Blanchette (Soho)

• Blanchette is a charming little bistrot with backing from the Salt Yard group whose restaurants serve small plates with a Spanish feel
• This time they're applying the small plates ethos to French food and it is done very well
• The food was super an artichoke and potato gratin with a nice bit of bite but also a good balance of cream and cheese
• T like eating with people who don&rsquo
• There are many places in London with their small plate offerings
• Also has perfect little plates with interesting yet still classic flavours
• A little greenery with the leeks vinaigrette with frisee and wild mushroom (£
• The only snack we tried was the croque monsieur (£
• S the perfect place to perch at the bar with a few of their snacks (they also include baked St Marcelin cheese
• The only little quibble was the order was a little sporadic
• We were nearly left with just the vegetable dishes at the end
• Overall I loved Blanchette with all its Frenchness
• The music is brilliant (one of the three brothers who has set it up is a founder of a sound design company)
• The concept of the restaurant is French tapas
• I tasted the best french fries in the world made in duck fat
• So one sunny Saturday Mr S and I headed down to the French bistro with the hope of having a similar experience to Jay
• When I walked in I knew I was going to like the place
• Artifacts scattered around the room made you feel like you were in the warm and welcoming heart of someone's home
• Crusty French baguettes were served in a paper bag with a good slab of butter
• A warming bowl of steamed mussels was our first dish
• My one criticism of the otherwise brilliant Blanchette was that we received the mussels first and we took our time to enjoy them
• My friend and I wanted to go eat at Bocca Di Lupo but since it was full (should&rsquo
• They had a table for us and it was right by the window
• The weather was so nice that sitting by the window whilst enjoying our dinner was the perfect start
• Blanchette is located on D&rsquo
• Their staff is so nice and welcoming
• T normally associate tapas style with French food
• So all my apprehensions were already gone
• The cheese beignets were so moorish
• Little pockets of cheese served with onion confit mmm keep em coming
• Salmon Tartare was fresh and combined with cucumber
• The seared peppered tuna was cooked to perfection
• The ratatouille was a perfect accompaniment and anything more would&rsquo
• Moving onto our meaty dishes the braised lamb shoulder was a beauty to watch
• Braised beef shin with spring vegetables was okay
• Roast Quail with Jambon Sec and Herb Croquette
• It pains me to say I completely forgot to take a photo as I was too busy stuffing my face with it
• One thing I do recommend you have to order is this quail dish
• An eclectically decorated french bistro with some of the most delectable
• It also never tired to entertain with its endless restaurants
• The crowds are generally sparser
• Sharing plates are the way they roll at Blanchette
• We began rather decadently with the foie gras tartines and crispy frogs legs
• Sourdough tartines with spicy rolled foie gras slabs
• Topped with armagnac soak prunes were rather righteously HEAVEN
• With a hint of crunch and the sauce was delicious and tasted not at all dissimilar to a very succulent drumstick of chicken
• Especially paired with the slick of yellow rouille (a rich olive oil emulsion
• Who knows why it is so popular as an addition to chicory and pear
• They could do with heading over to Le Cordon Bleu to show them how to shake it up a bit
• A date or catching up with a group of friends
• Blanchette is nicely hip without being pretentious
• A mix of starter plates which were still decent enough in size to both come back to it a few times
• Some Cheese Beignets with Onion Confit (£
• We continued with two slightly larger mains (but bear in mind that they are still tapas size)
• The Octopus with Burnt Clementine
• The octopus was fresh and zingy with the wonderful nuttiness of the pistachio counterbalancing the flavours and the lamb was melt in your mouth tender
• We wrapped it up with a Hot Chocolate Fondant with Salted Caramel Ice Cream (£
• 5.95) which was pretty good
• Blanchette is a five minutes walk from Oxford Circus and Tottenham Court Road
• T iles at the bar are painted with an Art Nouveau style frame like Nover from the 1900's
• The details I really like was red bricks wall
• Toulouse which is famous for wall with 'la brique toulousaine'
• Picture from Blanchette website The concept is based on the idea of sharing small French dishes
• On a Saturday lunch the place was filled with a mix of families
• The atmosphere does work a pseudo Parisian charm and can easily be classed as a romantic little getaway with its flickering candles
• French cuisine is one of my favourites in the world
• The techniques involved in French cooking are normally quite traditional
• While the food is absolutely superb
• It was way back on Bank holiday Monday evening when I finally managed to catch up with two of my lovelies whom were proving hard to pin down
• Exhausted of all my ideas I asked F to book and Blanchette in Soho was her (excellent) choice
• Served with onion confit these little morsels are like savoury doughnuts
• Food started to arrive sharpish and the waitress staggered our order with the lighter of the plates coming out first
• A refreshing green bean salad with Comte cheese
• Savour some of this to have with the meatier dishes to come
• Not a huge fan of the accompanying 'bits' it was all too many sweet flavours for me
• Grilled duck breast with peach and beetroot remoularde was served very rare and sadly I found it just 'ok'
• Grilled pork belly with Palourde clams
• Brittany sea blades and vermouth was perfectly cooked with a crisp crackling
• Rosemary and soubise (onion) sauce was my favourite of the evening
• That crab bisque was packed with shellfish yumminess so much so
• We found ourselves mopping it up with everything else on our table
• The fish cooked with a brilliantly crisp skin and flaky flesh
• Courgette and aubergine tart with goats cheese and basil
• This was utterly more ish and they managed to keep the pastry crunch crisp even with such an array of vegetables piled on top bravo
• Passion fruit vacherin was full of that irresistible sourness you can't get enough of
• If you want a little bit of French romance without the heavy French food then Blanchette is your ideal place to cosy up and have some grub
• Blanchette is a French bistro on D'Arblay Street that's beautifully romantic/lit by candlelight/awful for photos and serves up small French family dishes alongside charcuterie
• Though there were so many utterly delicious plates
• We started with one of their signature dishes crispy frog legs with Bois Budran sauce whole frog legs that had been breaded and deep fried
• We both ended up with mouthfuls of frog leg meat and bone
• That's the problem with having high expectations usually

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