French Saloon

Excellent. True to name. Superb wine.
Food is always a treat.

The ambiance was great, as was the service. Friendly, right amount of care and efficiency. The wine (the cheapest rose on the menu) was awesome. Ordering a gin tonic I was shocked they serve this with Schweppes tonic......affreux! Food wise....we started with oysters, can’t go wrong there, fresh, tasty and simply yum, following the oysters we ordered the bone marrow, which was served with horseradish, greenery and toast. It was....overpoweringly salty unfortunately, not a raging success and a shame of the bone marrow, the animal died in vain for this one. Closing the meal train we took the steak tartare to task. The meat was clearly good quality, the spices and seasoning just right. The letdown was the (home made?) crisps, again overly salty and as such spoiling the overall objective of the dish. The steak tartare would live a better faith if served simply with thin slices of sourdough or baguette.
Having said all that, we had a great evening, not in the least because the wait and bar staff do seem to care.....Would would I go back....yes, in a heartbeat, these minor transgressions, I am sure can be corrected with some friendly requests.

A lunch at French Saloon is like coming home to family on the holidays

Too loud! Had to leave and have desert and drink elsewhere

It was with some trepidation that my husband & I climbed the rather grungy stairs for our booking at French Saloon. Knowing that Ian Curley was part of the management helped us to continue. We entered the restaurant & were greeted by friendly & professional staff. When we read the menu & wine list we knew Ian Curley was still flying. The food was superb & the choice of wine was outstanding. We both had the fish of the day & then indulged in wonderful desserts. We will return & recommend to friends. Patricia

Well the location is cool and the food was great but this is the best I can say. This is definitely not a cheap restaurant yet I have had far better service in suburban diners! We may as well have been invisible, any time we wanted anything including a wine top up from our ordered bottle which was not left on our table we spent ages trying to attract any attention - result - meal long finished and half a bottle of wine un-drunk and no longer wanted. All in all a very poor and extremely expensive night out.

Loved it. Confident, beautifully timed, well informed service and brilliant food.

Food quality superb, service exceptional and floor plan is beautiful. Would not hesitate to recommend. Maybe the only very small negative is the noise level accentuated by the rustic floor boards. They look awesome however...

The food was outstanding, service great and the little touches were appreciated

We had a great evening - delicious food, superb wine and friendly, efficient service. Highly .

Wonderful food, service and atmosphere, just like being in France.

Had the tasting menu for two. Wines didn't really match the courses and the meals were VERY protein rich.
Service was very impersonal and lacking.

Fantastic experience, highly recommended. Food, service, wine list, couldn’t fault anything.

The music was a little loud and we were cold as the night went on but we LOVE French Saloon. Food is amazing and the staff were lovely.

Lovely service staff, and why weouldn't they be when they know the food and wine they are serving are top notch.

Our night could not have been better.
Some of the best service we have received in Melbourne. Effortless.
The food was fantastic, wine amazing and finished it off with a lovely whisky.

Have already been recommending this restaurant to friends and colleagues.

I loved my first visit to French Saloon! Food and service were beautiful. We started with the kingfish, which was substantial for an entree and incredibly fresh. We also had the baked Comte gougeres with artichoke. For mains, the two of us shared the duck, which included breast and cassoulet made with slow-cooked duck leg and ham hock. We had the green beans and hand-cut chips on the side, which were the perfect accompaniment. The ambience was dressed up yet it felt casual and low-key. I'll definitely be back!

We had a wonderful time with fantastic food and service

French Saloon is a Melbourne gem, one of my favourite places to dine.

Great food!

A great place to experience Melbourne's influence on French cuisine.
The service was brilliant, even provided us information to source some wines we had.
It's always great to see people passionate about what they do.
Well done!

My favourite restaurant, they can do no wrong in my eyes

It was absolutely fabulous night .

Incredible. Some of the best food in Melbourne and gorgeous dining room

Lovely service, delightful food with ambiance and great wine!

We went for the 4 course chef’s choice for $70 per person. Not only was it delicious, but we got some extra tasters. Fabulous service, knowledgeable wine recommendations. Overall a wonderful night. We will be back soon.

Food was really average. The duck was under cooked and had to be sent back to the kitchen. Over priced for what is was. Would not go back.

4 course menu is good value generous Great service

Wonderful food and friendly professional staff. A great place for an evening with friends or to celebrate a special event.

Everything was amazing. Will be back & recommending to friends.

I went there for a business lunch and would definitely go again. I was pleased with the more economical option of a 2 or 3 course menu dejeuner which helped me meet my budget. This was my first time and I loved the space, atmosphere and food. The let downs were the attentiveness of our waiters and the expensive wine list. For instance, it took a while to take our order, we weren't asked whether we had any time constraint (it was obviously a business lunch) which was compounded by the food came out a little slower than expected, waiters were slow to top up our wine and the coffee order at the end took too long with my short black coming out cold (obviously the first coffee made). These are relatively minor issues when the food and vibe are this good. Small improvements to service could certainly elevate this to 5 star.

Lovely restaurant with waitstaff who give you space whilst being attentive at the same time (the best kind). The food was great, with decent portion sizes.

It would be awesome if there was a touch more lighting.

We found the steak a bit chewy; excellent service by Mathew. Wine list good and great bar outside on the deck which was well heated.

French Saloon will never fail you for a romantic dinner. The service was outstanding, you are truely welcomed to feel like home. Even if you want to change bits and pieces of the set menu, they would always try their best to accomodate you. Every dish tastes so delicious along with good wine, And you will be even more pleased with a very reasonable price. One of my very few favourite restaurants in Melbourne.

We were visiting Melbourne from Sydney and had been recommended to French Saloon. This was a pre-theatre dinner at 5.30pm before seeing part 2 of Harry Potter (Tonka the previous night). The main dining room here is traditional bistro style with timber floors and minimal decoration - the real focus here is on the food and wine. We shared Clyde River oysters with horseradish - not too much to overpower the oysters, but enough to give them a lift - they were plump and fresh. These were followed by a fantastic deconstructed cassoulet - the duck breast was served separately with just a little rich stock, the beans, hock & sausage served as a side dish - fantastic flavours with just a hint of star anise. We were served by Emily who was professional and friendly (is this a Melbourne thing?) and who made some excellent wine suggestions. The dessert menu looked a little uninspiring so we passed on that - but this restaurant will be on top of my list when we next visit Melbourne.

Fantastic food coupled with excellent sevice. This is one of our favourite restaurants in Melbourne at the moment.

amazing. best restaurant in melbourne. Catered for my vegetarian friend! The food was simple but full of flavour. Good wine list. Attentive and lovely staff. Felt like l was back in Paris

Fantastic steak and wine. For a place that can be challenging to find, lots seem to have found it.

Great Service and the food was impeccable , one of my favourite restaurants in Melbourne

Brilliant restaurant tucked away nicely upstairs on the corner of Hardware Lane. Absolutely delicious food, wine and excellent service. Great ambiance inside makes for a great dining experience.