The French Brasserie - CBD, Melbourne
Date: Friday 16th December 2011
Restaurant: The French Brasserie, Melbourne
Address: 2 Malthouse Lane, CBD Melbourne
Phone: 03 9629 9222
Commentary : Sarah Andrew
The journey begins from the moment you step inside this contemporary and very chic CBD restaurant. The staff present as bright, friendly and super attentive and the vast space with soaring ceilings and glass create an atmosphere where time becomes irrelevant. This is a venue not to be rushed and by that I mean don’t book a ‘quick’ meal as you will miss out on the whole experience.
The proprietor is Hadj Sadki, and the wealth of experience he brings to this restaurant is obvious. Everything is made in-house, and the cuisine offers modern French with a complementary wine list spanning old world and new world. Alex is the wine buyer and he clearly shares his enthusiasm for wine with the staff that are knowledgeable and equally passionate.
I had not dined at this restaurant for quite some time, so was eager to book a Christmas business lunch for a group of professionals who meet several times a year. We booked the mezzanine, and managed to fill every seat (37 guests). It was a cosy fit however the staff who looked after us worked their magic with excellent service. Timing was perfect, water was topped up regularly (one of my pet hates is being left without water for too long) and clean glassware on standby for those who required extra glasses.
We opted for canapés upon arrival, followed by an entrée, main and dessert. The menu included the following:
Entrée
Le plateau de charcuterie - assortment of French terrines, condiments, red wine vinegar reduction, pain de champagne
Main - a choice of one
La Bavette - Hanger steak, mash potato, confit shallots, red wine jus
Poisson Mediterranean - Snapper fillet, braised baby fennel, tapenade, sauce vierge, enoki mushroom
Dessert
Crème Catalane - traditional vanilla & Fennel infused crème brulee
The restaurant has kindly taken on the Bridge Shiraz 2006 and we had the winemaker Lindsay Ross join us at the luncheon. It was great for him to see how well the wine has been selling and after a little wager with Alex it was ‘game on’ to sell as many bottles as possible over the lunch period. Credit to the team as all but one bottle was sold! This meant arranging a Saturday delivery - BUT it was worth it! Lindsay made a guest appearance to each table that purchased a bottle of his wine for lunch and even read a poem or two to the amusement of diners and staff alike!
This is a restaurant you need to know about, whether it’s for a quiet dinner for two; celebration or function. It is open for lunch Monday - Friday and dinner Monday - Saturday. Bookings are essential as they are always busy.
Thanks to all who made our function last Friday a huge success, I am guessing we will all be back again in the near future.
Bon appétit!