Disappointed party of 6

Rating - Overall: 3  Food: 2  Service: 3  Ambience: 5

Amandawolfe
Rookie Reviewer
Member since Feb 10
Rating: 0

7 Feb 2010

My family visited at 6.30pm on Sat night for my dad's 65th birthday. Gorgeous building inside and very impressive. Had high hopes for the service and quality of food but I felt really let down at the end. Started well with nice G & Ts and a bottle of Bollinger for only £58 but the main things I thought were bad were the plastic/paper table cloth over the white linen one - prob to save time when changing tables; we had to ask for new cutlery when the main courses were served and had to ask 3 times for jugs of water. The deputy manager was very attentive but I could see him egging on our waiter to show up the specials that he hadnt mentioned existed until then. Noone poured our wine after the first glass, it was left in the bucket and we hardly saw our waiter apart from to take our orders. My choc steamed pudding was BURNT to cinders in the middle which means it was microwaved for too long and in no way tasted or looked steamed. I have had better puddings from Sainsburys that you microwave for 40 secs. They took it off the bill and said they had received other complaints about it that day. The toilets needed checking - no paper in some cubicles and paper all over the floor in others and only air dryers. All in all a nice place but shame about the average service and bad attention to detail with the food. £319 for 6 for 3 courses each, puddings, 1 wine and the champers.

Visited: February 6, 2010
What I ate: Goats cheese parcel, fillet of sea bream/squid, burnt choc puddi

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To be recommended

Rating - Overall: 4  Food: 4  Service: 4  Ambience: 4

Tillerama
Rookie Reviewer
Member since Nov 09
Rating: 1

20 Nov 2009

Ate here last night as a party of 4. Other than reading previous reviews we had no prior knowledge of the restaurant and were all delighted in every aspect. The service was good - friendly but no overly familiar, and attentive without being intrusive. We all had different dishes and in each case were more than satisfied. The wine recommended by our waiter turned out to be a great choice. Lastly the prices are really favourable for this type of eating place - my main course of beef stroganoff was (approx) £10.50 which you can easily pay in a pub these days. We will most definitely be returning

Visited: November 19, 2009
What I ate: cheese souffle, beef stroganoff, treacle tart

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Delicious

Rating - Overall: 5  Food: 4  Service: 4  Ambience: 5

soosie
Rookie Reviewer
Member since Sep 08
Rating: 2

9 Nov 2009

Was invited for a friends birthday lunch yesterday. Some of our party had eaten here before fairly recently, but we hadn't. Fairly basic bar area but served our needs as a place to meet and have a couple of drinks before the meal. A large room, but it seemed to be well divided so it felt smaller and intimate. Shown to our table spot on time, but then had to wait a little while for drinks - not a huge problem. Had run out of mussels & roast beef lunch, which was exactly my husband's order!! Still, he was perfectly happy with his 2nd choice! Not rushed (benefit of choosing a 2pm lunch time?) service good, food delicious, all 9 clean plates. Maman Blanc's mixed salad starter was more filling than I was expecting, melt in your mouth slow cooked beef was absolutely delicious, treacle tart was tasty. Initially the waitress said there was no custard for crumble (Hubby) but then made sauce anglaise!! Felt pretty stuffed after 3 courses, but not too uncomfortable!! Well worth another visit.

Visited: November 8, 2009
What I ate: Mixed salad, slow cooked beef, treacle tart

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Wonderful!

Rating - Overall: 4  Food: 5  Service: 4  Ambience: 4

MrsB
Rookie Reviewer
Member since Sep 08
Rating: 2

26 Sep 2009

Had heard mixed reviews of Brasserie Blanc, but decided to see for myself and took my parents here. We had an absolutely wonderful evening. The waiting staff were polite and helpful and could not do enough for us. The food was flavoursome and cooked to perfection - the calves liver was particularly excellent. Just enough food to make you feel pleasantly full and a nice delay between courses so you could enjoy your food and not feel pressured into leaving. The atmosphere in the restaurant was lovely - just the right mix of chatter and music. Can highly recommend sitting upstairs if there are 2-4 of you but it does get a little warm! Will definitely come back here again.

