The_Aviator
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Jun 6, 2010
We have visited France a couple of times in the past and we have come to really enjoy French food, although it is a little hard to come by here in Australia! We have a few, but generally the 'French-ness' of their menus is limited to escargot and creme brulee . And the ones that actually serve real French food generally do not do it that well. So we were hoping that we would have a really good, proper, French meal here at Les Chefs de France.
We had a reservation for 7:30pm, although we arrived probably at some time around 7:20pm and we were seated straight away.
The restaurant looks very nice inside and it really is set up like an authentic French restaurant could be. There are lots of tables for two along the windows, which I think would be very nice for couples! The restaurant is very large and is sort of divided into two main areas, an inner area without much of a view and an outer ring, where guests can look out the windows. We were seated in the outer ring, although not right next to the window. We still had a view of the pavilion and the lake outside. The more interesting part of the view was the open dessert kitchen, where chefs were preparing the dessert and the waiters and waitresses were collecting them. It was pretty cool to see them flaming the creme brulees and preparing the other dishes.
Our waiter was Peter. I've forgotten exactly where he was from, but I think it was somewhere in the south of France or perhaps Paris, one of the two. We didn't see him too often, but overall he was a good server.
Below are some pics of the menu
The Prix Fixe three course menu was allowed for those on the regular DDP so Mum, Rachel and I went for that ($39.95), while Dad decided just to get the standard entree and dessert.
For our appetisers DM and DS got the Bisque de Homard (Lobster Bisque) and I got the Soupe a l'oignon gratinee (Onion Soup). For the entrees DS and I got the beef short ribs with pasta, DM got the fillet of salmon and DD got the beef tenderloin ($34.95).
To drink DS had a Sprite, DM had an Orange Juice, (soft drinks and juice were $2.95, although the sodas came with refills) DD had a glass of Chateau Mezain merlot ($9.50)
I'll start with the appetisers...
The Lobster Bisque
And the Onion Soup
Both of the soups were reasonably good. DS liked the lobster chunks, but not the actual soup. However DM liked the whole thing. I was fairly happy with my Onion soup, which tasted pretty authentic and had good, full flavour. However, I think the Le Cellier cheese soup is just a tiny bit better.
And then our entrees...
Salmon
Beef
Beef Ribs with Pasta
The entrees were reasonably good. DM and DD were fairly happy with their meals. DS and my pasta were also fairly good. The pasta itself tasted good as did the ribs, and I think the weakest part of the dish was the sauce. The sauce was heavily flavoured by the onions in the dish, and, to a lesser extent, the mushrooms. However, it was by no means a terrible meal and we were fairly happy. The servings sizes were also quite generous, considering it is a French restaurant. BTW, I thought it was kinda funny how each dish had a single lone cherry tomato
After dinner we ordered our dessert. DS had the profiteroles, DD had a crepe and DM and I had the Creme Brulee. (All desserts were $7.25ea) I was having it so I could make a comparison with Le Cellier!
Dad also ordered a Kir au Chassis to go with his dessert. ($7.25)
The Crepe
The Profiteroles
And the Creme Brulee
All the desserts were nice. The way DS's profiteroles was served was a bit different to what we usually see, where the ice-cream is on the side! DD enjoyed his crepe. DM and I enjoyed our Creme Brulee, although to be honest I preferred the Maple Creme Brulee at Le Cellier over this one.
In summary, Les Chefs de France was a great meal in its own right, however I think we all agreed that Le Cellier was the clear winner in this great battle. If we had been to Les Chefs on a different day, or before going to Le Cellier, we wouldn't have been able to make such comparisons and this review would have been far more positive. So I would recommend it, I would just have Le Cellier take priority over this place
In terms of value for money on the DDP, it was really good. This was the best value we got out of one TS credit for the entire trip, with all of our meals costing over $40 and that was pre-tax! If you are looking for making some money out of your DDP, then this is definitely the place! If you aren't dining on the DDP, I think your best bet may be the prix fixe menu, since there is a fair bit of choice within the prix fixe and since most entrees are in the $28-$35 range, it is just a few dollars more and you can have three courses! Even if you are on the DDP, the prix fixe is still a great option!
