Philippe

We recently dined at Philippe, a French restaurant by Philippe Mouchel, located in the heart of the Melbourne CBD. We had quite high expectations given his previous restaurant, the Brasserie Philippe Mouchel at Crown was pretty good. Upon entering you are warmly welcomed by a window showcasing some of their quality meats before you are escorted by their friendly staff to your table. It is a formal setting with white table cloths, perfect lighting and large framed mirrors. The night we were there it was quite noisy and rowdy. We also noted that there were a lot of tables squashed in closely together particularly in the back room where we were seated, so you don’t get that spacious feel even though the restaurant itself is quite large.

We decided to order the quail and foie gras parfait with red currant and orange ginger jam, and toasted brioche. We’ve never had quail like this before and found it quite interesting. The parfait didn’t taste too unhealthy and rich like the foie gras that I’m used to and we enjoyed it with the jam and toasted brioche.

The second entree we ordered was the beetroot cured Ora King salmon gravlax, fennel salad, walnut mayonnaise and mushrooms. This was also a very nice dish. The salmon wasn’t too salty and was balanced in flavours with the other ingredients.

For mains we ordered the pan seared wild barramundi with autumn brunoise vegetables, beets and a red wine sauce. This dish was nice but didn’t stand out for me.

Davin ordered the Mayura Station wagyu rump cap with a black pepper sauce. It was cooked medium rare, however the outside was probably seared too much which made it a bit tough to bite into. The sauce was probably the highlight and accentuated the meaty flavour of the steak.

We also got sides for our meals which included the potato gratin and sauteed green beans. The potato gratin was quite mushy and was probably lacking in some flavours. The sauteed green beans were also soft and we generally like our beans crunchy so that was a bit of a let down.

Overall, the restaurant provides for a French experience, however for the price, the quality of the food in general could have been better.

Philippe
Approx $75 AUD per person
Address: 115 Collins St, Melbourne VIC 3000
Phone: +61 3 8394 6625
Website: philipperestaurant.com.au

Philippe Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

Paris Go

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Well it’s definitely been a while, so we’re sorry it’s taken this long to write up another post. With work, study and all these other side projects, we have been busy bees! Anyway, you all should know by know how much I LOVE French cuisine. So of course I had to write up on yet another French restaurant we recently came across.

Paris Go is located amongst other great restaurants on Rathdowne Street, Carlton. However the high ratings and reviews on Zomato did make this restaurant stand out just a tad so we had to check it out.

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Upon entering, you see white tablecloths, white wooden banisters and white walls. The walls however are complemented with artfully, colourful framed French posters, paintings and mirrors which I kind of wanted for our house. A mixture of wooden chairs and French velvet button chairs are scattered throughout the restaurant.

Now right here, I have to say how super friendly and fantastic the staff were. From the moment we arrived until we left, they were nothing but attentive, switched on, accommodating and friendly. Kudos to them for providing such awesome customer service throughout our experience.

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But of course onto the important part: the food. We started off with my favourite, oysters! They were served three ways: natural, baked in cheese, and natural with a yummy green, possibly garlic type sauce. They were fresh and delicious! We then ordered the King George whiting dumpling in a prawn sauce which was something we’ve never had before and was very interesting! They were fluffy and the sauce was full of prawn flavour. We also couldn’t say no to the steak tartare which had a special dash of cognac. The flavours of this steak tartare was perfect. Sometimes you come across steak tartare which are more on the plain side. However this one was packed with flavours without it being too flavoured, if that makes sense! Our final entree was the fresh steamed southern Tasmanian mussels in a champagne sauce and oh my gosh, these were also super fresh and flavoured really well too. We were impressed. So far so good!

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Ok so you’re probably wondering, how can we possibly fit in mains after ordering FOUR entrees? Because we decided to share everything we decided to only order one main in addition to the four entrees. This ended up being the 250g eye fillet with bearnaise sauce and the staff were very lovely to split the steak in half and serve it on two individual plates so that we got our own steak and sauce. It also came with french fries which we shared. The steak was cooked rare, just how we liked it and the bearnaise sauce was really nice. Oh and we also ordered a lovely bottle of French red to go with the food: Cotes Du Rhone, 2012.

