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Announced 5 days agoMon-Fri. 11:30 a.m. - 10:00 p.m.
Sat. 10:00 a.m. - 10:00 p.m.
Sun. 10:00 a.m. - 9:00 p.m.
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Le Central, a French restaurant in Denver, CO, has already received 106 reviews on YELP.
So why should I really care to add to that number?
106 reviews should be enough to tell the average diner that either many Denverites are seeking really great French food . . . . or that they have already heard that Le Central is worth a try.
Recently I was with a group of friends whose primary dining goal was to celebrate a birthday; a 21st birthday for a foreign exchange student . . . from France!
I see no sense in going into details on food and drink. All the good reviews on Yelp (which are the majority!) are spot on. Our French student confirmed our choice. The service was friendly and helpful . . . . although, as other reviewers have noted, it was a tad slowwwwww. Too much time passed between coarses. We found ourselves twiddling our thumbs!
I will return, but only when I am not in any hurry! If they step up the pace, Le Central will definitely be worth FIVE STARS!
Mussels: sent 'em back, definitely turned
Wine: WAY over priced, easily 250-300% mark-up
Ambience: bad date combo, over lit and cheaply decorated
Basically, a fiasco. I won't lower my standards, but seriously, I wish I could, as I continuously spend my hard-earned money on dinners that I cook better at home.
Listen up restauranteurs, here's a tip: GIVE A S*%T, show you care, cook with your heart, give your customers a good deal and your place will be packed all the time!
I have to take a star off for the terrible service.
Staff of Le Central, I'll make a deal with you:
Give me French service & I'll give you French Gratuity.
Fin
We felt like we were back in France, from the mussels to the almost non existent service, & the WC… Read more »
This is the second time I've tried escargots and the 2nd time I've been to Le Central. The Escargots en Brioche was fantastically good... very rich though, so it's a good appetizer to share. There were 3 of us and apparently we felt that we needed two appetizers so we also ordered the Charcuterie du Central which is an assortment of pates and cured meats. It was good, but the pates all tasted the same to me.
I ordered up the rabbit entree which was cooked nicely with some wonderful garlic mashed potatoes and a mixture of fresh green beans, carrots, and sweet potato (i think). The other two entrees were good ... but nothing outstanding. I did like that their wine by the glass prices were very affordable at under $5 each. Difficult to come by at a nice restaurant.
If you're coming on a busy weekend night, make a reservation.
Le Central is owned by a French family, has a French speaking staff, a French sensibility and a French bar. I love their aperitifs; this is the place to try something different. We spent one long weekend in Paris, ate in several bistros and one fabulous "unstarred" place. I had the lousiest meal ever in a guidebook recommendation. There, a waiter smugly served a burnt Croque Monsieur, upset because I did not order his suggestion. I've been thinking on this. Sometimes when you go out you want a unique meal event; I wanted a well prepared Croque Monsieur (which makes it a great one).
Le Central is more like a bistro than a Michelin star. Most of the truly great meals I had in Paris were at bistros--the kind place you can drink a bottle of great affordable wine, nibble rich pate, talk about your day, and just unwind. An hour or more later, you order. An hour or more later, you might be ready for coffee and dessert. To the disappointment of some, the service at Le Central did not hover. To the disappointment of some, Le Central did not use ingredients designed to burn through your wallet at the rate of $100/ hour. In reviews of another French place, there is a focus on fastidious service, mains with multiple expensive ingredients, and an atmosphere of haute cuisine. That is what Americans expect of "French food".
Not me. I have eaten brunch, lunch and dinner here many times. I love being able to walk down from work or go on the weekend. I love the Maitre'd who responds to the slightest hints. I love its atmosphere, which is sort of like a house owned by your aunt and uncle, a bit rundown with opinionated décor. I love the ladies' room with its humorous ambiance. My favorite dining rooms are the porch and the room on the east wing, past the bar. There is also a main "see and be seen" room and a lower room. Ask for a tour if the atmosphere for your event is important.
What I love to eat: Salade de Betterave (red beet salad with blue cheese), Salade Nicoise, Salade de Magret, and the Soup a l'Oignon, especially for lunch. Le Central is one of the few places I actually eat bread and butter. Its yeasty crunch on the outside and fragrant chewy dough inside is irresistible. I love their Charcuterie; we ate more pate in Paris than anything else. I might have to add it to wine and cheese as part of my last meal. At times, I think the cheese and pate plates are served too cold, but that's public health regulation. For a teaser, try their Salade Perigourdine.
