Le Garrick Brasserie Restaurant

Candle-​lit restaurants with that old-​fashioned smoky, sexy kind of charm have always appealed to me. They beckon and entice me in. I relax more in a restaurant that doesn’t have glary lights; I feel myself kicking back and genuinely glowing, in the glow of it all!
Le Garrick is one of those. Been there forever, and forever I have heard it calling to me, but never slowed down long enough to listen. Until recently that is, when my friend and I were in Covent Garden, craving somewhere charming, cosy and French. ‘Oh, that’ll be Le Garrick’, and off we went.
It’s lovely, in that old fashioned, unpretentious lovely French kinda way. The staff are fun, sexy and, FRENCH (sexy by default then really) and they bob about happily, taking it all in their stride.
The décor, effortlessly stylish, is rustic and pleasantly unrefined — wooden floors and chairs, exposed brick and boudoir wallpaper. The candle light hides any imperfections, for which I am grateful too.
The food is as you’d expect from a French Brasserie — no surprises, just all the old staples, the epitome of French cooking. We tucked in to Coquilles St Jacques — seared scallops which were perfectly cooked, bouncy and succulent — and Cassolette de calamar à la plancha au piment d’espelette — calamari in the most exquisite, intensely rich, decadent, sweet buttery sauce with ginger, coriander and chilli. I have no words to really do this sauce justice, only to say that, had I been at home I would have undoubtedly licked the bowl clean. Subsequently, I ate far too much French bread, mopping up every last drop.
Rib-​eye and frites, an old brasserie dependable, was as good as any; and beef Bourguignon was unctuous and plentiful with another sauce to blow your mind. Aromatic, more’ish and deeply satisfying — another bowl-​licker!
Meanwhile, we enjoyed a rather quaffable 2007 Gevrey Chambertin, mindful not to quaff too quickly. And as the candles flickered, and the place gently hummed with mellifluous background noise, for just a moment I imagined I was in my favourite city in the world — Paris, in a 1940’s foxy full skirted dress, with my French lover, Benoît, smoking and drinking Vermouth.
I blink and it’s gone. But what a lovely evening it has been, avec mon amis, Jeremy.

Beautiful little brasserie serving French bistro fare in a quaintly setting. Big windows, amber lighting (good for dates), and joyful, friendly staff.
They offer your standard bisfro fare of various steaks– onglette, entrecot– a fish of the day, mussels, and surprisingly, vegetarian dishes outside of the usual dreary mushroom risotto (£9.95). On my most recent visit I sampled the quinoa and roasted vegetable dish which was excellent. Fresh and full of flavour, it wasn’t just some lame runner-​up to the rest of the menu as is frequently the case in French places. Pricing is moderate, with most mains costing in the mid-​teens range and wines between £21 — 48.
Upstairs the seating is a bit cosy but fine… the real highlight is downstairs. Creep down the spiral staircase and encounter what feels like a speakeasy: low, vaulted ceilings, tables for 4 or 6 people each ensconced in their own little area. Overall a nice choice for a chilled dinner experience.

L’accueil est très sympa ! La carte est appétissante; le résultat est un peu moins. C’est une brasserie plus que moyenne à Paris … Mais on est a Londres et c’est assez sympa d’y diner un plat comme un bœuf bourguignon :)

Unpretentious little gem that serves decent French food without fuss in the heart of theatreland.
It might be easier to write a list of things the Gartick isn’t: not posh, not a chain, not swanky, not expensive (assuming you can afford a theatre ticket), not full of drunk hedge fund managers.
But that would do it a disservice. Le Garrick is really pleasant find, serving perfectly decent French food in the friendly but still slightly aloof manner that the French seem to have mastered.
The salads are simple, the Onglet steak very nice with skinny French fries (of course). Not foodie fare, but very good.
If you’re looking for a nice place to grab a bite sitting down, where you can hear your friends, and not have to worry that a whopping bill is going to land at the end, go here.
Recommend.

The fondue is a must-​try. An authentic French brasserie, just as I like it. Reminds me of my darling Paris! :)

What a fantastic restaurant this is. We lived down the street for two years, and this was our go to restaurant in London. It truly transports you… walking down the stairs and straight into Paris. Incredible atmosphere, wonderful food and excellent service. Cannot wait for our trip back to London to go back to Le Garrick!

We went in a group for a Friday night dinner, not only did we have our own private corner after reserving an area but the ambience and noise level were perfect. The food was good, the cheese fondue as an entrée was delicious. Servers were attentive without being overcrowding!

Happy staff, high-​quality French food and a lovely restaurant with a great underground section (looks infinitely more cosy than the upstairs seating area).
This place isn’t for super fat people as the tables and chairs are teeny weeny — we had to squeeze in next to a drunk group of four women for our romantic meal for two, and it was quite hard to hear anything other than their cackling away.
I think as long as you strike lucky with your table (maybe ask for on the tables further away from other diners) this place could easily hit 5*.

