So recently I organised a surprise birthday for my girlfriend and I in Manchester, part of the surprise was to go to The French Restaurant, by Simon Rogan. Here's what I thought of it.
Location and decor.
The hotel itself is beautiful. On arrival I was impressed with the Marrocco feel in the bar just to the right of the restaraunt. It is very elegant and the staff made us feel welcome without being too pretentious. We were offered a seat in the bar and happily listened to the piano player to our left.
Very pleased at this stage.
Pre dinner drinks: 8.5 out of 10.
The restaraunt was nice although the tables had the look of garden furniture. Maybe that's just me but took away from the experience of what was supposed to be one of the best restaraunts in Manchester. Although the feel was relaxed and calming.
Decor: 6.5 out of 10.
The Food.
We ordered the 6 course taster menu which was £59 per person. There was other choices, but this seemed like a good option and by the end really worked out as an 8 course menu.
I have to say the good was a little hit and miss. The bread that was brought to the table was over cooked, giving an instant let down to the choice of dinner location.
Then the amuse bouche. This was lovely light, a good start.
As the rest of the course came, some were good, like the cod course and soup, and the beef cooked perfectly, seasoned well and great presentation (in fact all the dishes were presented well).
Others not so good, like the lamb, the Jew was so over seasoned I couldn't taste any of the lamb, and destroyed my pallet for the following course.
I also found that there was far too much enphasis placed on smoking. As a advice BBQ smoker myself. I love the flavour, however not in every course.
Initially thought the position sizes were a little small, even for a taster menu, but as the night went on, I found it was just about right for my partner and I.
Overall I would say enjoyed the meal. The good did out way the bad, although when eating at a restaraunt of this standard why is there any bad course?
Rating: 6.5 out of 10.
Service.
Funny one this.
To start with when we say down everything seemed a little rushed. Menus, orders, drink, all taken within the first 10 mins.
Bread on the table not long after and the drinks with the rolls.
This speed continued for the. First 4 courses. 35 mins into our dinner and we thought we were going to be done in less than an hour.
Then suddenly a big slow down. We had to wait a very long time between the remaining course. I would say on average between 15 to 20 mins after our plates were taken. At first this didn't bother us. Have us time to chat and enjoy the evening. However after about 1 1/2 hours it was getting a tiresome.
Although saying that, the staff we're pleasant and attentive. So no complaints there. Just the timings.
Overall service rating: 5.5 out of 10.
Value for Money
Again a funny one. Was I happy with what it cost. Well at the end was close to £200. Which isn't too bad for the food and drinks we had. Although. For some reason at the end I did think, I have had better for less in London and other places. I wouldn't say it was too much, maybe I was thinking with the deal it would be less than £150, and with the small issues I have mentioned above I think it should have been.
Rating: 5.5 out of 10
Conclusion.
I suppose the question I should answer is would I go back. Probably not.
There was nothing wrong with anything really, which is the problem. Some of the dishes were truly excellent, however on a special night, in what is raved about as one of the best in Manchester I had high expectations, so shouldn't all the dishes be like this, or at least most of them????
I wouldn't say to friends don't go, but I wouldn't also say it is a must.
Overall Rating: 6 out of 10.
Below are some pictures of the dishes. As I mentioned above, they all were extremely well presented.
Hope you enjoyed the read.
