Racine

Racine looks for all the world like a typical French brasserie, with a wooden floor, brown leather banquettes, mirrors on the walls, soft lighting and a relaxed and casual ambience, helped along by the well-drilled service team. What turns up on the plate could come straight from a neighbourhood brasserie from over the Channel too: carefully sourced, seasonal produce cooked in the best bourgeois traditions. Bayonne ham with celeriac remoulade, foie gras with pain d'épice, daube de boeuf à l'ancienne, and duck confit with lentils, all the usual suspects are here. Dishes tend to be big on flavours, as in bone marrow, garlic and bacon on toasted pain Poilâne, or fillet of cod with oxtail marmalade and parsley purée, while a classic cherry clafoutis might appear among desserts, with the option of having it flambéed with Kirsch.