Good food and good service. Ask for downstairs table and make sure to reserve a table cos it’s always fully booked.

We went for a post theatre 2 course menu at around 10.30. The service was okay but at that time of the night we almost got double charged when I didn’t complain. The mussels were really tasty though and the portion is very generous. I found it the setting a bit too dim for my taste though.

Came here for (American) Thanksgiving dinner, and was not disappointed. The ambiance is warm and inviting. The service was excellent. Food was fantastic. Worth the splurge!

Fantastic food, friendly staff and an amazing location (make sure you ask to sit downstairs, which is an old converted cellar).
Le Garrick fries are the best in London IMHO!

Great staff, great food! Went here for my cousins birthday celebration (nice quiet dinner somewhere we’ve never been before). I stumbled upon Le Garrick on the internet and the place itself beat my expectation with it’s intimate setting (love the underground area!) and friendly staff.
As this was a year ago, I don’t remember what I had but the duck come to mind! Whatever it is, I know it tasted good as I recommended the restaurant to friends straight away.
With it being in London, do expect a higher price for what you order. It came out to be about £25−30 a head which for good food and a special occasion can be compromised, still not bad.
Book first though!

I had just finished my dinner there and her is my review:
Basement atmosphere: ⁵⁄₅
Service: ⁵⁄₅
Food: ²⁄₅
The atmosephere downstairs is really intimate and out of the ordinary. The service was nice and the staff was friendly untill I paid the bill. The main dishes were way below expectation mainly because the meat was hard a
nd dry. Also, the bill comes with a hand written «optional» 12.5% service charge and I was sort of challenged for leaving less than that! That is the first time for me! I think I would have given a five rating and paid full gratuity if the food was excellent.

wonderful find — Garrick is a legit (run by real french people), affordable brasserie with superb ambiance and excellent service. Took my in-​laws there for a family dinner and sat downstairs in one of the little alcoves they have that gives the place such an intimate feel. perfect place for a group — plus they take reservations.
food was solid — not superlative, but a great value for the money. particularly enjoyed the calamar cassoulet appetizer, the actual cassoulet dinner and the escargots.

Marion, such a lovely host who greeted us at the door before we even entered and made our dinner experience more homely and friendly than we could have imagined it to be. In the hustle and bustle of Covent Garden it’s hard to believe that a gem like this exist– a beautiful French restaurant with 30 years of history.
We were seated upstairs which itself was beautiful, dark and romantic, containing less than 10 tables which made it very cosy to be in. But when we return we must remember to request for a seat downstairs as it was another world down there, discovering it as I was making my way down the rustic metal spiral staircase to the toilets. It was like a barrel cellar area, low ceiling with little booth for diners to sit in with a bit more privacy. It was extremely romantic.
I like a host that is decisive and confidence enough to suggest us wines when we asked for her choice and that was exactly what Marion did. We left it to her and I can honestly say for me who doesn’t usually like wine, she made a very good choice, fruity full-​bodied red wine that had a nice smooth aftertaste. It was a great pairing with my Cassoulet De Toulouse hence why she chose it.
But before we started our mains we both shared a cheese fondue cooked with white wine and herbs — for two to share. It was incredible, runny, smooth and creamy full of flavour with the added wine and herbs. Although my favourite part had to be the harden bits around the edge that was stringy and slightly elastic with an intense cheese flavour. We were given slices of baguettes to accompany it and was even offered more after we finished– very generous.
Where I ordered the Cassoulet De Toulouse which consisted of lingot beans served with duck, sausages and pork my boyfriend ordered his most loved Boeuf Bourguignon. My main was lovely, beautiful slow cooked succulent duck and pork belly which went extremely well with the lingot beans. But the flavours could not compare to my boyfriend’s Boeuf Bourguignon. Where my dish was cooked in a very light refreshing tomato flavour it was that rich beef stock in red wine in the Boeuf Bourguignon that won me over.
The beef in the Boeuf Bourguignon was tender, chunky, mixed with halved potatoes which could have been of a more fluffy variety but still very pleasant. The broth also had a nice sweetness from the carrots. It was a bit runny but there was a lot of depth and really flavourful. If I wasn’t so full I would have got some bread to dish up the rest of the sauce.
Overall it was a beautiful meal. Sadly the prices does remind you you’re in a tourist area as the prices for mains vary from £12.50– £24.95.There is also a 2 course set menu available at £13.50 with the choice of onglet or moules as your main for those who are looking for a fairer price.
Even with the high prices, in return you do get a very unique experience, homely french cooking in a old lively French restaurant conveniently located next to Covent Garden.
I will definitely be back for sure even if it is to see our host again, Marion who made our day. It would be great to try out the other dishes too and get a chance to visit the seating area downstairs. A great discovery and looking forward to our next visit :).

