Le Relais de Venise is a French restaurant that only serves one dish: fried steak with green salad. Yes, there is no menu (except desserts). There are two branches in London, one in New York and a couple in Europe (see Paris review). I visited the Marylebone London restaurant.
Sobre Relais de Venise L’Entrecote
The reason there is an Italian name for a French restaurant is that the man who started the company, Paul Gineste de Saurs, bought an Italian restaurant near Paris in 1959 and kept the name. She made the decision to serve only one dish, fried steak, but to create a secret sauce to make her restaurant stand out. Each branch now has a cult following.
The key for the many returning customers is the quality ingredients: the steaks are from Donald Russell (supplier to HM The Queen) and the desserts are all homemade (aside from the ice cream).
No menu
It is strangely refreshing to go to a restaurant knowing what you are going to have. There is no menu here as they only serve one dish.
There is a strict no-booking policy, so you may have to queue outside. This never seems to deter diners and once inside you will find very compact tables with upholstered benches around the edge of the room. The closed tables are actually to encourage friendly chat with those next to you, which is a surprisingly nice idea. The restaurant describes itself as casual, but I still find it a bit classy, so I think ‘French casual’ is a bit better than I’m used to. There was no music when I visited, but the volume increases when the place is busy due to all those conversations.
Once you’re seated, a waitress, dressed as a classic ‘French maid’, takes your drink order and checks how you would like your steak to cook. This is scrawled on the paper tablecloth and green salads appear on your table in a matter of minutes.
The food
The green salad starter is lettuce with walnuts and mustard vinaigrette. Fresh, tasty and not wet. (Click on “more images” above to see a photo).
The fries (fries) are hand-mashed on the premises with Bintje potatoes from France to be consistent with the Parisian place, although I wouldn’t have thought this was necessary for fries.
When your main meal arrives, you may think that the steak is a bit small, but this is because half is held back to keep warm. (They won’t tell you this, so remember you’re eating two main meals, which makes it even better.) The steak is covered in secret sauce, almost smothered, so say if you don’t want too much. I asked what was in the sauce, but they said, “It’s a secret,” which explains the name. I can tell you it’s buttery but it has pepper, herbs, and spices.
My confession
I am vegetarian. Yes, I went to check out a meat restaurant as a vegetarian. But I did take a carnivore friend who was happy to help me with that part of the review. Vegetarians are offered a selection of cheese without crackers, but bread is available. I had the fries and tried the secret sauce so I almost had the full experience.
Desserts
Things were going well but everything was much better when we saw the dessert menu. Oh my word, that list is good! There are profiteroles, meringues, heavy cream, sorbets and more. I chose ‘Le Vacherin du Relais’, which consists of layers of meringue with vanilla ice cream and hazelnut ice cream in between, topped with cream and topped with a sea of melted chocolate. Crikey, that was good. Very well. (Click on “more images” above to see this delicious dessert).
Price
When I visited in 2010, a main course and a main course were priced at £ 19 per person. I think this offers exceptional value for such a high quality meal. I highly recommend choosing something, anything! – from the dessert menu as the options were very well priced. (My huge dessert was only £ 4.50.)
Conclution
The idea that there is no menu may seem strange before your visit, but once you’ve been to Le Relais de Venise, it will make perfect sense. Ask them not to overdo it on the secret sauce and you’ll have a wonderful meal in a great setting. What they do they do well, why would you want anything more? And be sure to have dessert!
Direction:
Le Relais de Venise L’Entrecote
120 Marylebone Lane (across from Golden Hind Fish and Chips Restaurant)
London W1U 2QG
Tel: 020 7486 0878 for inquiries (no reservations available)
www.relaisdevenise.com
As is common in the travel industry, the writer received a complimentary meal for the purpose of reviewing those services. While you have not influenced this review, About.com believes in full disclosure of all potential conflicts of interest. For more information, see our Ethics Policy.
