivened by mirrors, prints and two beautiful flower displays. It has a nicely lived in feeling, and so it should after nearly 25 years in business. Although I believe the room has been refurbished fairly recently, it certainly hasn't been updated which is sure to have come as something of a relief to its regular 50 and 60 something customer base.

The menu reads well and for the most part succeeds on the plate. A well judged salad of Lough Neagh eels from Northern Ireland with horseradish dressing was nicely done. A crunchy crust provided a welcome contrast to the delicate flesh and had been formed by soaking the fish in milk, dusting it in flour then sauteing it in butter before finishing it off in the oven. It was served coiled into mache salad with the punchy horseradish dressing drizzled around.

Grouse was served whole on the bone with game crumbs and watercress with game sauce, bead sauce gaufrette potatoes and spinach on the side. I asked for the bird to be cooked "as the chef wanted" which turned out to be more well done than I expected. My fault for trying to be clever I suppose. For £29.00, it was pretty good value and the sauces in particular were excellent (apparently they bake their own white loaves purely to make the bread sauce).

A crisp apple tart was piled high with fruit and served with a delicious calvados and raisin ice cream. Efficient service in the less than packed dining room was headed up by the too-posh-for-words Edward Arthur (formerly of Launceston Place) and his glamorous blonde assistant manager who's name I didn't catch. Smiles, eye contact and conversation from other members of staff however were all very thin on the ground.

Restaurant website .

[Winot]

glamorous blonde assistant manager who's name I didn't catch

Fancied him did you Andy?

[Andy Lynes]

He was a she.

[Scott]

He was a she.

says you

[Andy Lynes]

Have a look at her picture on the website and make your own mind up.

[Gavin Convery]

He's gorgeous....

[horton]

Has anyone been to Le Vacherin in Chiswick yet? The chef/patron is Malcolm John who, I have heard, was previously chef at Brasserie St Quentin. Apparently it is hearty, rustic French cuisine. I'm very tempted to try it out but was interested to see if there were any opinions. Also not too far away and a second choice is Chez Kristof in Hammersmith and having read Fay it may well be worth a try.

[howardlong]

Has anyone been to Le Vacherin in Chiswick yet?

No, but I've walked past it several times on my way up to the Swan. It always looks empty, and I wondered if that was a reflection on its quality. I really should try harder!

Cheers, Howard

[Spam]

I gather that Le Vacherin is not up to much ...

[Andy Lynes]

Also not too far away and a second choice is Chez Kristof in Hammersmith and having read Fay it may well be worth a try.

I noted that Simon Hopkinson accompanied Maschler on her visit and said that the pistou soup was the best he could remember. I can't imagine a higher compliment.

[Andy Lynes]

He's gorgeous....

Perhaps her name is Lola.

[Matthew Grant]

She was a showgirl...

[Andy Lynes]

I was thinking more Ray Davis than Barry Manilow. But then I usually do.

[SamanthaF]

We went here a few weeks back, looked at the menu in Racine, nothing appealed so we ended up here. I had a perfectly cooked Onglet and he had a fish dish (I forget what) - the pudding was something else -one of my best of the year - a pear tart with creme anglais

Both concluded that it was good food, good value and a nicer dining room than Racine.

Will go back next time the sales are on in the "Big Shops"

[balex]

I had dinner here las night and it was a lot better than it had been a year ago. I was not wildly impressed but it was good food, with friendly service, and it's not too busy so you don't need to plan a month in advance.

The food: starters were a warm salad with bits of black potato and two sorts of prawns. Nice fresh and tasty. A fish soup that was a bit too tomatoey and didn't have the right consistency. And the croutons were too thin.

Main courses were grouse -- good but slightly overcooked, on a bed of breadcrums, good bread sauce and gravy, and a generaous bit of halibut with lentils that disappeared pretty rapidly.

The obvious comparison is to Racine -- and it stacks up pretty well. I think I would probably choose Racine first, but BSQ comes an honourable second. £120 for 2.5 people.

[Winot]

A quick lunch today with Baby Winot after Modernism at the V&A.

Starter - Confit leg of Gressingham duck with butter bean and broad bean salad

Really tender duck and good accompanying salad - decent portion.

Main - Roast pollack on pea puree,saffron potatoes and rocket salad

Beautifully cooked fish; excellent pea puree but I'm still not entirely convinced by the combination (peas a bit sweet for my taste). Potatoes not great - bit undercooked and no discernible saffron influence apart from colour. No memory of any rocket.

£15.50 for two courses - bargain (bumped it up to £40 with glass of champagne; rose with duck & white with fish - left drunk in charge of a baby).

Agree that room is nicer than Racine and they coped admirably with a loud infant throwing bread (as did baby Winot - boom-tish).

Edited July 5, 2006 by Winot (log)