The Yummiest French in San Jose

Left Bank

★★★☆☆ 3.3 (976) • $$$

"This was my second--and likely last--visit to Left Bank.Here's what we ordered: * Prawns Provençale: Tasty, but $20 for just five pieces felt overpriced. * Beef Bourguignon: Full of flavor and worth returning for. * Pork Chop: The waiter recommended this dish to my wife and mentioned it would include two slices of pork chop. However, she was served only one--and it was overcooked. We initially thought the waiter might have misspoken, but later, we saw another patron served two slices. When we pointed this out to the waiter, he responded, "Oh, the cook made a mistake, but you should have told me earlier--now I can't do anything." There was no apology, discount, or offer of a complimentary dessert, as many other restaurants would provide when mistakes happen.The only highlight was the live jazz band playing during our visit. Without that, it would have been a thoroughly disappointing experience."

Black Sheep Brasserie

★★★★☆ 3.8 (749) • $$$

"We had reservations so our table was ready for us. Ambience was nice for a Thursday evening. We had several apps. The fried olives were delicious and burrata was divine. The shrimp appetizer was ok. I had their rack of lamb and it was cooked perfect and was tender and flavorful. It wasn't too salty. The mashed potatoes were ok that came accompanied with it. Desserts were a nice portion. The bread pudding was to die for. Drinks were well balanced. Try the blueberry old fashion."

Tasting House

★★★★☆ 4.2 (221)

"Well this was pretty darn cool! Such a lovely and unique menu, great wine selection, cozy but not crowded vibe - it's great having such an excellent restaurant in LG. The service was impeccable and detailed without being intrusive. I could tell how proud they are. Chef is top- shelf in creativity and quality. We had 2 small plates that we shared and split a main dish. All yummy and unique- and at excellent prices. All the wines, we'll recommend by Riley, were excellent and also well priced. One thought- I loved the idea of a pianist and their song choices were cool. Just kinda loud for the space. But maybe it's me"

Bistro Vida

★★★★☆ 3.6 (685) • $$

"The portion was bigger than expected; however, since the mussels were with shells, it made sense. With the fries, my tummies were pretty full. However, my co-worker suggested me to dip the complementary bread in the sauce (under the mussel), and o m g, I could not stop eating. Maybe that's how this entree was meant to be enjoyed - with the comp bread. I like that they have a nice outdoor patio place set up. It was very well organized, and the waitress did a great job attending to our big group."

The Iron Gate

★★★★☆ 3.9 (656) • $$$

"We hit this place up on New Year's and had a great time. We showed up and we hung out in the waiting area for about 15 minutes till we got our table while we were there we noticed the bar area, where people were having a great time. It's was an older crowd, a couple of young people sprinkled in and a DJ bumping some beats. I gotta admit, they were playing some good music! If you haven't been to a French restaurant, I would suggest this place, to break you in. It is not too fancy, but definitely fancy enough, so dress up. Like I said, expect an older crowd in the dining area as well. But at the end of the day, who the hell cares, as long as the food is good. The service here is phenomenal and there is also table service for certain things on the menu. That being the chicken flambé and be ready for the flames. Unfortunately, I don't remember the chicken plate. My girlfriend had but I knew she was happy as hell with it. I had the special, which was the ribeye steak. You better believe I enjoyed some of it the next day. Above all, the girlfriend and I welcomed in the New Year, having a good time with other restaurant goers and the staff.If you're in the area and just wanna grab a drink, this would also be a perfect spot to stop at. There's plenty of room in the bar area and the restaurant has parking right next-door."

Portola Bistro

★★★★☆ 4.1 (35)

"Being in Palo Alto for the evening, we quickly stumbled upon this restaurant while searching for restaurants in the area. The restaurant is located in a small strip plaza. The lighting and ambiance was nice, cozy, and quaint for a special occasion.On the menu, I appreciated the wide variety of more casual items like Salads and Pizza to more formal dishes like Steak and Salmon.They provide bread that was nicely heated and a spread.The French onion soup was a nice sized portion and great balance of flavors! The steak tartar was good, however, we wish it was accompanied by a few more pieces of bread to eat it with.The beef dish was delicious. The broth/soup was very beefy and full of flavor. The accompanying potato it was topped with was nicely presented, however, rather dry. The seafood pasta was made al dente and quite delicious!Overall, we were satisfied with our meal! Good service. Nice ambiance. Fair pricing. Great for special occasions- and they sing happy birthday too!"