I liked this restaurant. The décor is really nice and intimate, the food was good and the menu was varied without being too extensive. My friends and I had a really nice time here.
So why the lost stars? Well, for one thing, there was a plague of flies buzzing around us the whole time. I for one had showered earlier in the day, so after a couple of sly whiffs of my being, I ascertained that it wasn’t us that brought the flies in. We asked the waitress and she said that there had been an infestation that they were dealing with.
Now, I don’t know the rules on restaurant hygiene, but in my humble opinion, if a restaurant has an infestation of flies to the point where it’s actually pestering customers, it should not be open. It was disgusting having all these little critters buzzing around our food and drink for the entirety of the meal.
Also, I wasn’t too keen on our waitress. She was nice enough, but she seemed to adopt the mannerisms of the flies; she kept buzzing over every couple of minutes to look at our plates to see if she could take them. I actually got really annoyed when she did this when 1 of the 3 of us was clearly still eating, even though the other two had finished. I don’t know if she was in a rush to get us out or something, but being constantly interrupted by her was pretty irritating.

Welcome to London my parents! To celebrate them being here, we decided to go see a show, very traditional middle class way of entertaining parents isn’t it? Of course the problem with this is you have to find somewhere early to eat that serves quickly enough. Now I know what you’re thinking, why not have something to eat after the show? Ingenious, but then of course that assumes that my mum isn’t complaining about how her feet hurt and she’s tired.
So, thinking ahead, I booked a nice looking French restaurant in covent garden near to the theatre. Mum is of course picky and now on (another) diet so I thought French would suit this quite well — not too heavy and she can feel continental, fulfilling more middle class desires of hers. So along we went to Le Garrick. First impressions were nice location and good décor; Very shabby chic, iron staircase going into the basement where there were carefully placed tables in really interesting nooks and crannies. Of course they did that annoying thing of trying to squeeze in one too many tables so that everyone felt a bit awkward when moving their chair to go to the loo. You move back your chair carefully so you don’t make that scraping sound on the floor and you accidentally hit the table behind you sending soup everywhere. Thankfully that didn’t happen to me. This time!
Typical prices, ranging from 12 — 18 quid. I had duck in orange sauce with wilted greens, which was a bit sweet and had rind in the sauce, not great. But the duck was nicely cooked so some points there. Dad had beef bourguignon which looked nice, although it probably should have been served in a deeper bowl. Mum had grilled lamb shank and ratatouille, which in her middle class way was described as distinctly average.
All in all an average meal, nice service and good place. But around Covent Garden, there’s better out there.

This restaurant represents the 4 Star and ‘££’ category very well. i. e it punches above its weight.
i went a few years back and sat downstairs in their cellar style dining room complete with all the nooks and crannies, its a beautiful cosy restaurant. This time we sat upstairs in the smaller dining room to catch the last of the days sunshine.
My wife has the Boeuf Bourguignon and i had the Duck a l’Orange. The Bourguignon was excellent. The Duck a l’Orange was good but it wasn’t to my palates taste. i asked the waiter to suggest a more savory style suggestion but she was quite convincing that she liked this duck better. anyway next time will get the duck confit!

This is an adorable little (3.5 star) French restaurant on Garrick Street. It is not white tablecloth, and not as expensive as other similar French restaurants. The ambience is great, the service is friendly, and the food is lovely. The bread with the French butter was a great way to start the meal. We ordered the foie gras as our appetizer which was, of course, amazing. Until this point, I think this place would have definitely received a 4 star review. However, the salmon that I ordered as my main course left much to be desired. I also tried a bite of the moules marinières (mussels), which were great!
Other than the salmon, it was a great dining experience and I would recommend it as a solid place to eat if you are in the area.

* Amazing food, check.
* Amazing service, check.
* Amazing night, check.
First things first: make reservations, preferably with a group of 6 — 8 and ask for one of the lovely ‘booths’ downstairs.
Second, order wine, tap water (yes, extra star for service) and look at the menu.
You notice that it’s French Classics? You’ve noticed well! Beautiful Foie Gras, Moules Marinieres, succulent duck confit, baby chicken and the list goes on and on and on.
I must say, I was very impressed that 1) the service was quick and friendly, 2) the food came quite quickly, and 3) cooked to perfection. Let me explain why: we were with a large group (9 people), we came in at peak hour (8 PM) on a very busy Friday night. Located in Covent Garden, you’d expect lots of tourists and stunning prices. Nope, not here. Good food and not too expensive, even for London standards.
Tip: apparently, they also do live music…