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Although we were pretty full, we couldn’t help but have a peek at the dessert menu. Being a total sucker for lemon type desserts, I quickly zeroed in on the caramelised lemon tart so it was settled pretty quickly. The tart had just the right amount of tang with dollop of cream. We gobbled that up quite efficiently too.

Overall it was a fantastic experience and I would definitely recommend if you’re looking for some traditional French food. Lots of ticks to great food and fantastic service!

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Paris Go
Approx $70 AUD per person
Website: parisgo.com.au
Address: 116 Rathdowne St, Carlton, VIC 3053
Phone: +61 3 9347 7507

Paris Go Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

The Little French Deli

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Continuing on with my love for French food, we recently visited The Little French Deli, a place I had bookmarked for quite some time and have been wanting to check out. We decided to head there one sunny day for lunch and they certainly did not disappoint!

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Located along Nepean Hwy, two minutes from Bonbeach, my eyes lit up when we entered the deli area where they had delicious cheeses, cured meats, sausages and lovely dips behind the glass window to take away. We made a mental note to come back after our meal to purchase some goodies for home. The lovely staff directed us next door to the restaurant where we were seated. I loved the decor immediately. It had a really cute and cosy French charm to it.

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We decided to order a sea platter which had beetroot and vodka cured salmon, salmon rillettes, devilled egg and dill crème fraîche. The rillettes, which is similar to a salmon pȃté was exceptional! We also got the charcuterie platter which had duck rillettes, serrano ham, saucisson, pate and baguette bread. This was also really yummy. We also ordered a refreshingly tasty lobster salad with watermelon, cucumber, broad beans and pea tendrils and some rosé wine to boot.

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For dessert there were quite a few options to choose from but we settled on a lemon tart and a coffee eclair to share. Although the lemon tart was delicious, I have to say that the coffee eclair was the highlight. It was not too sweet at all and nothing like the normal eclairs you would get at any bakery. We were lucky to secure the last one as they were selling like hot cakes! They had other eclair flavours too such as chocolate and raspberry which had already sold out.

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Overall the food was exceptional, however the only thing to mention is that the waitress who was serving us on that day was new, in fact it was her first day and so she was a little lost and we had to follow up on a few things. The other staff however were very friendly and accommodating when we followed up with them. Definitely recommend if you’re in the mood for some French!

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The Little French Deli
Approx $40 AUD per person
Website: thelittlefrenchdeli.com
Address: 524 Nepean Hwy, Bonbeach VIC 3196
Phone: +61 3 9776 0855

The Little French Deli Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

Chez Olivier

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Okay, so there’s been a bit of a theme lately and we have to admit that there is a particular cuisine in which we have been frequenting more often than others, and that is French food! I personally have always loved French food so I have no problem with that. But it just so happened that we have been coming across some top quality restaurants in Melbourne. So without further ado we introduce Chez Olivier!

Located in Prahan, Chez Olivier is a cute little restaurant on Greville Street offering authentic French bistro food. As soon as you enter you are faced with a well equipped bar with friendly staff and small tables scattered around. We were then escorted to the back area with more tables and a fireplace. I loved the wooden decor, framed mirrors and chandeliers, giving it an intimate and romantic feel.

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For starters we ordered the seafood bisque which was thick, creamy and full of seafood flavour. I’ve had a real liking to seafood bisques lately so really enjoyed this one. I also can never say no to a steak tartare when I see it on the menu so we also ordered that. It was 100g of finely chopped raw Black Angus beef with brandy sauce and the usual condiments. Mixed in with the raw egg yolk, it was delicious and seasoned well.

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Davin decided to order one of the specials of the day for his main, which was the duck breast with balsamic vinegar sauce, pumpkin mash and puff potato. The duck was cooked to perfection – medium rare. Combined with the balsamic sauce and pumpkin mash, it was presented really nicely on the plate and tasted even better!

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I ordered the 200g Black Angus eye fillet which was wrapped in proscuitto, with a slice of foie gras, mushroom sauce and white truffle oil served with mashed potato. It was sooo delicious! The foie gras literally just melted in my mouth. I reserved a bit for each bite of my steak. And the combination of the truffle oil and the creamy mashed potato was heaven.