Visited: September 26, 2009
What I ate: Escargot, Calves Liver

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superblanc

Rating - Overall: 5  Food: 5  Service: 5  Ambience: 5

KarenR
Rookie Reviewer
Member since Sep 08
Rating: 2

11 Sep 2009

three of us ate at Brasserie Blanc last night - I had eaten there once before and been a little disappointed (we had the same experience with the cheeseboard) but this time it came up trumps - only minor quibbles (eg could have been more generous with the truffle oil, or maybe that's just me) and on the whole everything was top quality - food, ambience and service. Will definitely be returning, and next time will take my very-fussy partner.

Visited: September 10, 2009
What I ate: asparagus risotto, scallops with fennel, green salad

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Very Good

Rating - Overall: 4  Food: 5  Service: 4  Ambience: 4

Stoogio
Foodie
Member since Mar 09
Rating: 0

1 Apr 2009

Can't remember exact date but it was some time before Xmas & the set lunch price was £11.50, including a glass of really nice wine. Turned up there at just after midday & managed to get a table for 2 without booking, though I think there'd be no chance after 12.30.

The food was splendid - no stingy portions for the set lunch menu which was refreshing. Had a potted shrimp to start & a trout main, I'm not always a big fan of trout but this was lovely. My friend ordered of the main menu, can't remember his starter but dunked a bit of bread into the gravy (or jus, rather!) of his Toulouse sausage & mash and it was heavenly. Both of us left pleasantly full & paid around £25, pretty good value for the quality I thought. My only criticism would be the closeness of the tables, which is just being petty really.

Visited: December 1, 2008

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how it was for me

Rating - Overall: 3  Food: 3  Service: 4  Ambience: 5

juliadallyn
Rookie Reviewer
Member since Mar 09
Rating: 0

12 Mar 2009

The ambience in the restaurant was lovely. I arrived before my friends and was shown to the bar area, which was comfortable but baking hot??. I ordered a chicken parfait with onion marmalade for starters. It was OK but only 2 small pieces of toast and the onions in the marmalade were undercooked ( a bit chewy). I then had king prawns with chips and garlic mayonaise. The prawns were slightly overcooked and there were chunks of garlic in the mayonaise, and I didn't feel it was particularly good value for 16.50. I didn't have pudding. The waiter was extremely friendly and helpful and introduced himself too. I will go back, perhaps for lunch sometime..

Visited: February 27, 2009
What I ate: Chiken liver parfait, grilled king prawns with chips, lots of wi

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Good Food - Varied Service

Rating - Overall: 3  Food: 4  Service: 2  Ambience: 2

Roadman
Rookie Reviewer
Member since Feb 09
Rating: 1

21 Feb 2009

We thought that it was time we visited one of the newer restaurants in Bristol and thought that we would try Brasserie Blanc and sample the menu of the legendary Raymond Blanc.

It didn’t start of very well; we had booked for ten people and were showed to a table set for eight! Never mind, those resourceful people at Brasserie Blanc went and got another table, err no, they just squeezed us up on the existing table and put two more place settings. Gee thanks.

Baskets of lovely bread were placed on the table whilst we perused the menus, but strangely no side plates. The menus offered a reasonable variety and not too badly priced. I opted for the Loch Fyne mussels as my starter and free range Gloucester Old Spot pork cutlet. All of the starters were brought to the table at the time by a fleet of waiters and waitress which was great. My mussels were piping hot, however as I started to go through them it was a bit of a mixed bag. Some very plump and fresh, others were a bit shrivelled and not that good. The lesson for me was that if you want Loch Fyne mussels have them at a Loch Fyne restaurant.

