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The French Cafe

5 star rating
22 reviews

Cuisine: Cafe, European, French

210 Symonds St
Auckland Central
Auckland City
09-377 1911
 

Hours:

  • Lunch: Fri 12 noon – 2.30pm
  • Dinner: Tue – Sat 6pm – Late
  • Facilities/Features:
    • Private Functions
    • Wedding Functions
  • Payment Types: EFTPOS, Visa, MasterCard, AMEX, Diners
  • Price Range: Splurge, Above $35
  • Good For Groups: Yes
  • Takes Reservations: Yes
  • Dietary Restrictions: Vegetarian
  • Outdoor Seating: Yes
  • Meals: Lunch, Dinner

The French Cafe serves contemporary European cuisine in a sophisticated and intimate environment, and was famously described as ‘everyone’s favourite dining destination’ by Lauraine Jacobs, when The French Cafe won ‘Best Smart Dining’ in the Cuisine NZ Restaurant of the Year Awards 2008.
Jacobs said: “Consistently delivering a polished performance, it has set a benchmark for service, for delicious, well-thought-out food and an exemplary wine list. And the husband and wife team who own and run The French Café constantly refine both the menu and the ambience. It is smart, urbane and a comfortably contemporary venue served by Creghan Molloy-Wright’s well-managed and thoroughly knowledgeable staff.

“Simon Wright’s food would stand scrutiny in any city in the world. His menus have broad appeal and the beautifully presented dishes display technical skill with wonderful flavour management . . . A visit is certain to provide the most memorable dining experience, but note bookings are essential”.

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22 Reviews for The French Cafe

jo d.

2

27th March 2012
5 star rating
Superb. Amazing. I honestly can’t fault anything at The French Cafe – amazing food, wine list, service & atmosphere.

I love it here & can’t wait for a special occasion so that I can go back! Would highly recommend.

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Jarrod

3

27th March 2012
5 star rating
Just superb from start to finish.
My partner and I both had the 9 course chefs menu. Every plate was a treat, and the wine matched perfectly.
Service was spot-on, the waitress was very friendly and polite.

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13th February 2012
4 star rating
My partner and I ate at the French Cafe in the weekend and enjoyed the food and the service except to say that we both thought our mains were very salty and the sauces were overwhelming. We both had the bombe alaska dessert which was okay but felt cheated because it had tiny wee cold soft meringue peaks stuck on it instead of having a nice meringue on top which is cooked in the oven so must have been prepared earlier and just lacked that special wow factor. The service was faultless and perhaps a bad night with the sauces but for the price we paid it should have been better.

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7th November 2011
4 star rating
Definitely the place to come for a very special occasion. My partner and I split an entree, had a main each, 3 cocktails between us and a lager – came to just under $200. Not bad for the quality however the portion sizes were on the small side. I have to say that the atmosphere was a little bit uncomfortable; despite being from a fine dining background, my partner and I (both early 20s) did feel a little out of place and were almost too scared to share a joke

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GJ

2

8th September 2011
5 star rating
Went here with my husband for dinner. Food was top notch and service was very attentive indeed. I can see why this place has won so many awards ….it really is first class! It is not cheap but well worth it for those special occasions.

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Whoa n.

11

10th June 2011
5 star rating
If you ever get the chance of eating at The French Cafe, take it and then hang in there for a truly amazing culinary experience.
Such an absolute pleasure to be able to eat here, and you should do so, at least once in your lifetime. I cannot fault The French Cafe on anything, impecciable service, clean lines, comfortable surroundings and the food for me is pure, magical delight.

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Love f.

28

13th April 2011
5 star rating
A double celebration found us enjoying the perfect delights of the French Cafe.

The meal started with a complimentary pumpkin and trufle soup, we then enjoyed a range of other courses, sharing from each others plates became quite necessary – such was the appearance and refined tastes of what was before us. The highlight for myself was a first course of eel servced with caramelised apple, pancetta and micro cress – The description does the dish insufficient justice, the taste is sublime!

The French Cafe have a service team that are chosen for their personality and then clearly have a thorough training – because its rare we receive this level of service in New Zealand.

Speaking to my wife afterwards, we have decided we’d like to live there – permanently

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Julie

8

26th March 2011
5 star rating
Six of us decided to splash out and have the 10 course degustation meal, with four of us having matching wines.
The French Cafe exceeded every and all high expectations we had. The food was superb (I still think about that scallop and pork belly dish, a few weeks later). It was brought out all at the same time and with the right amount of time between servings. It goes without saying that the matched wines were perfect.
The service was outstanding. One of the party that is permanently on crutches noticed that as he made his way to the bathroom, waiters in his vicinity would open all the doors between our table and the bathroom before he even had a chance to request them to.
Overall, an amazing experience and if you have the urge to splurge, I highly recommend to visit the best in the business, the French Cafe.