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There was quite a selection of dessert options after dinner, but we ended up on settling on the chocolate fondant to share which came with vanilla ice cream and strawberry coulis. The fondant was cooked well and lovely warm chocolate sauce oozed out, which is what you expect from a good chocolate fondant!

Overall, we really enjoyed our experience. The food was top quality, the ambience was great for a date night, and the staff were also very attentive and friendly. As usual we were probably the last ones there but they were more than happy to take dessert orders and there was no rush to get out. We will definitely keep this place in mind when we’re in the mood for French next time!

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Chez Olivier
Approx $75 AUD per person
Website: www.chezolivier.com.au
Address: 121 Greville St, Prahran VIC 3181
Phone: +61 3 9525 2273

Chez Olivier - Le Bistro Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

Entrecôte


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I’ve always said that Japanese was my favourite cuisine. The reason for this is that it is generally healthy, the flavours are clean and it’s one of very few cuisines which I could eat more than twice a week. However lately, I must be honest and say that lately French food keeps knocking on my door and challenging my favourite cuisine title! Maybe I do prefer the big bold flavours, the fancy sauces and cheesy goodness which is evident in so many of their dishes. It’s sending me a message to eat first and worry about my cholesterol later. Right now I’m a bit confused which cuisine I prefer more, but I know for a fact that Helen has already jumped over to the French ship!

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So without further ado, I would like to introduce you guys to Entrecôte – Parisian Streakhouse & Bar. I initially found Entrecôte online when I was looking for a late night steak place. It kinda dropped off my radar for a while, as I was eating my way through different restaurants. We were reunited when Helen and I came across them in the Entertainment Book. Now armed with a discounted price, we weren’t going to let Entrecôte slip away again! The interesting thought I felt after dining here was that they were really selling themselves short by calling themselves a ‘Steakhouse’. It’s rare for the French to sell themselves short, as they normally do the opposite. They have always been great at marketing their products, because they supposedly make the best wines, best perfumes, best handbags, etc etc. I firmly believe that they are so much more than just a steakhouse, and stating this in their name could steer people to just their steaks. As a consequence of this, people may miss out on all the other wonderful foods on their menu, because who wouldn’t order steak at a steakhouse right!?!?

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Luckily for us, we have a bigger appetite than most normal couples. We started off with easily the best dish of the night, Soufflé Gratine – Jerusalem artichoke, Gruyère & black truffle soufflé. This dish was simply mind blowing! I would dare say that this is the best soufflé I’ve ever had, sweet or savory. Great decision to use Gruyere as it’s one of the best baking cheeses of all time as it doesn’t overpower the dish at all. Texture of the soufflé was perfect and the hit of black truffle at the end was heavenly! Best of all it didn’t feel heavy at all and I reckon I could have polished 5 more of these if they were presented in front of me (okay… at $22.90 each, maybe not). It’s a must have, way too good to share, get your own if you come here.

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Steak tartare was spot on. Authentic, seasoned perfectly and the steak was fresh. Speaking of which, yes the actual steak here was pretty damn good too. The colour of the herb sauce took a little getting used to, can’t say I’ve had many steaks where the sauce was that shade of green. It was also very runny, certainly tasted better than it looked. As soon as a piece a steak was moved, the sauce would ooze down and coat it straight away. The steak was Black Angus beef and had an amazing beef flavour. It was also cooked exactly how we wanted it, nice & rare. The serving was massive! Helen and I had decided that sharing one steak would be the best option next time. 3 entrees and 1 steak would allow us to have more variety as well. For $44.90, you get a steak, fries and a soft leaves salad. I felt as though this was a little on the pricey side. However I must repeat, the quantity is substantial and I doubt anyone would leave hungry. I must make a quick note – house wine was only $7 a glass! We didn’t inquire too much about the wine, it tasted great and we both ordered seconds.

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Décor was more French than Camembert, loved it! I think the pictures speak for themselves. Service was relaxed and we never felt rushed. We don’t normally hang around too long after we’ve finished eating, but if you’re the opposite, then this is certainly the place to do it. Aside from the steaks which I felt was a little pricey, I really don’t have anything bad to say about Entrecôte. Rest assured, we’ll be back the next chance we get, and I recommend you guys check it out too!

