Second helpings: Other cuisine Bourgeois restaurants

Other cuisine Bourgeois restaurants

Brasserie St Quentin 243 Brompton Road, London SW3, tel: 020 7589 8005 Original partner Hugh O'Neill bought back this pioneering brasserie from the Chez Gerard Group last year, installing the Savoy's Nana Akuffo in the kitchen. It's all very Parisian bistro/ cosmopolitan, complete with chandeliers and starched tablecloths. Staff are tourist friendly, and the menu runs to navarin of lamb, boudin noir with apple and potato mash, soupe de poissons and, of course, feuillete d'escargots for slow-food lovers.

Hotel du Vin & Bistro Ship Street, Brighton, tel: 01273 718 588 The latest addition to this individual, wine-driven hotel chain keeps up the quirky reputation with its collection of Gothic-style buildings just metres from Brighton's promenade. As usual, the bistro is a character-laden affair that serves up a combination of tried-and-tested bistro favourites along with some more creative global cuisine. The wine list is impressive, with plenty of good matches for your foie gras and chicken parfait, pot-roast rabbit, or boeuf bourguignon.

Mon Plaisir 21 Monmouth Street, London WC2, tel: 020 7836 7243 With its pewter-topped bar, exposed brickwork and French-poster decor, you pretty much know what to expect at this iconic, long-serving Covent Garden French eatery. Think garlicky snails, French onion soup, steak tartare, classic pommes allumettes (the thin ones), vanilla crème brûlée and apple tart. Its proximity to theatreland means the £13.95 two-course pre-theatre menu (with a glass of wine and coffee) always gets an appreciative audience.