The French House Review - Soho - London - The Infatuation
"Nowhere in the vicinity of Dean Street has as many stories as The French House. Not even Foyles. Open since 1891, London’s most famous pub and dining room is an interactive historical attraction where everyone wants a drop of the Soho institution’s mythology. Or better still, to make some of their own. The stories inside this place are always changing, but what makes The French special are the things that stay the same. Crispy half-pints of Meteor, peerless steak frites, and London’s finest location for the longest of lunches. First opened in 1891, The French House traded hands with a German and a Belgian before its legendary landlord, Gaston, took over in the late ‘80s. Nowadays, it’s run by a woman called Lesley and the crowd isn’t exactly Sylvia Plath and Lucien Freud. You’ll get bankers, beret-wearing thesps, drunks, and dithering tourists. Even so, squeezing into The French’s rickety wooden bar and ordering a half remains one of London’s great joys. Up The French’s creaking staircase is where you’ll find the petit dining room. It’s a discrete space suited to illicit romances or plotting of a diabolical nature. The menu changes daily, but it’s always hearty, tasty food that you’ll daydream about eating in the Dordogne countryside, like rillettes with dinky cornichons, and chocolate and rum mousse. A spoon of this rich, freakishly airy creation will have you calling for a celebratory glass of sauternes in no time. Steak frites Thursdays at The French House are a must—because eating impeccable rib-eye and crispy fries looking out onto Dean Street is as cool as it gets. Yes, dinner in this low-lit cave is romantic, but in Soho, the long lunch reigns supreme and boudoirs like this one are the reason why. Some people want to become a character in The French’s legend. To have their own seat at the bar. To drink champagne and eat madeleines with the chefs after service. That would be nice, but no one likes a try-hard. Just go and become a part of the story—and eat seriously good steak frites while you’re at it. " - Jake Missing