Cost:
4 TS credits used - 16 remaining
Bill Total - $186.22 (avg $46.55ea! That's almost the cost of one day on the DDP!)
Running Total - $1641.54
NEXT UP: A morning snack then a quick service lunch at DHS!
We had a reservation for 7:30pm, although we arrived probably at some time around 7:20pm and we were seated straight away.
The restaurant looks very nice inside and it really is set up like an authentic French restaurant could be. There are lots of tables for two along the windows, which I think would be very nice for couples! The restaurant is very large and is sort of divided into two main areas, an inner area without much of a view and an outer ring, where guests can look out the windows. We were seated in the outer ring, although not right next to the window. We still had a view of the pavilion and the lake outside. The more interesting part of the view was the open dessert kitchen, where chefs were preparing the dessert and the waiters and waitresses were collecting them. It was pretty cool to see them flaming the creme brulees and preparing the other dishes.
Our waiter was Peter. I've forgotten exactly where he was from, but I think it was somewhere in the south of France or perhaps Paris, one of the two. We didn't see him too often, but overall he was a good server.
Below are some pics of the menu
The Prix Fixe three course menu was allowed for those on the regular DDP so Mum, Rachel and I went for that ($39.95), while Dad decided just to get the standard entree and dessert.
For our appetisers DM and DS got the Bisque de Homard (Lobster Bisque) and I got the Soupe a l'oignon gratinee (Onion Soup). For the entrees DS and I got the beef short ribs with pasta, DM got the fillet of salmon and DD got the beef tenderloin ($34.95).
To drink DS had a Sprite, DM had an Orange Juice, (soft drinks and juice were $2.95, although the sodas came with refills) DD had a glass of Chateau Mezain merlot ($9.50)
I'll start with the appetisers...
The Lobster Bisque
And the Onion Soup
Both of the soups were reasonably good. DS liked the lobster chunks, but not the actual soup. However DM liked the whole thing. I was fairly happy with my Onion soup, which tasted pretty authentic and had good, full flavour. However, I think the Le Cellier cheese soup is just a tiny bit better.
And then our entrees...
Salmon
Beef
Beef Ribs with Pasta
The entrees were reasonably good. DM and DD were fairly happy with their meals. DS and my pasta were also fairly good. The pasta itself tasted good as did the ribs, and I think the weakest part of the dish was the sauce. The sauce was heavily flavoured by the onions in the dish, and, to a lesser extent, the mushrooms. However, it was by no means a terrible meal and we were fairly happy. The servings sizes were also quite generous, considering it is a French restaurant. BTW, I thought it was kinda funny how each dish had a single lone cherry tomato
After dinner we ordered our dessert. DS had the profiteroles, DD had a crepe and DM and I had the Creme Brulee. (All desserts were $7.25ea) I was having it so I could make a comparison with Le Cellier!
Dad also ordered a Kir au Chassis to go with his dessert. ($7.25)
The Crepe
The Profiteroles
And the Creme Brulee
All the desserts were nice. The way DS's profiteroles was served was a bit different to what we usually see, where the ice-cream is on the side! DD enjoyed his crepe. DM and I enjoyed our Creme Brulee, although to be honest I preferred the Maple Creme Brulee at Le Cellier over this one.
In summary, Les Chefs de France was a great meal in its own right, however I think we all agreed that Le Cellier was the clear winner in this great battle. If we had been to Les Chefs on a different day, or before going to Le Cellier, we wouldn't have been able to make such comparisons and this review would have been far more positive. So I would recommend it, I would just have Le Cellier take priority over this place
In terms of value for money on the DDP, it was really good. This was the best value we got out of one TS credit for the entire trip, with all of our meals costing over $40 and that was pre-tax! If you are looking for making some money out of your DDP, then this is definitely the place! If you aren't dining on the DDP, I think your best bet may be the prix fixe menu, since there is a fair bit of choice within the prix fixe and since most entrees are in the $28-$35 range, it is just a few dollars more and you can have three courses! Even if you are on the DDP, the prix fixe is still a great option!
Cost:
4 TS credits used - 16 remaining
Bill Total - $186.22 (avg $46.55ea! That's almost the cost of one day on the DDP!)
Running Total - $1641.54
NEXT UP: A morning snack then a quick service lunch at DHS!