Again our main courses were served all together and my pork was excellent and the little chips that were served with it were wonderful. The only strange bit was that the grills were all served on an oblong wooden flat plates which of course did cause a minor issues with the size of table we were on and I couldn’t really see what they added to the meal.

For pudding I went for a Baked Alaska ( I did share with one of the others) which was lovely, however puddings were slightly spoilt in that they forgot to bring the Cheese Board for one of our party and when it did eventually turn up (just as the rest of us were finishing our puddings), it was pitiful what was on it, a piece of blue cheese and various small crumbles of others. It was refused as my friend had got fed up waiting, but a few minutes latter it was offered again but saying that he could have it for free. Missing the point some what!

The wine menu is not hugh but more than big enough for a night out. However we all thought that the majority of the wines were overpriced. They started at around £14 (which is ok) but rapidly increase without a rapid increase in quality.

All in all the food was generally very good, the wine is not that great value and the quality of the service dropped off through the course of the night, however at about £80 per couple for a three course meal with wine was ok. Watch out if you are a party of 6 or more as a “discretionary” ten percent service charge is added to your bill.

We may return if one of our party wanted to visit again, but would not be somewhere that I would personally rush back to. There are better restaurants in Bath & Bristol, visit them first.

Visited: February 20, 2009
What I ate: Mussels, Pork Chop and Baked Alaska

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Wonderful

Rating - Overall: 5  Food: 5  Service: 5  Ambience: 5

Michele
Rookie Reviewer
Member since Feb 09
Rating: 1

4 Feb 2009

I went here on a lunch time with a group of friends, some had the two course or 3 course lunch time deal which was excellent value, I ordered off of the main menu. The food was lovely servings just right, in fact I couldn't eat all of mine, the food was beautifully presented, we felt relaxed and not at all rushed as some restaurant's make you feel. The service was excellent and the staff friendly but not overly so. I would definitely go there again and I have recommended it to many friends who have also found it to be excellent.

Visited: January 22, 2009
What I ate: Celry & Hazelnut soup, Grilled Salmon, Hazlenut and Vanilla Ice

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Mediocre

Rating - Overall: 2  Food: 3  Service: 2  Ambience: 2

Vixter
Rookie Reviewer
Member since May 08
Rating: 0

2 Feb 2009

I was really looking forward to eating in one of Bristol's finest (supposedly) restaurants but was left feeling slightly cheated. The service was poor, we had to actually ask for somebody to come and take our drinks order and that was after waiting for a good 20 minutes. The food was good but not great, I had salmon which was served on a bread board - I guess they were attempting to be different but it just looked odd sitting on a piece of wood all on it's own. Friends meals were served late as there was 'confusion' in the kitchen. We didn't have dessert or coffee as were happy to be leaving. We all were given a £10 voucher to use on our next visit but I don't think this was to make up for our less than impressive visit as I got the feeling that every diner was given the same £10 voucher! Don' think I'll be rushing back to this restaurant but - never say never!

Visited: January 4, 2009
What I ate: Celery and hazelnut soup, Salmon, roast vegetables

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Fantastic Lunch

Rating - Overall: 4  Food: 4  Service: 5  Ambience: 4

Cherr1e5
Rookie Reviewer
Member since Oct 08
Rating: 0

26 Jan 2009

Lovely meal, fantastic service. Wine & 2 course lunch for about £13 -great value. Arrived about 1pm on Saturday, not overly busy - great seating upstairs overlooking main restaurant.

Would definately recommend - next time we will try in the evening and eat from the A la Carte menu.

Visited: January 24, 2009
What I ate: Herring, Smoked Haddock Risoto

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Never disappoints

Rating - Overall: 4  Food: 4  Service: 4  Ambience: 4

Llama
Rookie Reviewer
Member since Jan 09
Rating: 2

26 Jan 2009

I've eaten here twice, most recently on Saturday, and have been impressed both times. The restaurant itself is a really nice place to be in. Large, light and airy with plenty of space between tables. Upstairs in the gallery is best, however.