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Kel

3

8th March 2011
5 star rating
great food~ a la carte or 6 course tasting or 11 course degustation, take your pick, am lucky to check-in more than once within short timeframe so am glad the kitchen is flexible to swap my degustation dishes against the standard menu on offered to my dining companion. Service is professional yet friendly without being snooty or cold like some wannabe establishments. Definitely the best value for money fine dining in southern hemisphere, if you’ve dined at Sydney Tetsuya and/or Quay you know what i mean.

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mike

1

24th January 2011
4 star rating
Everyone raves about this restaurant so maybe I’m just hard to please or my expectations were too high but I found our night at the French Cafe a bit disappointing. Sure the service was good and so was the food but a few things could have been much better. Some of our party were given chopsticks with which to eat oysters and scallops out of the shells – why? As far as I know oysters/scallops aren’t Asian dishes and our group was not Asian nor do we like to eat with chopsticks – we used the main course knives/forks provided. My (and another of our group) meals were served in large bowl type plates and the knife and fork kept slipping into the food when we put them on the plate to take a drink of winr or water – quite annoying. The 7 of us were squashed onto a too small table – there was limited space for the large plates being used and the array of glasses so we had to continually juggle where to put things down. I asked for the whitebait starter (all starters $16) and was informed by the waiter that it was a small portion (1 whitebait biscuit with sauce and garnish) and did I want an entree (all $26) sized portion – I was charged $32 for this course which consisted of simply the starter with one extra whitebait biscuit; I thought this a bit cheeky. The 3 men at the table had the wagyu beef main – it was good but the sauces and artichokes overpowered the meat taste and it was too salty towards the end; the portions were very small – we all agreed it didn’t match a nice eye fillet from the BBQ at home. Probably BBQ’d wagyu would be great. The wine was very good and the wine matching suggestions from the waiter were perfect – the wine was probably the best part of the night but at $15-19 a glass it should be. However, $9 for a very ordinary bottle of Heinekin in a fancy glass,(available for under $2 at the supermarket or wholesale)is simply profiteering in my view.

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KM

1

28th November 2010
5 star rating
Stunning, nothing more to say!

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12th October 2010
5 star rating
The very best restaurant in New Zealand.

Save up, get dressed up and have the degustation with the matching wines.

Top quality food and service that can not be beaten.

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Justme

26

15th September 2010
5 star rating
Just fabulous!
We had the 6 course menu with recommended wines and it was wonderful!! We will certainly be going back.

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20th May 2010
5 star rating
I have dined at The French Cafe several times over the past few years, and I have yet to be disappointed in anyway what-so-ever. It simply has the best food in Auckland – tasting, looking, quantity & style. The staff are professionals and it comes across. I highly recommend this restaurant to anyone who loves good food.

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tony B.

16

5th February 2010
5 star rating
Restaurants come and go but great ones are always consistent. I took three guests we all had different 3 courses and each felt they had the best.
Always up there in the top three a great experience we ensure we eat there every visit.
I give it 5 stars and I am not generous with my last one superb
Tony Buckingham

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leslie

3

7th December 2009
5 star rating
AMAZING!!! GO THERE! (but make sure you book ahead!) Eat, drink and don’t worry about how much it has cost you because its that good, it doesn’t matter ;)

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29th November 2009
5 star rating
Having eaten at The french Cafe at least six times in the last 10 months – What can we say that hasn’t been said by so many reviewers over the years.

The reason we keep going back is The French Cafe is a rare jewel in the NZ dining scene, a sophisticated restaurant that can do what it does so very well in any country, not just NZ.

For first class food, service and a lovely wine list that is one of the best bargains in Auckland. Just go!

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Andy G.

19

24th November 2009
5 star rating
had the degustation here with matching wines. totally blew my mind. hours and hours of bliss!

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19th August 2009
5 star rating
Absolutely stunning food. Amazing service too. Worth the money and definitely try the degustation menu!

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Dee

3

13th August 2009
3 star rating
best food ive ever tasted in my life went in the summer and it was very hot and stuffy and sweating while eating our food asked to have the air con turned on but was told it was but it didnt feel like it, the waiter was strange and hung around for a tip afterwards

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Anne

1

20th January 2009
5 star rating
Have been to the French Cafe twice and had the degustation menu both times. The food is to die for and the service is the best in Auckland. Worth every penny – book at least 3 months ahead!

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Sophie

2

12th September 2008
5 star rating
Fantastic place to dine, formal yet laid back atmopshere. The food is divine, the service is good and the deserts are amazing! Definitely try this place out, you will not be disappointed.

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