I often order one of their Cassoulet(s) or their fish (or anything else) with Bearnaise. My husband likes the Bouilloubaise and yes, the mussels, especially the spicy ones. He is from NYC and eats in DC, LA and Seattle. He's never complained about those mussels, nor have my adult children who have packed away their share as well. Their lamb, veal, and fish dishes are simply and well-prepared most of the time. I have had varieties of each several times. For me, the most gourmet item on their menu are the sauces, which I could eat by the spoonful. Theirs is a true Bearnaise, in which the fresh herbs can be individually detected. If you aren't a believer, go home and make it and then go there and eat theirs.
I try to order something unusual off the dessert menu, even at lunch. Although I have eaten every one of the chocolate desserts (my dining partners have a strong preference) I try to get the Floating Island, the Raspberry Charlotte, or the Linzer Tort for contrast because we share. There is never a question of not getting dessert, it is a question of how many desserts we get. This is a time for tea, cappuccino, Grand Marnier or the like. Something to jolt you for the walk back to the car or hotel.
I mostly measure a meal with my eyes closed, as I savor the flavors. My tastebuds, nose, and ears are fully open and the lids of my eyes half closed. I like the tastes, the smells and the music of this place. What I taste, smell, hear, and sense at Le Central is a five (5).
The staff can be wonderful or, more rarely, lacking in basic knowledge of the wine. I think they used to have a wine steward at dinner, but if you ask for better help they will usually send someone over. At lunch they can be quite hurried because these are not meals intended for the American 45 minute lunch. In Paris you never got a ticket unless you flagged down the waiter, even after two hours. So these are perfectly French manners. Isn't that what you expected?
What I see there is a 4 (in a sense the building is well decorated and preserved, but a sow's ear nevertheless). However, it's hard for me to say that I would like Le Central better in a Frank Lloyd Wright or an I.M. Pei building. So I am not going to subtract because I love my aunt and uncle's house. I think the owners have absolutely made a genuine silk purse here, and anyone that wants a silk purse out of gold had better expect to pay more, much more.
Fine food, nice wine, exceptional service, and an unbeatable courtyard atmosphere- even in winter! The place smells like fresh seafood right when you walk in the door, and is as cozy as it gets. I would return again and again. We had great conversations with our server and our next-door table mates.
I've never had French food before but I was happily surprised when I went there on a first date in February. I had never had mussels but after researching the menu online, I figured we would get some.
Everything was perfect: the wine, the food, the ambiance and the guy.
I'd recommend this for any first or 20th date! It's inexpensive fine dining and a little adventurous.
He got the rabbit and I got the veggie pasta dish. We ate so much of the delicious bread and mussels, we were full by the time the entree came!
My recommendation for date night...get something without a lot of garlic! ;)
The ambiance is very nice. prices are very reasonable for a French restaurant. As for the food, i can see how lots of people are impressed, I would just give it a pass , if i were going to be very genuine about the rating of the food i would have given them three stars. But so much of other stuff made up for the food being way less than perfect.
The restaurant did remind me of the typical French restaurants that we would eat at every Sunday with the whole extended family.
I have never had a bad meal here. They usually have affordable French wine by the bottle too, so one need not be rich to feel rich here. The worst meal I've had here (which wasn't that bad) was on Valentines Day, which I'm convinced is a bad night to go anywhere for dinner (it's like going out for drinks on Saint Patrick's Day)...
I enjoy the food at le central, however it is not crazy good and the service can be pretty slow.
Affordable French in Denver - bestill my heart. I have been to Le Central many times and happened upon it twice in my recent visit home. Wines are fantastic, but the food is the true gem. Colorado lamb with cheese lathered gnocchi and greens. Magnifique!
The servers are all gorgeous and lovely in every way - and the restaurant is charming and cozy to match. We didn't have the mussels this time, but they are always a sure thing as well.
Bread is a no brainer - get it, eat it and get some more!
For the bucket of mussels and the awesome French baguettes, 5 stars. The mussels have got to be a loss leader for them, at $9.99, that's about what I'd have to pay in a supermarket, plus they throw in unlimited fries, bread, etc., this menu item can't possibly break even. Are there economies of scale to mussel steaming?
The baguettes are wonderful, and it took a lot of willpower not to devour the complimentary bread basket at the start of dinner, but listen to the advice of others: SAVE IT FOR THE SAUCE. About halfway through the mussels you will find some divinely flavored broth. We had the Normandy, which was a cream and mushroom combo. Infused with mussel juices, and sopped up in chunks of baguette, the broth was manna.