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Entrecôte
Approx $80 AUD per person
Website: www.entrecote.com.au
Address: 131-133 Domain Road, South Yarra VIC 3141
Phone: +61 3 9804 5468

Entrecôte Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

Rouge Cafe

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We decided one day that we needed a new brunch/lunch place! I was feeling particularly picky as well that day so I didn’t feel like the standard brunch food. It wasn’t a good combination waking up starving, but also being picky with food. After some extensive searching on Zomato, we finally came across this little French inspired cafe called Rouge Cafe. This was a bit out of my comfort zone because I rarely eat French as my first meal of the day nor dine in Armadale. I figured this was exactly what I needed, so off we went!

Rouge Cafe is nestled among a strip of boutique shops across from the railway line. Straight away you can tell that this is not a mainstream, in and out, churning numbers type of place. This is a place where locals come to sit back, relax, have a coffee, a bite to eat, with no pressure on them to leave earlier.

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The décor reminded me of one of the French cafes we visited in Paris. Use of wood and bricks was evident around the place, and it even had a wrought iron basket right near the door. The floral wallpaper provided the perfect backdrop. A gentle coffee aroma whiffed our way along with the smell of fresh bread. I was a bit overwhelmed as there were so many food items all around me. Cakes, biscuits, bread, salads, olive oil, etc.

The waiter asked if we wanted to sit at the front or the back. Well since the front looked so awesome, guess we had to check out the back! A narrow brick passageway led to the back courtyard. This passageway brought back memories for us, because there was one exactly like this in Prague! This one was a little more spacious though, the one in Prague was so narrow that you could only walk single file, and they also put a traffic light there so you could only walk through when it was green!

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As soon as I reached the back courtyard, my jaw just dropped… I had never seen such a beautiful scene for a cafe in Australia. I felt like I was in another country. There’s a lovely painting as soon as you walk in. I will not even attempt to explain how it looks, as I wouldn’t be doing it justice, see for yourself in the picture. There are also plants climbing walls, and marble tables with gold trimmings. My favourite part is that it’s all enclosed. No flies, bees or wasps that I needed to fend off!

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Now finally we get to the food. We ordered all of our dishes from the specials board that day. They were the confit duck, wild rice and quinoa salad, smoked salmon crepes, and the tart of the day. Food was spectacular, the confit duck was really appetizing, credit to the balsamic dressing. There was a combination of different textures too, for example the beans in the salad were really crunchy.

The tart was freshly made with pumpkin, baby spinach, capsicum and goats fetta, it was flavoured well. The pastry was crispy and buttery. The side salad had the perfect amount of parmesan cheese in it to give it that wonderful flavour. Small details like this makes the humble side salad that much more enjoyable! For dessert we ordered the compote of summer fruits with vanilla yoghurt. Whilst this was also very good, I found it got a little too sweet towards the end with the poached fruits.

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To sum it up, I really enjoyed my visit to Rouge Cafe and am already looking forward to coming back. Whilst good food is undoubtedly important, Rouge Cafe has shown that ambience is just as important for a holistic food experience. It feels like I’m on a mini holiday in Europe when I’m here, and that can never be a bad thing right?

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Rouge Cafe
Approx $30 AUD per person
Address: 14 Beatty Ave, Armadale VIC 3143
Phone: +61 3 9822 3310

Rouge Cafe Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

Noir Restaurant

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We recently discovered Noir in Richmond and was very impressed with the food and service so of course wanted to share our experience with you!

Noir is a cosy French restaurant so you do have to make sure that you make a booking if you’re planning to dine there! Although the space is small, the wooden tables and chairs are quite generously spaced from each other so you do get a sense of intimacy and personal space.

From the moment we walked in, the service was excellent and it remained that way throughout the night. From the waitress who talked us through the menu, to the sommelier – who had a thorough understanding of the wine list and made a great recommendation on the Chateau Turcaud, a lovely white wine that went well with the food – it was an impressive experience.

