Café François
French restaurant · Borough
14-16 Stoney St, London SE1 9AD, United Kingdom
Highlights
All-day French canteen: Rôtisserie chicken, pastries, wine
All-day French canteen: Rôtisserie chicken, pastries, wine
"If you’ve got a kink for being addressed as ‘sir’ or ‘madam’ over breakfast, then chances are you’ll like Café François. The little sibling of our perennial circumflex crush, Maison François, this all-day Borough Yards brasserie is all about eating reliably tasty French food in the presence of monogrammed napkins, and enough comté to make you forget the queues you witnessed in Borough Market. Come for a brunch that feels special enough for a French 75 toast or for dinner with a gaggle of friends in the mood for pistachio macarons." - sinead cranna, rianne shlebak, jake missing, daisy meager, heidi lauth beasley
"Café François is a useful, all-day Borough Yards spot, that serves reliably tasty French food and is a go-to for groups big or small, grey-haired or baby-haired, picky or not. We've seen baby announcements go down at brunch, when the fancy passion fruit chia puddings and alcohol-free gooseberry and rhubarb spritzes feel suitably special. And we've witnessed families escaping Borough Market for a last-minute table at dinner. Whatever the situation, staff will call you ‘Sir’ and ‘Madame’, present you with a little monogrammed napkin, and make sure you have a great time." - rianne shlebak
"Café François is good whatever time of day you visit. The useful, all-day Borough Yards spot, and Maison François sibling, serves reliably tasty French food and is likely to solve a good chunk of your dining dilemmas. photo credit: Aleksandra Boruch photo credit: Aleksandra Boruch photo credit: Aleksandra Boruch Pause Unmute Come with a gaggle of friends or solo, in those jeans that are more destroyed than distressed. Either way, staff will call you ‘Sir’ and ‘Madame’, and present you with a little monogrammed napkin. We've seen a baby announcement go down at brunch, when the fancy passion fruit chia puddings and alcohol-free gooseberry and rhubarb spritzes feel suitably special for the occasion. And we've witnessed tourists escaping Borough Market to perch at the art deco bar at dinner. Because staring at good-looking veg while taking three elbows to the ribs is fun and everything, but eating decadently gooey comté gougères and moreish lamb merguez flatbreads is better. photo credit: Aleksandra Boruch photo credit: Aleksandra Boruch Food Rundown Avocado Toast If you’re still in your contrarian avocado toast era, this will melt your scepticism. It’s a great iteration of the overdone dish. The feta is a nice salty addition, pumpkin seeds add a pleasing crunch and smug health halo, and we like the garlicky, basil-heavy pistou. photo credit: Sinéad Cranna Breakfast Burrito We’ve had better breakfast burritos and worse ones. This is perfectly tasty and we’d order it again. There’s a nice level of spice and smokiness from the piperade and chilli, and they don’t skimp on the merguez sausage. Bowl Of Berries We must talk about this bowl of berries. It was, simply, a bowl of berries. So, to be fair, it is exactly as advertised. But it’s also £7 and contains not that many berries. Don’t get these hoping for some surprise that isn’t in the description. Like us, you’ll be disappointed. Lamb Merguez Flatbread The moment this proud, puffed-up flatbread was delivered to our table, with a golden drizzle of oil escaping from the minced sausage, we knew we were onto a winner. It’s delicious—like meat on bread should be. photo credit: Aleksandra Boruch Ratatouille Dish detectives will realise that this is the same pistou used on the avocado toast. And it brings the same zesty, herby hit here. This is less of a ratatouille that you curl up in front of the TV, wrapped in a heated blanket with, and more of a dinner party dish. It’s perfectly presented, all scalloped vegetables, layered to perfection, but we don’t feel the need to reorder it. photo credit: Aleksandra Boruch Half Rôtisserie Chicken We’re declaring this Café François’ signature dish. It’s all tender meat and a jus that made us get territorial, having little chip sword fights in order to secure every last drop. Get the chips and béarnaise sauce with this—it’s the perfect creamy foil for that salty jus. photo credit: Aleksandra Boruch Pistachio Macaron The macarons here are great and picking between them is like choosing a favourite child. But… it’s the pistachio one. It’s perfectly made, with a satisfying crackly top and smooth paste inside. It’s a little sweet, a little toasty, and a lot cute. photo credit: Aleksandra Boruch" - Sinéad Cranna
"We’re big fans of Maison François—especially their full English breakfast—so we’re excited that they’ve opened a laid-back sibling spot in Borough Yards, Café François. The in-house boulangerie at this ‘modern-day French canteen’ will make breakfast sandwiches with ham, egg, rösti, and spiced ketchup. At lunch there’ll be croquettes monsieur flatbreads and escargot, and bigger evening meals include steak frites. " - sinead cranna, rianne shlebak
Ricky jones
Lili Newland
Amy D
Harjot Sidhu
Kamilah Lakhani
j spain Greene
Christopher Hill
The Authentic Reviewer