However, the prix fixe menu was a let down. The tongue and tomato appetizer was prepared well, with shaved thin slices of tongue dolloped with cool stewed tomatoes. The rest of the meal, however, was blah. The veal dish could have passed for an undercooked hamburger patty. The Bibb salad was a pile of lettuce that would have pleased perhaps a rabbit. The peach Melba was unremarkable. Lesson learned, "affordable French" means ordering a la carte.
Since we're new to the neighborhood, we were very glad to find a place with excellent rustic (~Provencal) French cuisine, the $2 baguette will be a constant draw. Looking forward to exploring the rest of the menu, especially the Ile flottant.
I just love this place. I've been once for Sunday brunch and once for Friday dinner. Both times I was seated right away (despite those being typically very busy times) had super friendly service, and found the food to be quite tasty.
TIPS:
1. Get the mussels - it's a GIANT bucket, and you can dunk all the free bread they bring out in the buttery/garlicy (or whatever type of mussels you get) soup.
2. They sell baguettes at the counter - this is nice if you're looking for a delicious, just cooked loaf of bread. And I think they only charge $2-3 a loaf
I LOVE LOVE LOVE this place!! Everyone should try Le Central at least once in their life! The food is authentic and most of all CHEAP! It's a great place to go for a cheap dinner date or just a fun lunch. My favorite is the mussel and fries combo for 10 dollars and it's soo much food. Share with a buddy or attempt to finish all of it on your own cause it's so good!
I've been going to Le Central on and off since they opened. They've changed chefs god knows how many times and the quality of the food has varied widely. I'd probably off myself, or certainly look for other careers options, if I had to cook with the cheapest ingredients available all the time.
Yes, it's cheap and that's how they bill themselves - "the affordable French restaurant". And, they aren't lying about it - it really is quite reasonable. But, you really get what you pay for. Occasionally, there have been moments of brilliance, although not that many. They do a pretty decent job with starters (the escargot dishes in particular), soups (onion) and salads. Where the scrimping on ingredients shows up is on the mains. Some really substandard experiences with all meats and fish but what do you want at $12-$15 -$18 bucks for a main course?
Contrary to others' comments, I've never had a really bad service experience. They have Lillet blonde which I love for an aperitif (try it on the rocks with an orange twist - faboo) and the wine list is reasonably priced. Some desserts manage to be OK as well. Just don't think that you are getting Z Cuisine, Bistro Vendome or Indulge when you elect to dine here. You'll probably have an OK experience and nothing more.
Probably your best bet is to go for lunch. Have some variation of their many mussel creations and some very respectable frites with a nice cold bottle of Chablis and you will leave reasonably happy with enough money left to zoom up to D-Bar for dessert.
Absolutely one of my favorite restaurants in Denver. This french restaurant feels quaint, yet bustles with energy - casting the charm of a small Parisian sidewalk cafe.
Le Central is famous for their mussels, and rightfully so. The menu has a variety of different to have them prepared, some more saucy than others. And here is the true surprise, when served, a guest is treated to a very handsome helping of food - an entire bucket full to be exact. Although I have only dabbled away from the mussels, the remainder of the menu has several other options for those not feeling up to mussels. Lastly, the pricing on the menu is absolutely unbelievable!
Perhaps the most pleasant surprise is the wine list. Without a doubt, there are some big hitters there - and you can pay for them, but the list possesses a vast selection of french wines unknown to me. The surprising part? At incredibly reasonable prices - this wine menu has fantastic wines to offer.
There are many places in Denver where you can go to get a fantastic meal, but almost none where you can do so as afford ably as at Le Central.
Good good good food! Anything you get here will be amazing! Woo Hoo!
Very solid French-fare, very mediocre service. However, went on Bastille Day (July 14th) and restaurant was packed.
Enjoyed mussells with Spanish chorizo...yummy; bottomless fries are a cute tactic, as the initial service is quite ample. Had a decent cut of veal scallopine with vegetables, nothing Earth-shattering, but very good.
All told, tab for 4 was just over $200; not bad considering drinks/wine on top of dinner. Solid fare, definitely would recommend.