The staff are friendly and confident in what they're doing. The take a genuine interest in you, can seem to care whether or not you're enjoying yourself. Staff from some of the other new restaurants in Cabot could do with coming here to see how it should be done.

My partner and I ate of the Dine with Wine menu, which offers a 2 course lunch and a glass of wine for under £12, or 3 courses for under £15. The same offer runs in the evening, though its slightly more expensive, I assume because the portions are bigger.

We both ate slow roast beef with horseradish mash which was really, really good. Tender meat, smooth mash with a good taste of horseradish, and great gravy. If I had a criticism it would be that there was no veg. Some greens on the side would have been good.

We opted for puddings for instead of starters, and were very glad that we did. The bread and butter pudding was light and creamy, and the griddled pineapple with rum and coconut was very good too.

Very, very little to fault. Given the restaurant, service, food quality and value for money, I can't see the reason in eating anywhere else in Cabot. Judging by how busy it was on Saturday, a lot of other people think the same.

Visited: January 24, 2009
What I ate: Slow roast beef, bread and butter pudding, pineapple with rum an

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Not so bad

Rating - Overall: 3  Food: —  Service: —  Ambience: —

NicolaO
Rookie Reviewer
Member since May 08
Rating: 0

5 Jan 2009

We visited this restaurant on a Sunday lunchtime and expected it to be something a bit special, but I'm afraid it didn't meet my expectations. The service was pretty bad and we had to ask for someone to come and see us, after being seated for at least 20 mins. We had to shout our orders across the table of 8, which is why they propably misheard and got three of our orders wrong. As a vegetarian my food was lovely but not so good for the meat eater and the presentation was not amazing. Would I go back?.......not in a hurry.

Visited: January 4, 2009
What I ate: goats cheese parcel, and mushroom gnocchi

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Exellent French cuisine

Rating - Overall: 5  Food: 5  Service: 3  Ambience: 4

lauraloo
Gastronome
Member since May 08
Rating: 1

2 Jan 2009

I found this the most authentic French food I've had in Blighty...the liver terraine had lovely flavoursome pieces of pinkish liver and the pork belly was beautifully cooked. We went for a xmas works do in the evening and although there was over 25 of us the service could have been improved in terms of timeliness. However the maitre d was very attentive and ensured we were kept abreast of what was going on. The fact a waiter dropped a lump of very smelly and gooey cheese in our directors lap only added to the entertainment (although not sure he'd see it that way!) Was a great selection of cheese - again, the best I'd had in the UK for a long time as they do it the French way and bring out the trolley so you can choose the cheese you want, rather than having a selection forced upon you. Thought it was great value for £25 for 3 courses at xmas.

Visited: December 19, 2008
What I ate: Liver terraine, pork belly with crackling and apple sauce, choc

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Brasserie Blanc

Rating - Overall: 4  Food: 4  Service: 3  Ambience: 4

Rachel
Rookie Reviewer
Member since Dec 08
Rating: 0

30 Dec 2008

My employer took us to the Brasserie for our christmas lunch. Normally a large party and a set christmas menu leads to a very average meal however we were pleasantly surprised with the quality and flavour of the food. A very enjoyable taste experience. A slight critisism was the time the service took. We enjoyed the opportunity for a good chat however, our three course meal with coffee took a total of four and a half hours.

Visited: December 19, 2008
What I ate: calves liver terrine, belly of pork and christmas pudding

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The best steak

Rating - Overall: 5  Food: 5  Service: 5  Ambience: 4

emma160572
Rookie Reviewer
Member since Dec 08
Rating: 0

30 Dec 2008

Fantastic food, cheese souffles as a starter followed by steak for me and duck for my husband.The waiting staff could not be faulted, extrememly attentive (and even mind readers I think - just when I was thinking that the only extra thing my steak really needed was sauce the waiter popped up "can I get you some bearnaise to go with that madam?" AMAZING!!) I honesty think it was the best cooked steak I have ever had. There was a lovely relaxed atmosphere in the restaurant, somewhere I will definately return to and recommend to others.