Elements Restaurant

★★★★☆ 4.2 (381) • $$

"We've been back a few times for dinner since my last review. The last dinner we got, the chef was willing to make us pho even though that was a lunch item menu. It was so delicious, clean, and the meat was so good quality, we thought we'd try our luck again.Unfortunately, this time, our server said they weren't serving pho despite us calling at lunch time to check if they would serve for dinner. Since we were already there, thought we might as well get a good dinner in. We tried the butternut squash soup, the garden mixed green salad, the half rotisserie chicken, and the salmon wellington.While all the dishes were good, refined, well cooked, and well seasoned, each had a factor of slight disappointment. The soup was yummy (avoid if you don't like cinnamon), but small portioned and expensive at $15. The garden mixed salad promised orange, pear, and bleu cheese among other things, but we somehow missed all those ingredients or flavors, and instead there were beets. No real complaints about the rotisserie chicken (except that pho wasn't available); had a crispy skin, tender and juicy, mashed potatoes were creamy, au jus had a good flavor, and the veggies were nicely cooked and seasoned. The salmon wellington, also good, and while we knew it might take a little longer for that one to come out as indicated on the menu, we didn't realize it would take 45 minutes. The server should have informed us (the table next to us were informed of the wait and their dish was immediately put in, but by then, we had already been served our food). We were sufficiently full and opted out of dessert. While service was fine, for a restaurant that touts on being more upscale, there were a few misses. Maybe we need to stick to their lunch menu and come then. We did order a chicken banh mi to go, which was decently priced at $9 - the bread was nice and crispy, plenty of chicken, but could have used more pickled veggies."

Plumed Horse

★★★★☆ 3.9 • $$$$

"Came to celebrate a big birthday for a family member. Late reservation at 8:30pm but we got seated early around 8:10pm. We waited for a while for anyone to come and offer water or go over the menu. I figured it was because we were early than our reservation. There was some confusion with who was going to take our order and who would go over the process for the 4 course prix fix. It was fine but a little awkward. Once Alex got involved, everything in terms of service got much better!The ambiance is lovely and we liked the music in the background which wasn't silence or too quiet. It made it feel very relaxed than other equally michelin'd places. Relaxed yet quiet lux.The food was amazingly good. Creative, delicious, perfectly prepared and gorgeously plated. The pork chop stood out as the sauce served with it was savory, comforting and memorable. The parmesan and black pepper souffle was everything I had hoped it was. I will definitely go back again for the beautifully prepared canapes (beef carpaccio puff was crave-worthy,) the side dishes and the breads and butters, which were absolutely dreamy, the souffle, and the outstanding Paris Brest dessert. The creme caramel was just ok. Would also want to see how the menu will change each season to time our return. 100% worth the splurge on expensive wines and port (4-figure price tag for 3.) Oh and I loved that they had awesome NA options for our birthday guy- a NOgroni (NA Negroni) was excellent and a witty surprise!"

ChouChou French Bistro

★★★★☆ 3.9 (111)

"The night started out really well and the service was amazing, until the end.Started out with people constantly checking in on us and seeing how our food was, refilling our waters, the usual great service you would expect from a high caliber spot such as this. The dessert took some time to come out and then our server simply disappeared. There was a couple next to us that got there way after us, got their dessert before us and their check. After a while, when another server came to reset the tables, we asked her if we could get our check. She said she would find our server. A few more minutes passed by and the same server ended up bringing us our check. So a really great service ended up finishing poorly.On top of that, we were there for my birthday, the wife called ahead and made sure they knew on the reservation, as well as when we got there but no birthday writing or anything...not a big deal but attention to detail is good.Would we go back? Probably not, and not because just the service but the food, was just ok, good, but not great. Nothing to write home about.The French onion soup, as much as we love it, was pretty bland. Presentation was good and true to the soup but definitely missing a LOT of flavor.For the most part everything we ordered was just mediocre."

Maison Alyzée

★★★★☆ 4 (266) • $$

"Nice presentation, but uninspiring and just bland. My colleague had Tiramisu and I had the Signature Chocolate Tart. I dropped my colleague, a chef, back at the Westin and I continued on home to Berkeley in anticipation of what I had purchased. I was thinking maybe I can add this to my reserve list (e.g. B. Patisserie) of patisserie's I frequent when not preparing pastry myself. I was extremely disappointed as well as my colleague who presents Chef Tables at Sky Lounges all over the US."