I looooove the mussels here. I moved from the PACNW and these definitely hold a candle to all the fresh seafood I was spoiled with back home. You can try 10 or 15 different preparations, all of the types I've had are delicious. I love the basilic and curry cream sauces the best. On my first visit, we all made the mistake of ordering a bowl per person, and the bowls are HUGE! I think each order is two pounds, which is ridiculously good for the $10 price. To sweeten the deal, it comes with unlimited french fries, and they are amazing. Thin, salty, and in the middle of soft and crispy. I don't know how else to describe them but I make myself sick on these fries every time I come here. They are so good dipped in the mussel bowl. I've been with others who've ordered different dishes, all of which looked delicious, but I stick to the mussels. On a few occasions, a member of my group has had sand in the shells, and they gladly replace it for you with a bowl of new mussels. This is just a caveat of mussels, and difficult to avoid at any establishment in my mind, so I don't fault them for it. Their wine list is a bargain, and the bread and butter served before the entrees is always warm and fresh. Their appetizers, especially the brie and goat cheese, are really tasty. We almost always have the same waiter and he is perfectly French and snooty with a thick accent, I love it. Great place for a date, and great for groups too! Really charming, inviting, warm interior. I want to try their happy hour, brunch and cooking classes.
I had a guest visit from out of town that was staying close to Le Central. My friend and I are two guys visiting a quaint French restaurant. We both really enjoyed the food, there are many hot waitresses that were nice to us, I guess they thought we were not attracted to them since we are two guys at a French restaurant.
Food was good, we both had the Steak and Fries, call it what you want it was Steak and Fries. The Steak was fatty, real fatty. All of the food was flavorful and something different to get your taste buds going. We both agreed had the meal been $5 more we would have felt cheated. It was an appropriate value, that is a good way to put it, appropriate.
Things you must know about Le Central:
1. Outside is pretty.
2. Inside looks bland with not very good art on the wall.
3. Service was inattentive and did not fill water.
4. Bread was bought from King Soopers and heated up in oven before served.
5. Reasonable prices for food. You get some unique dishes for the price.
6. Quality of food is hit or miss. The $10 vegetarian platter was not well seasoned, to salty, had dirty greens in it, and not tasty.
7. Would only reccommend the mussels.
8. One vegetarian options on the menu.
9. Street parking.
10. I honestly had great expecatations for this restaurant and it left me feeling bland with no reason to return.
11. Would not come back except for mussels (which am in no hurry to come back for.)
The food here is consistently good. I'm tempted to give five stars after my recent visit. They have a really interesting variety of preparations for GIANT plates of mussels. I selected the dish with white wine, shallots, and blue cheese. It was fan-freaking-tastic people. Did I mention that it came with a heapin' helpin' of frites? I would punch my granny in the nose for a great plate of fries.
One star off because the space needs a serious spring cleaning. But, will happily go back soon for the food. Service is fair to excellent depending on who/what/where.
We went to Le Central the other night for a specific reason. I really had a craving for some moules frites and thanks to Google, I was led to this neighborhood gem. Price-wise, this place can't be beat. $10 for a HUGE bucket of mussels (in your choice of sauce) and a very large quantity of excellent fries. Apparently they are "refillable" but I can't imagine needing that. There seemed to be a lot of variation from mussel to mussel. Some were quite chewy, while some were very... well, slimy. But some were perfect, and mussels are always a bit hit or miss. I guess I'm a little overly skeptical of Denver seafood. But overall, everything was very good. Le Central is cute and charming, and apparently very popular as the place was packed on a Sunday night! I'm sure we will be back to try everything else on the menu!
ATTENTION: $2 Champagne and Mimosas.
We had our first brunch at Le Central a few hours ago. It was superb! And there were $2 champagnes and mimosas. Sweet baby jebus. I had the mussels, as I usually do, and my wife and friends had various egg dishes that all looked and tasted fantastic. The service was friendly and he respected our space and conversation (he only came over at conversation lulls).
Also, did I mention the champagne? Mimosas? $2. Yeah... delicious.
Oh, and the best part? For four of us, with food, and drinks... $45. Yeah, that's right. $45.
And $2 Champagne and Mimosas. *hic*
***NOTE***
I'd like to say something about the review below about the person getting sick after eating at Le Central. Whether or not Le Central was to blame, most food borne illnesses take at least 18-24 hours before symptoms show. Even Norovirus usually takes at least 12 hours. Most people associate their food poisoning/illness with the last place that they ate, but unfortunately, that is not often the case. Just wanted to throw that out there, as I was a health inspector and helped investigate food borne illnesses for years.
Hold on to your hat. Country French fare hits Colorado in a wonderful dining experience. Having… Read more »
Amazing French Brunch, Great Mussels with unltd Fries, All you can drink mimosas--Combined with the feeling of eating at Grandma's House...It really doesn't get any better!!
