Bistrotheque

7 Reviews on “Bistrotheque”

• Filipe Passos-Coelho

  What a nice place. Great food, in a place that looks refined and classy, but with a very competitive price tag. The eggs Benedict were great, the poached eggs cooked to perfection, a sweet sauce hollandaise and a true muffin. As a dessert, the pancakes and strawberries were a fine ending to a great brunch. Recommended, especially if you add a walk along the canal before or after the meal.

  November 6, 2017, 9:59 pm

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• Becks Dobson

  Bistrotheque’s a perennial favourite in our house. Sarah and Russell used to go when they were living in a tiny flat next door, splashing their graduate wages on fine food. Ashley always takes his parents there whenever they visit, and I have a thing for steak tartare.So it seemed only fair to take P there as a further introduction to the culinary delights of Bethnal Green. We stopped off at Sager + Wilde Restaurant for drinks beforehand and then, three whisky cocktails down, tottered up the road to Wadeson Street. Bistrotheque is tucked away down a small road in a non-descript warehouse that you’ll probably walk past the first time you go. Enter the unmarked door and turn straight up the concrete stairs, push through the industrial double doors and bask in the chaotic calm that is the all white and windows restaurant.Bistrotheque feels how I imagine a Brooklyn loft restaurant to feel. It’s a sizeable open space but it feels intimate as tables are close together, the atmosphere buzzy. Sit up at the square bar while waiting for your table, martini made with Hackney gin or vodka in hand. Then pass by the open kitchen where the industrious chefs plate up dish after dish and the friendliest, smiliest waiters (also in whites) bustle back and forth with a practised calm.The food’s ‘Modern European’ which I feel can cover a multitude of sins but here, there are few. The still-warm bread and butter while you’re mulling over the wine menu (Old and New World, naturally) is a good start. As were the large grilled prawns in garlic butter with bone marrow which I managed to devour in double quick time – the sweet meat of the shellfish rounded up by the richness of the marrow. Plenty of sauce for dipping, too. P had the crab – a glorious combination of brown and white meat with ample citrusy bite.For mains, my ever-predictable order of steak tartare was no surprise. Well-prepared with the fresh zing of the mustard, the salt of the capers and no need for the Tabasco on the table, it was served classic with frites. P didn’t order so well this time, choosing the burrata, truffle and shallot tart which sounded promising but only delivered on the onion and nothing else. Thank goodness for generous girlfriends sharing.Then came cheese – Riseley, Turnworth and Cashel Blue served with quince jelly oatcakes (discarded) and smothered onto more bread from the kitchen. As a massive cheese fiend, these were all delicious (predictably) and P was impressed (big thumbs up from the resident Frenchie).We finished the night with an espresso martini for me and the cognac for P before heading for nightcaps at Peg + Patriot. Another night at Bistrotheque well spent. Four and a half out of five thenotsosecretdiary.com

  July 20, 2016, 5:28 pm

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• Marta

  Lovely space, with a dashing industrial style. Someone was playing the piano while we had brunch. The food is lovely and never disappoints – steak tartare is an absolute must.

  February 7, 2016, 9:00 pm

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• Rukini

  Great place for a first meal of the day. Wonderful service, and all of this followed by a nice piano music player. A place to return to dinner for sure

  February 7, 2016, 8:41 pm

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• Stuart Hall

  We went here for my 30th birthday, which happened to fall on a Monday. Having heard great things about Bistroteque over the years, I was excited. Unfortunately, I was bitterly disappointed. The whole restaurant lacked atmosphere. There was no music in the background so all you could hear was the clinking of bottles behind the bar and the scraping of plates in the kitchen. The service was lacklustre and pretty slow. Our cocktails arrived full to the brim so the waiter was spilling them everywhere. I thought that all of this could be forgiven if the food was good. It wasn’t. My steak tartare to start was a promising opener, but my wife’s charcuterie plate was literally pulled out of a packet from Sainsburys! I then had the lemon sole, which was average at best. Her skirt, even though she did ask for it well done, was the most chewy beef cut I’ve had in a long time. Coupled with fries that hadn’t been triple cooked, they’d been sat in the fryer all day and just dunked when people ordered them. To finish, I had the lemon grata which I was told was like a sorbet. It was actually more like eating frozen lemon rind. It was disgusting. She had the chocolate mousse which was presented like a turd on a plate. When my espresso finally arrived it was so cold that the sugar cube wouldn’t even melt. Wow. Never going back there, ever again!

  August 20, 2014, 8:37 am

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• Steven Serrao Gutierrez

  Entertaining. We visited during a weekend for a lunchtime celebration. The restaurant is located in one of the trendiest areas of London (just a short stroll from Broadway Market). If you’re lucky the pianist will play a selection of pop hits. No complaints from the food front – an all-day breakfast serves its purpose as expected. Service was fine… Yadda yadda yadda.

  August 28, 2011, 8:44 pm

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• Olive Green

  What a great find. Tucked away in a side road. A wonderful meal and great show downstairs after. Lovely atmosphere – can’t wait to go back

  December 7, 2010, 4:19 pm

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