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The food was also exceptional. We started off with the Royal Miyagi premium Tasmanian Pacific oysters. We got some with champagne granite and some with pickled watermelon, spanner crab and chilli. They were refreshingly delish!

We also ordered the eye fillet of beef tartare with Waldorf salad and pommes gaufrette. This was one of my favourite dishes and I absolutely loved the flavours of the beef tartare combined with the sweetness of the apple. It was a match made in heaven!

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The cured kingfish with vichyssoise mousse, baby leeks, sugar snaps and samphire was our other entrée and was a beautifully presented dish with fresh flavours that complimented each other perfectly.

For mains, Davin ordered the seared fillet of bass groper with macadamia nut gnocchi, sorrell and Portarlington mussels. I ordered the crisp breast and confit leg of duck with black fig and pain d’epices puree. The duck was tender and definitely had that crispiness to the skin that you need for this kind of dish. With the fig and puree combined, each bite was a burst of yummy flavours. We also ordered the potato gratin and steamed yellow beans with confit shallots, walnuts and roquefort as sides.

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Dessert was also a highlight! We shared the Cremeux d’ Anjou which had strawberries, blueberries, honeycomb and berry and basil sorbet. It was amazing! The fruit, the crunch and sweetness of the honeycomb and the refreshing sorbert, it was a beautiful dessert! And presented so prettily too!

I would highly recommend Noir for some beautifully presented and delicious food, excellent service and great ambiance!

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Noir Restaurant
Approx $70 AUD per person
Website: www.noirrestaurant.com.au
Address: 175 Swan St, Melbourne VIC 3121
Phone: +61 3 9428 3585

Noir Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

Bistro Vue

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There is one thing which Bistro Vue set out to do, and that is to be as French as they could possibly be. As a matter of fact, they tried so hard that their dining room actually looks more French than all the restaurants we went to in France! Everything from the chairs, tables, cabinets, plates and even the walls are French influenced.

We made a booking on the day and was greeted warmly when we arrived. They asked us to have a drink first at Bar Vue which is attached to Bistro Vue. It was full of Friday after work drinkers but it wasn’t too noisy, we could still have a conversation. I ordered a Bourbon Macchiato and Helen got the cocktail of the day. Both cocktails were very nice however I thought the ones in the classic section were a bit pricey. Half way through our drinks we were told that our table was ready and we were escorted into the dining area.

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We ordered a French red and proceeded to look at the menu. Now you know a menu is really good when there’s too many good things and you can’t decide what you want! We decided against the $110pp for 6 courses because we wanted to try specific dishes from the à la carte menu. The waiter who served us was a little odd. When we started ordering he kept making a weird face. I looked at Helen as if to ask ‘what does the face mean?’ but she had no clue either. I didn’t know whether it was because we were ordering too much or too little. He was also quite pushy with the Paperbark baked snapper dish which we did end up getting. Can’t say i’m a huge fan of the service.


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The food here was really high quality! Steak tartare was very authentic, and brought back memories of France. The garlic snails was nice but didn’t come through as much compared to the other entrees. The trout was beautifully smoked, but the highlight of the entrees and the night was the duck egg, this dish was just amazing! I never imagined duck egg and kale would go so well together. I would recommend anyone to come here just for this dish. The paperbark baked snapper provided some theatrics when it arrived on the table as they unravel the paperbark. It was a very tasty piece of fish. Worst dish of the night has got to be the kangaroo loin (serves me right for trying kangaroo at a French restaurant). It’s just that I’m still searching for that perfect roo which I had so many years ago…

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As a whole I really enjoyed my experience at Bistro Vue. The ambiance was great and they produce high quality French dishes. Apart from the service, I had an awesome experience here. I felt like the mains were on the expensive side in comparison to the entrees. The entree portions were quite generous so I’m thinking next time we would do 5 or 6 entrees instead of ordering mains. If you haven’t been here, do check Bistro Vue out, I’m sure you’ll leave with a very happy tummy!

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Bistro Vue
Approx $70 AUD per person
Website: www.bistrovue.com.au
Address: 430 Little Collins St, Melbourne VIC 3000
Phone: +61 3 9691 3838

Bistro Vue Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato