Left Bank

Food fabulous. Ambiance wonderful. ALERT: hot water in the bathroom will melt your skin.

I’ve never been to Left Bank but I’ve sampled their Tarte Flambee many moons ago courtesy of a coworker. I absolutely loved its thin crispy crust topped with bacon, caramelized onion, and crème fraîche. I made sure to bookmark this place.
After a particularly horrible day at work, I figured I would treat myself to a Tarte Flambee. I went at around 9pm and thought of taking advantage of happy hour. When I got there, I didn’t realize that the place was a bit fancy. I was almost embarrassed to be standing there in my scrubs. Apparently I had nothing to be embarrassed about because nobody even bothered to pay attention to me. There was no hostess in front where there should have been. I stood there for a good five minutes and nobody even approached me. There was one waitress in the dining area but she avoided looking at my direction. The bar tender who was closer to where I was ignored me as well… not even a «May I help you?» or «You can sit wherever you want.» Then I saw another staff who was at the far end of the bar, she saw me standing at the entrance but she did not make any attempt to approach me either. I was ready to walk out but I really wanted the Tarte Flambee so I made eye contact with one staff and she motioned for me to approach her. I placed my order to go because I did not want to stay longer than I had to; never mind if I had to pay full price instead of happy hour price. My order arrived quickly, I was out of there in no time. When I opened the box, it was a mess. The toppings were all over the box. They did not include any napkins in the paper bag. The only reason I’m giving this place 2 stars is because the Tarte Flambee was still good despite its horrible presentation. Definitely zero stars for service (or lack thereof!).

I normally love this place, however tonight was an exception. We came in for a drink and service started out great. However, part way through the drink we were greeted by a cockroach running on the bar. The issue was handled, the manager had a conversation with us, and I thought that all was taken care, including our experience. We finished the last few sips of our drinks and then it got more frustrating. We waited 40 minutes with empty glasses for our check (no offer of another drink) as the staff went through their closing routines. I will say I was surprised to see both of our drinks at full price once the ticket was found. It still took another bit for our card to get run. Such a bummer that we were brushed aside because «we are the oldest building in Larkspur» and «it’s the weather» to treat ourselves to a nice drink in downtown Larkspur.

The Left bank is a consistently good restaurant with a great selection of dinners. We’ve been coming here for several years. The Duck and Moules are excellent. Ambiance is probably the best in Marin. Outdoor seating is extensive and enjoyable! They have an early happy hour with reduced portions for a late afternoon meal.
The bar seating is great too and generally has an interesting crowd.

Come with your Family or Girlfriends… this place is always top notch clean and delicious CA french Cuisine! Always so so good! I am usually always craving Mussels & Fries (Moules et Frites) but I recently came here for brunch and I had the Croque Madame, (The Toast with Ham, Cheese, Bechamel Sauce and a fried egg… Mmmmmm!) Just like I am in Paris at Les Deux Magots! My husband had an interesting Mexican Omlette type thing that he wiped clean! My kids got Salmon and green beans for one, which she LOVED and the other ordered Mac & Cheese… Everyone was happy. The ambiance is always TOPS! The Fish is always good here and as all Good French bistros have delicious greens-​This place will fulfill all those french memories and plenty of wines to choose from!

Good food, Awful service! Server disappeared. Wrong order; forgot drink; lost our doggie bag. Ruined meal. Couldn’t wait to leave.

My friend wanted to come here for her birthday lunch. I have to say service has definitely improved and wait staff are on top of it. They come around to refill your drinks, box up your food, clear your plates, etc. We brought an outside cake and dessert for the birthday girl. Our waiter did a great job with the candles and brought out the beautiful cake. He also brought out a profiterole on the house! Everything was magical this time around.
I ordered the scrumptious burger, cooked just the way I like it. I devoured my burger & fries. Good times catching up with friends. I’m no longer disappointed. I will definitely come back for more; perhaps, dinner next time — cassoulet sounds enticing! I’m already craving for Le Burger.
Bön Appétit

I have had many dinners in the dining area, bar and back room for events.
And, no bad meals or service.
The best in Marin for: Cheese fondue, Mussels, Onion Soup, Steak frites.