Douce France Cafe

★★★★☆ 3.9 (706) • $$

"This is such a great spot to have a quick bite and get your morning coffee! I really enjoy their outdoor tables and the dining space here. I love grabbing a book to read sitting outside because they have lots of tables available. Their salmon crepe is my favorite here, and I love how soft their crepe batter is. The iced vanilla soy latte is my go-to here, and everything tastes delicious."

Zola + BarZola

★★★★☆ 4.2 (571) • $$$

"Good food, small portions. We came on Valentines weekend, ordered oysters and French oinion soup for starters. My husband got the monkfish and I got the gnocchi. Both were good. Dessert was a raspberry bomb, which was nice."

La Fontaine Restaurant

★★★★☆ 3.9 (682) • $$

"Absolutely excellent food, service, and experience. One of those rare fine dining experiences that is worth every penny. I had the sea bass (branzino). The fish was soooo succulent. The mashed potatoes rich and creamy. Even the vegetables were cooked with care, every bite fresh and delicious. I also ordered a chocolate martini for good measure. Well done and plenty of volume. Our server was fun and cheery with hilarious napkin folding routines. He made a moving mouse, raw chicken, and hats. We all had fun with his routines. Here are the other orders from my dining party...Calamari: lightly breaded and not over cooked, nicely seasoned, served with two dipping sauces. Braised ribs: fall off the bone tender, wonderfully seasoned, great sauce, the planets was a little bland though. BlackBerry mojito - no skimping on the alcohol, enjoyable and refreshing. Lobster ravioli: pasta had a nice texture, flavorfulAngel hair pomodoro with chicken: the chicken strips had a good texture and was flavorful. Next time, it'll be a date night...."

Zazie

★★★★☆ 4.2 • $$

"Yum! Great ambience, warm outdoor patio, friendly staff and excellent food.We went for dinner and everyone in our party of 6 left happy!"

Chez Philippe

★★★★☆ 4.3 (206) • $$$

"I usually visit Chez Philippe for dinner, but I'm so happy we decided to try their Sunday brunch--it was absolutely incredible! You can never go wrong with ordering a special, and Chef Philippe personally recommended the Escargot Eggs Benedict. Instead of the traditional English muffin, it was served on a delicate crepe, which made it even more unique and delicious. Hands down, one of the best brunches I've had in a long time!The strawberry mimosa was perfectly balanced--refreshing and not too sweet. My fiancé ordered the steak frites, which is always a winner, but this time, it was topped with savory onions instead of a sauce--such a great touch.I can't wait to come back soon and try more of their amazing dishes. Highly recommend for an exceptional brunch (or dinner) experience!"

La Boheme

★★★★☆ 4 (589) • $$

"Adorable french restaurant serving exotic dishes like rabbit and bison, also duck one of my faves. For dinner, we got the charcuteri et patés (duck & pork paté, sliced sausage, and pickles) as an appetizer, lapin a la moutarde (rabbit dish with a creamy savory mustard sauce), and magret de canard (pan seared duck breast sliced into bite size pieces). Our sides were exactly the same in both entrees, the vegetables kinda soggy but the flavor good, and the mashed potatoes were fluffy and buttery. The mango and pomegranate mimosa was delicious and refreshing. We made online reservations and chose outdoor seating, but were seated indoors when we arrived, which was just as lovely so it was fine. They advertise live jazz on Friday nights on their website, but there was none during our visit (first Friday of the new year), so I'm not sure the season for this. We enjoyed our meals nonetheless in this beautiful french inspired setting, with lovely artworks on the walls, friendly and professional service, and good vibes all around."

Papillon

★★★★☆ 3.9 • $$$

"Me and my wife celebrated our wedding anniversary at Papillon. We booked our dinner online and made our reservation at 5:30 am. They have ample parking space and you'll not miss the big sign in front of their restaurant. Once we checked in, we were immediately seated at our table. The place is nostalgic and the ambiance is quiet and pleasant for a romantic dinner. Since they just opened, we saw only a few patrons. The menu has a lot of options and this place is very famous for its steak, fillet mignon, classic beef Wellington, ribeye, rack of lamb, short ribs, salmon, etc. All of the items from their menu are highly recommendable. For starters, we ordered their crispy tempura calamari and their house salad. We also had their Blue Paradise Margarita and Tequila Sunrise. For our main course, we ordered the Grilled ANGUS RIBEYEin Marinade of Olive Oil, Roasted Peppers, Basil, and Roasted Garlic Puree, served with Sautéed GarlicMushrooms and Grilled ATLANTIC SALMON with Hero Potato Puree, Warm Spinach, and Cranberry Reduction. While waiting for our orders, we were served with their warm bread. The calamari was fresh and good. The salad was just served right and the dressing was good. The margarita and Tequiela were the perfect alcohol for the night. And finally, the main course was perfect. The ribeye was soft and tender and the Salmon was fresh and delicious. The portions were huge and were cooked the way we wanted. The meal was so huge that we didn't have any more space for desserts. However, when they found out that we were celebrating our anniversary, they presented us with a nice piece of cake with all the trimmings around a plate with an anniversary message. They were so thoughtful and made our anniversary special. The owner, Charlie, approached our table and greeted us on our anniversary. He told us the story of how the restaurant started and how long they've been in the business. With the great service they provided and the excellent food they provided, I would see them prospering for another decade. This was not our first time celebrating our anniversary here and we see ourselves celebrating more anniversary at this place."

Firehouse Bistro

★★★★☆ 3.8 (136) • $$$

"Lovely birthday dinner with my hubs! The food was delicious, especially the desserts! They even gave him a dessert with a candle for his birthday.It was a little on the pricier side, but I would definitely go back again. it's a super cute venue, not too big and cozy vibe."

Maison Alyzee

★★★★☆ 4 (823) • $$

"Please offer more gluten free and dairy free options!! This is only a review for their gluten free dairy free items that I tried. Their mango chia pudding is amazing. It doesn't taste too sweet and it hit the spot for a healthier dessert option.Their GF DF breads are amazing: I'm not sure the flavors I tried but they unfortunately only have 1 offered at a time: if I'm lucky they didn't run out by the time I get there. I think I had a banana bread and/or some kind of zucchini bread? I forget the actual flavor but I remember how amazing it was! The service is ok: could be better, not only a bit slow but (usually I don't see smiles and the people don't seem to love serving us), the ambiance is really nice."

La Mere Michelle

★★★☆☆ 3.4 (194) • $$$

"Holy smokes. Everything you would expect. Excellent service. The food was incredible the Chef even came out to check on our meal. We will definitely return. Amazing"

The Barrel Bistro And Wine Bar

★★★★★ 4.6 (801)

"Barrel Bistro was a great choice for our small start-up's holiday luncheon (16 people). The tables were set up when we arrived, while the food and drink choices for both the appetizers and main menu items appeared promptly and together which is tough to do for a large party and a hallmark of a well run backend. Most importantly, everything tasted excellent!I ordered the skirt steak while others at my table had Lobster Risotto, Seafood linguini and the hamburger sliders. That's a wide range of choices so we were joking about who would have "order envy", wishing they had chosen someone else's menu item rather than their own. No one did - all items looked and tasted on point.For appetizers we ordered a cheese sampler (good, but didn't stand out) and an excellent Chorizo Shortbread that disappeared quickly. Wines by the glass and beers arrived with this first round.The wine list was excellent with some affordable choices along with higher end choices that had higher end prices (Side note, it may be a while before I drink Silver Oak, Deep Cliff, or Caymus again! I loved it when they were lesser known and at the upper end of affordable). The wait staff was professional and attentive without being intrusive. Barrel Bistro was a great choice for us and would also be an excellent choice for anyone else that wants something special for lunch or dinner in downtown San Mateo. Five stars!"

Chez TJ

★★★★☆ 3.8 (818) • $$$$

"We went here for Valentine's Day, and could not have been more impressed. A cute home converted into an upscale restaurant made for a romantic homie ambience. Service is formal and attentive. The menu was an inventive journey of courses which they made vegetarian for me."

Left Bank - San Jose

★★★☆☆ 3.3 • $$$

"I would've given it 5 stars this time. Except one large flop. Go to the website and check out the awesome happy hour menu. It is so far from what they actually do. The actual happy hour menu is a lot smaller. That bwing said our server was awesome. Our food was delicious. The calamari was seasoned super well, nice and crispy, and the sauce- so yummy! The oysters were huge and fresh. Then we also got the short ribbon fries, holy moly. So freaking good. We went on a Wednesday night and it was dead. Over all a great experience minus the misleading menu online."