Visited: September 26, 2008

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Amazed at the price

Rating - Overall: 5  Food: 5  Service: 5  Ambience: 4

simonm87
Rookie Reviewer
Member since Jun 08
Rating: 0

12 Dec 2008

My wife and I were really looking forward to this meal out and since it was to be the last before the imminent arrival of our second child, I was ready to push the boat out. With a 5.30pm booking, I was half expecting the restaurant to be empty and lacking in atmosphere. Not at all- the staff were alert and everything seemed to be in full swing. The meal was delicious, the service was brilliant and the price was unbeleivable. Three courses and a flute of champers for just £16.00 a head. I think that offer ended at 6pm, nevertheless, I was well chuffed.

Visited: November 14, 2008

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Fantastic Meal

Rating - Overall: 5  Food: 5  Service: 5  Ambience: 4

ssensible
Rookie Reviewer
Member since Sep 08
Rating: 0

8 Dec 2008

Visited with partner for a late sitting and was warmly welcomed and served by very professional staff, Really nice relaxing atmoshere as not rushed or pressure to leave when we had finished. Food everything I had expected with a blend of fantastic flavours to tingle your taste buds and well presented. Fantastic bottle of wine.

Visited: October 29, 2008
What I ate: Calves livers & Mussels

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Blanc

Rating - Overall: 2  Food: 1  Service: 3  Ambience: 2

Nessie
Rookie Reviewer
Member since Nov 08
Rating: 1

27 Nov 2008

So much expectation, but such a woeful experience. We were greeted warmly and the staff were very polite, but they were lacking awarness. we had booked for the wine-meal deal, but staff unaware of this and twice sought to offer us the full menu at full price. In fact we were charged the full price at the end of the meal and had to inform the waiter....

Food. I had a tasty, but no frills soup. My partner had a tureen that was salty beyond belief. Main course - I had a tasty butternut squash risotto, but could only count 6 very small pieces of squash that were presented around the rice. The other dish was whiting. It looked bland on the creme fresh potato and warm beans and the smell was very off putting. We both had the creme caramel. The creme was sweet but was masked by over cooked, if I dare say burnt caramel.

Atmosphere, classical muted music would have been good.

Raymond take care you keep a check....we would not encourage others to go. Shame

Visited: September 27, 2008

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Brasserie Blanc

Rating - Overall: 5  Food: 5  Service: 5  Ambience: 5

noddy1
Rookie Reviewer
Member since May 08
Rating: 2

27 Oct 2008

Lucky enough to get a table booked on the very first night of opening with a whapping great 50% discount on EVERYTHING on the bill! super food, Cheese Souffle for starter with Dutch Calves Liver and plenty of wine! The venue is fantastic with very attentive and obviously professionally trained waiting staff, worth a second visit even if I have to pay the full bill next time

Visited: September 24, 2008
What I ate: Cheese Souffle ; Dutch Calves Liver

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Top-notch restaurant

Rating - Overall: 5  Food: 5  Service: 5  Ambience: 5

nicka
Rookie Reviewer
Member since Oct 08
Rating: 0

14 Oct 2008

Fantastic venue, right in the centre of the new Cabot Circus. It's a converted Quaker Meeting House which was formerly used as a registry office. High ceilinged, with a balcony where the segregated pews have been used for tables for two. We ate downstairs, but I'd definately try upstairs next time, it's quite unique up there.

The food was excellent, interesting, and just the right quantity, and the staff were polite and friendly. It's pretty expensive, but their "Dine with Wine" deals look like great value - well worth checking out.

Can't fault it. We'll definately return.

Visited: September 21, 2008
What I ate: Snails, pork, baked Alaska

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