Rainy day during lunch walking into a packed restaurant. What do to? Eat lunch at the bar! This place was packed but we managed to find some seats at the bar.
The service was rushed but that really wasn’t a problem for us since we were just popping in for a quick bite.
Hubby enjoyed the stemmed mussels and I tucked into an amazing Croque Monsieur. Amazing! That with some french fries and some glasses of Rose, we managed to stay here for a few hours. Very delicious, I really recommend this place for lunch.

Pretty torn on this one. I would like to give our waitress 1 star and I will probably will not be returning because of that.
On the other hand the food was a solid 4 stars.
It was my dad & mines birthday dinner and we were so excited to dine at the Left Bank. We had the cheese fondue (excellent), the charcuterie platter, oysters, we all ordered the steak frites (amazing) and then my mom ordered the ahi ahi salad.
Unfortunately my moms salad was not fresh at all looking, the Ahi was raw which is fine obviously for the salad but it had 0 flavor added — zero! And the salad came VERY lightly dressed with what seemed to be like absolutely nothing (or just oil.) we asked for some extra dressing and they gave her straight vinegar. What?
We explained why the salad was bad and how we really don’t want it anymore. The waitress seemed very confused on how to handle the situation properly.
Later on we received two birthday desserts a little puff pastry with some ice cream — being wheat free I just ate a bit of the ice cream but totally appreciated the gesture! My dad also ordered a coffee… But then here comes the good part…
We get the bill and were charged for the birthday dessert! That they brought out to us without even ordering! I’ve never seen anything like that in my life — for god sake even Chevys gives you free ice cream AND a hat. Regardless we continued to loom over the bill and saw that we were mis charged for the dessert & another item.
She took it back and brought us a new copy.
This copy had a salad on it at half the price of the one my mom sent back so we asked what that salad was and she said it was my moms salad but they gave her a discount.
We were confused the previous copy they hadn’t taken the salad off since it was gross and my mom didn’t eat it…
After some back and forth again we asked for the manager and never received her. Instead we got another copy of the receipt correctly — about 15 minutes this whole process took I’m pretty sure we sent our bill back 3 times. Oh and the coffee still wasn’t brought out.
Make sure to always double check your bill and don’t be afraid to ask questions.
I usually don’t give out too many bad reviews and hate picking on anyone but our server was not nice, not coherent, not friendly or charismatic. VERY disappointing. Always have had good times at the Left Bank but now I will have to opt to go somewhere else, the customer service received was too bad to want to come back.

Cute French bistro with plenty of outdoor seating. The only thing I really like here is the Croque Monsieur that comes with a side salad. They also have some good soups. Last time I went, the service was not great and they had an issue making my sandwich without meat. Wine selection is good and I believe they have happy hour everyday.

Last time I ate here Chef Emeril was visiting… Tonight we found a table as walk-​ins and were sat within five minutes. We began dinner with some oysters on the half shell and followed it up with a delectable humboldt fog cheese as well.
Our server Holly was a sweetheart and explained the menu verbatim which pretty much showed that we were in for a real treat.
I couldn’t decide if I would do the rib eye or the skirt steak and I couldn’t be happier with the perfect skirt steak that was presented well, cooked to perfection, served with a herbed bleu cheese butter, carrots and fries… A couple of Amstel lights later and I was feeling like i need to be back to try the rib eye too.
Needless to say that I ended up satisfied beyond belief and ready to take on the world with that crème brûlée

Cheese Fondu is AMAZING…
I’ll be back for Cheese Fondu and red wine at happy hour.
Also the Mussels are great.
Definitely try this place.

I frequent the Left Bank, primarily for their happy hour, which is why it gets 3 stars rather than a lower rating.
Happy Hour details:
The happy hour is great, there are $ 5-​$ 6 cocktails (I highly recommend their Cosmo, but their Gin & Tonics can be skipped) and small plates of food. The best part is there’s a late night happy hour from 9-​close every weekday (which translates to 9 – 10 Monday through Thursday and 9 – 11 on Friday). It gets very busy at the bar though so be prepared to stand or get there early. Happy hour is 4 – 630 Monday through Friday. Michael, the bartender of many years, is great.
Food:
The small plates are good at happy hour, but their main meals can be skipped — the food isn’t that desirable and sometimes the service is a miss.
The price is very high, which is their main downfall (other than the food).

Bonjour! How cool is it to vicariously experience Left Bank, the artsy district of Paris, by dining in a quaint and charming French brasserie of the same name? Located in historic Larkspur, they have a bustling outdoor patio that captures the true Parisian spirit, perfect to people watch or be watched! The interior is vibrant and elegant but not ostentatious. A cozy fireplace to the left made it look like an oversized living room with a glitzy well stocked bar on the right. Reading the menu, it seemed to encompass all the modern day fads in restaurants with catchy phrases like natural meats, sustainable seafood and local fresh produce. Left Bank is however not just all talk… they practice what they preach!
On a chilly day, a bowl of piping hot Onion Soup ($ 9.00) is a no brainer. Something soothing, something comforting… I just had to! Visually, one can see the melting Gruyère cascading over the sides of a ramekin. Then Left Bank nailed it with the scrumptious beefy broth that was further enriched by a ton of soft, caramelized onions. The broth was soul warming, deliciously beefy with a touch of onion-​y sweetness. This version certainly gave Left Bank a deserving spot on my go-​to onion soup list! (⁴⁄₅)
Got escargots ($ 12.00)? Land snails. …Eeewww! Six plump escargots were slow baked and smothered in garlic butter. This is a French delicacy not to be missed. I enjoyed the soft chew, the clean earthy or woodsy flavors and not fishy at all as these are land snails. A splash of cognac will raise the bar even more! (⁴⁄₅)
The French are big on mussels. In fact they’re ubiquitous in every French restaurant. Left Bank serves steamed Moules Florentine ($ 12.00 for half pound) in a white wine sauce with spinach and smothered in garlic butter and shallots. I was craving them and my companion didn’t mind me ordering this, as he wasn’t big on mussels but he’d like only to sop out the exquisite broth with bread. That wasn’t a bad trade off and I was more than happy, as the mussels were plump, tender and had a delicious sweetness. I couldn’t think of a more compatible match between mussels and spinach as it paired off so well. (⁵⁄₅)
A criticism you often hear about French cooking is its complexity and how the food can sometimes be loaded with calories. The Pan Seared Rainbow Trout ($ 22.00) didn’t seem too complicated to cook although the butter overload could pack in the pounds! The baby spinach and the crunchy almonds complemented the trout perfectly. The fish was crispy on the edges, tender and moist in the center. The tartness of the lemon balanced the sweetness and nutty flavors of the browned sugar really well. I don’t usually care for rainbow trout but this rendition just blew me off. This dish was definitely low in sodium while the capers would generate some saltiness if so desired. (⁵⁄₅)
We were there for an early dinner and the bartender filled in as our server. He was a little stiff-​necked initially and was not exactly friendly. At the end of the meal, we were more than pleased when the chef de cuisine, Fabrice Marcon, a native of Bordeaux, came into the dining room and engaged us in light banter. He also made us feel like he custom made every morsel of food with us in mind. Schmoozing patrons will go a long way in making a dining experience memorable. Fabrice certainly earned the fifth star for Left Bank!

Today I decided to go for a romantic dinner and decided to go to this restaurant: the choice of food looked very yum and the location was nice.
We started trying to order some nice wine but. Too bad that on Menu it was written it was a Bordeaux from 2010 (which I love) and the waitress brought us one from 2009. When I have noticed that and asked her whether she had the wine which was written on the Menu, she got upset and started being rude!
We decided to move on and kept the bottle. We ordered some Fondue which was good and then one steak and one «duck meat».
First of all she never served us water and we kept asking for it. Then I asked my duck to be cooked medium to well and it came really rare. Since it got cold at one point, we asked to move inside and she again ignored us for a while. After all that, also took her 20 minutes to get the check!!! For spending more than 150 $ for 2 people, it definitely was not the GREATEST experience! And not so much for the food but bad bad service!

Had a really nice time here yesterday evening. It was happy hour so there were cheap drinks, it wasn’t that crowded and the sun was shining on the patio. My friend and I both had the chicken sandwich which was delicious. The fries that came with them were excellent. The drinks were good and the service was great.
It’s a really nice atmosphere to sit on the patio there and watch downtown Larkspur. Especially on a nice day.
I had good company, good food, good service, and great atmosphere. This all led to a five star experience. I will be back.

Let me paint a picture for you. It’s a sunny Sunday afternoon. 2 adults are sitting in the patio of a charming French bistro. The man is nibbling on a delicious Lardon Salad while nursing a mouthwatering martini. The woman is picking away at her beet salad while sipping on a glass of Sincerre. All around them are smiling families enjoying leisurely strolls through the quaint streets.
Is this Paris you might ask? No, it’s downtown Larkspur. And the restaurant I speak of is Left Bank.
For a more comprehensive take on my favorite dishes, check out my original review (from 4÷30÷2013). I will say that the food quality remains top notch. The cocktails are still fresh and invigorating. The service continues to be friendly and efficient. And the setting… well, I guess the term «oh la la!» comes to mind.
If this slice of Parian bliss sounds remotely appealing, then put Left Bank on your to-​do list.

My husband and I are regulars here. It’s simply a very cozy, romantic, inexpensive restaurant with consistently good food and service. We love the neighborhood, parking across the street in the lot is easy (or they have valet), and the wine list is great and affordable. The house-​made sodas are also tasty — try the pear sparkler. Good for special occasions and holidays, too. The fish dishes, soups, and gluten free options are my favorites. They even had GF gnocchi! YUM.

Ein absolutes Highlight in Larkspur in der Nähe von San Francisco, sozusagen über die Bucht nach Westen gelegen :-)…
Sehr französische Atmosphäre (oder was der Amerikaner dafür hält *zwinker*), auf jeden Fall gemütlich. Wir fanden zu zweit am 1. Weihnachtstag (der Amerikaner hat ja nur einen) im gut besuchten Lokal noch einen Platz an der Bar. Wir bestellten ein «Skirt Steak» mit Frites und Harricot Verts (umgerechnet € 19,50). Dazu ein «Stella Artois».
Skirt Steak? Nie gehört, aber es schmeckte fantastisch. Wikipedia nennt es auf deutsch «Saumfleisch». Aha. Es kamen zwar Mohrrüben anstatt grünen Bohnen, aber das tat dem Genuss keinen Abbruch. Die Austern und danach die Burger von unseren Nachbarn sahen auch sehr empfehlenswert aus.
Also, Leute, wenn es Euch in die Gegend verschlägt… hingehen!

We ate outside for lunch here and really enjoyed it. Great place for that French comfort food fix. Delicious food, great bar and atmosphere whether you sit inside or people watch outside. The ambiance on the patio tables would be great for small groups of two to four… just like in Paris!
The restaurant has a nice menu of well-​known French dishes, prepared in a recognizable style, though not by any means authentic. There is a very extensive wine list, something for everyone. We love the escargots, steamed mussels and onion soup for starters. Adequate portions, well prepared and presented. Everything we’ve had on their menu has been yummy!
A delightful French Bistro with prompt services. The staff was friendly and attentive. Parking is easy there are plenty of street parking available and a parking lot across from the restaurant. Overall, a solid experience for me!