Bistro Central Parc

★★★★☆ 4.3 • $$$

"I've come here twice now and it's honestly AMAZING. We get the three course deal and it comes with a salad, steak entree, and gelato. The salad is always so refreshing and good! The gorgonzola and strawberries and delish! The steak frites are to die for!! Literally a huge and generous portion of steak that's perfectly cooked and JUICY. And the gelato is unreal. It's so so so good in all the flavors and if I wasn't so full by dessert, I'd get 2nd and 3rd on the gelato. The vibes are so cute, it's perfect for date night, and the service is excellent. I am so excited for more meals here!"

La Foret

★★★★☆ 4.1 (869) • $$$$

"Came here to celebrate my birthday. We made a reservation for a Friday night at 5pm. They require a credit card for a reservation as they are a nicer restaurant. They open at 5pm so when we were greeted and seated we basically had the restaurant to ourselves. Our host was very friendly and helped serve us a bottle of wine as well as open a bottle we brought with us. Corkage fee is $50/bottle which is a fair price if you're planning on doing a couple of glasses. We had the escargot, quail, boar, elk and a sampler of the desserts. We really enjoyed our time here. The staff is really nice and not snobby like you might expect. Parking is great and the bathroom is big and really clean! They even have a cute little bar area that you can do cocktails at. Overall it was a very romantic vibe and I would love to come back."

Le Petit Bistro

★★★★☆ 4 (472) • $$$

"Love Le Petit Bistro. Very authentic French Bistro food. Service is very friendly and you feel like you're in France!"

La Fondue

★★★★☆ 3.8 • $$$$

"Best. fondue. experience. ever.I really loved trying this place! Prices are definitely a bit steep as expected, but the fondues are so tasty and if you're a cheese/chocolate lover this is the place for you.I really liked the dimly lit ambience. It honestly made the place so much more classy and cozy.What I really like about this place is that they start you off with salad and each person gets their own plate. It's a really good portion size and honestly I feel like you could get decently full just eating that. Also makes you feel less guilty about eating all that cheese n choccie!Their drinks are wonderful too, and pretty strong so you definitely get your money's worth. If it's a special occasion, they usually give you a champagne glass on the house! So thoughtful of them!After you choose your cheese blend, they whip it right over the stove in front of you! So so cool. Ours was nice and garlicky (the stinking rose), and they give you a bunch of bread and veggies to dip into it. You can also ask them for dipping item refills whenever!I would *definitely* not skip out on the chocolate fondue, but again, these portions are huge so don't be surprised if it's too much for 2 people! (well maybe the cheese.....we did finish that somehow LOL)The flaming tortoise (chocolate flambé) fondue was so good and they gave us sooo many things to dip, from cheesecake bites, pirouette cookies, apples, strawberries, brownies, toffee, and more!Would definitely come back for a special occasion!"

Chez Christina

★★★★☆ 3.6 (436) • $$

"It was OK. The ambiance inside was super cute and fun, with light music and French Cafe vibes. Service was fine,they tried to keep up the ambiance, with the white table clothes and water refills. The side salad came with the bo ne and was fresh, with Italian dressing in a small bottle. I would have preferred of the bottle was a bit cleaner.The steak was quite over cooked, not really favored for tenderized at all. The sausage was low quality grocery store hot dog. I got my plate with banh mi, and my fiance got his with red rice. The rice was dry but seasoned OK. The baguette was warm and freshly toasted, but you really need to ration how you eat it as it's kind of small.The vietnamese coffee tastes just like the packets you get from Costco, we were amused. We would come back to try their French dishes maybe, but we weren't impressed with their steak plates."

Campagne One Main

★★★★☆ 3.7 (51) • $$

"Came for brunch and dinner several times with different people. Every time, I had a great experience. This is one of my favorite French restaurants around."

Amour Amour

★★★★☆ 4.2 (384) • $$

"Came here to dine for 2 with our dog so we were seated outside. Service was very prompt despite being a small place. I would say the food tasted phenomenal. We ordered the truffle crostini and goat cheese crostini, both of which had so much flavor within each bite. Next came the Portobello Burrata dish which also had an explosion of flavor, definitely recommend for mushroom lovers. And then not pictured is the seared scallop dish with the most creamy yet refreshing lychee sauce, we were practically eating the sauce like soup it was so good."