I had to walk around the place a few times to find the 'right' door for the entrance-they have about 10, honestly! It was a great pre-meal work out!
This place is big, but it has a very warm and homey feel about it. Nice exposed brick and a quaint little kitchen bar to the left! It almost feels as if your dining in a French country-side Estate!
The brunch menu has so many options to choose from, everything I have tried here has been superb! The service and food is always consistently great! If you plan on getting the mussels make sure you come HUNGRY--they are a a huge portion with fries and you also have the pre-meal bread!
Great place to come to for some good food therapy after any long weekend! There is always a wait BUT it is most certainly worth it!!
Went for dinner. I LOVED the atmosphere and the staff was really cool. Awesome place for a lovely romantic date. It worked for me.
We got the escargo, the blue cheese mussels, and some steak dish. The escargo was good. The steak was decent. But they were French typical - nothing special, kinda weird, but worth the price at this very reasonably priced place. And face it, you are going French in order to be weird.
The mussels however - their specialty - we had to SPIT nearly half of them out for being rancid. Didn't finish the dish, and got comped by it. That left enough of a bad feeling in my mouth so to speak that they only get 3 stars.
I am a big fan of atmosphere and understand that the 'food' can be both a situational thing AND vary for people. And especially with their reasonable prices, it is probably worth another shot in the future given the rest there is so cool. So I'd say - give it a shot, but don't expect to come away saying it was the best food you ever had - just enjoy the experience.
Fueled by the recent spate of interest over Julia Child and everything French, and, coming off of my recent experience at the Yelp Iron Chef competition at the beautiful Cook Street culinary school, I, my friends, am bent on becoming the next local Top Chef. And Le Central offers yet another opportunity for me to demonstrate my culinary expertise. Each month Le Central offers a cooking demonstration and dinner. Each month is a different menu so you can learn new and different techniques from the chefs at Le Central. Of course, I didn't actually get to don an apron at this event, but I did sit really close to the chefs.
Last night the menu was a fougasse (this is simulataneously everything yet nothing like a pizza), followed by a snapper filet served with a sun-dried tomato pesto on a greek salad, finished up with a decadent puff pastry dessert featuring creme anglaisse.
This was so much fun. I will definately go back. The demonstrations were very well organized (although they did get a bit off of their schedule toward the end of the demos). The demos were light-hearted but educational. The chefs were comfortable in front of their audiences and seemed to simply share their own personal knowledge and preferences about cooking. I definately picked up a few tips that I can't wait to try in my own kitchen.
The wait staff were easy-going and right on top of things. I especially liked how I was able to describe to the waiter my preference for a red wine and he nailed it with a really light beaujolais. An added bonus was that I didn't have to break the bank for a glass of wine. At just $4 a glass, I didn't feel bad about ordering two!
My one suggestion is to add some more tasting in to the mix. At the first demo station we were given a taste of a delicious savory brioche. But as the demos went on, I was getting hungrier and hungrier. Hey Chef, can you throw me a little croistini to try a taste of that pesto you just made? Break off a bite of that puff pastry! After all, even though I'm tasting the dishes at my table later, a little somethin', somethin' to tied me over would have been nice. Plus, then I really understand the flavor profiles and textures I'm shooting for in my own kitchen. But really, this was a minor flaw in an otherwise flawless night.
I will definately be back!
Not a bad experience, probably more like a 3.5 rating. The prices here can't be beat. Large portions for inexpensive prices.
First, the wines. I wouldn't recommend wine here by the glass, pretty weak selection. By the bottle has a much better selection. I started out with a wine flight of an 05 Cab, an 05 Vin de Pays, an 05 Shiraz and an 04 Rhone. The cab was like gasoline, stay away. The Shiraz had practically no nose but a semi decent finish. The Rhone was light and weak. The Vin de Pays was probably the best of the flight, but not full bodied like the description says. No licorice, mostly a cherry finish but a decent finish. We decided to get a bottle of 04 Château-Neuf-du-Pape since the glass selection wasn't that great. This hit the spot. Full bodied, beautiful nose and a lingering finish.
For dinner I had the Steak Robert au Poivre...which is a decent sized rib-eye with a peppercorn glaze. The peppercorn glaze was decent. The rib-eye was more grizzled than marbled. They didn't hit my requested temperature correctly and it was a bit chewy. It wasn't horrible, it wasn't fantastic either. The glaze was decent and so was the mash.
