It would be interesting to see how The French has changed in a year. Although Simon Rogan will soon be talking the helm at Fera in Claridge's, he is still very much in charge of The French and L'Enclume whereas he's delegated his other restaurants, Mr Cooper's and Rogan and Co (which we will soon be visiting) to his 'lieutenants', chef's Kevin Tickle and Gareth Jones. Incidentally, Mr Cooper's House and Garden is probably my second favourite restaurant in town right now.

I'm not going to go into every course, the pictures will tell the story, but for us, the food has come on even more than last year under head chef Adam Reid. It was all simply stunning, on the next level we thought. My favourite part of the meal here and at L'Enclume are the little snacks you get at the beginning, and they keep coming, I love it. I think since last year, pretty much everything is new, apart from the signature dish, Ox in coal oil. So we had as follows; Rye, mackerel, lovage.
Trotter, ham fat cream, sage.
Celeriac and apple.
Quail eggs with leeks, kale and mustard.
Swede dumplings, duck yolk sauce, onion and nasturtium.
Ox in coal oil, pumpkin seed, kohlrabi and sunflower shoots. The classic and the best dish in Manchester.
Caramelised cabbage, scallops, coastal herbs, smoked roe.
Baby beets, Ragstone cheese and artichoke, cresses.
Roasted hake with seeded breadcrumbs, roasted cauliflower and mussels.
Cumbrian Rose veal, bacon fat potatoes, turnips, hen of the woods and rosemary.
Additional cheese course.
Forced Yorkshire rhubarb, crab apple, Douglas fir oats, yoghurt.
'Lancashire coals' with liquorice, fennel and milk. This was the only dish none of us rated quite so much, the flavour was good, but the hard texture of the 'cake' seemed to be a bit jarring.
Sweets.
Thinking about other restaurants, I wouldn't say it's comparable to a one star restaurant, I'd say the food is at a two star level, especially when considering it against other two stars we've visited in recent times (The Square, Marcus Wareing, Calima). That's food and service too, which is never stuffy at The French as it can be in London restaurants. (Incidentally, I think L'Enclume deserves three stars). But then again, who knows the mystery of the Michelin inspectors?
The French is not only the best restaurant in Manchester in my opinion, it's streets ahead of the competition and it's one of the best in the country. I can't think of a better way of spending a Saturday afternoon but with friends, eating, drinking and enjoying the luxurious pleasure of it all. I hope we can return sooner than later next time as The French can only get even better.
9/10.
To see the current wine list click here.

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