I think the desserts were the hit of the night. The best of the lot was the Creme Brulee. The flavor just popped. One of the best I've had anywhere. The Creme Caramel was a flan with decent flavor. The Le Gâteau au Chocolat was a layered rum cake with fresh creme and was probably my 2nd favorite of the night. The Pot de Creme was basically a chocolate Creme Brulee which was pretty good as well.
Overall a decent dining experience but probably wouldn't be a repeat visit for me.
My friend and her boyfriend suggested that we try this restaurant last night because she saw the $9.99 bowl of mussels with french fries on the food network. She made reservations only to find out that the restaurant was super empty. This was probably due to the economy more so than the quality of the place.
We shared the $9.99 bowl of mussels with a tint of lemon juice and french fries. They were really good and a good value- mussels split between the three of us and ample proportion for the cost. They tasted pretty good as well. usually, when seafood is not fresh, it has a certain scent to it. I didn't get that from this one.
I ate the salmon dish after the waitress suggested that I get that one over the mahi mahi. She said it tasted better and so I was fine with that. (Salmon Entree $16). The taste of the tomato was different and I thought the veggies were slightly too sweet, but the carrots were good.
I had a french dessert with vanilla ice cream (think cream puff + vanilla ice cream) ($4.00). Again, 4 dollars is a good value especially for french dessert. The creme puff came with a scoop of ice cream and a dash of chocolate - made with an even blend of chocolate tinted on the exterior and splayed along the plate. It was pretty good to eat and look at.
For french food the place gave ample proportion and its affordable. There's also plenty of parking outside (street). The place is cute, quaint, and amazing empty for Saturday night (we pretty much got the entire dining room to ourselves). It's quiet enough and the room we were in was away from the restaurant's bar.
Service: Service was a mix bag since out original waitress left and never actually came back. We think she probably took off for the night, but hey a I got to go would have been nice. However, while she was there and our subsequent waitress was pretty good and hospitable.
Overall, I would give this place a 3.5 for french food, 4.0 for affordable french food, 4 for parking, and a 3 for service.
method of payment: they take visa and mastercard for those that are paying with credit card.
Simply put, for the price, this place is great!
You can get a huge bucket of mussels (prepared in an array of methods) and unlimited frites for only $9.99 during lunch OR dinner! We had the formage (blue cheese) and I found them to be quite nice. There were probably 40 mussels in the bucket.
I've also had the Epinard salad, which was missing the egg for some reason. I liked it, but I make it better so next time I'll order something different. For dinner I had the Beef Bourgonion. It was delish! It was hearty and warm and perfect for a chilly fall or winter evening.
My companions had the filet, lobster bisque and a seafood dish. They all commented on the food, saying it was good.
I'll be back to Le Central, but for the money I don't think there's any reason to order anything except the mussels, unlimited frites, and don't forget to ask for plenty of bread to soak up the mussel juice! YUM!
Went here with my girl for brunch on Sunday.
Pros:
-large, inexpensive portions
-omelets were great (salmon and brie, mmmm)
-nice decor, old wooden floors
Cons:
-watched the waitress walk by a few times and not even acknowledge us for the first five minutes. After that she was pleasant, but the place wasn't even close to crowded.
-WTF was going on with the music in this place? It went from like Les Miserables to Daft Punk. My girlfriend and I would look at each other every time the song changed and just start laughing.
-Too quiet for my liking - I know my grandma would've loved this place, but I want a little more liveliness at my brunches.
Oh how I miss Paris! I went here on Monday night with two friends. Having no expectations I was excited to eat some French food. The ambiance was good, the prices were great and the food was delicious!!! We had the paella, mussels, snails and salads along with some drinks. The paella was good, it was eaten quickly. I liked that there was an assortment of fish and meats in it and everything tasted good. The snails that we got were also really good, garlicky goodness with delicious brioche. I'd say that the mussels probably were the icing on the cake for this night. We got the ones with bacon and a little cream sauce. Heaven in a bowl, let me tell you! Once the mussels are gone make sure you ask for extra bread and dip it in the sauce! The fries are really good dipped in there as well. I am going there again for dinner tonight and I can't wait to try some more stuff :) The staff was also extremely friendly! We also had a pate sandwich from them at the Cherry Creek farmers market. I don't even like pate and I thought it was delicious! It was on a small loaf of fresh french bread, smeared with amazing dijon mustard, pickles and other yummy stuff my boyfriend polished it off rather quickly!
Like some of the other reviewers, my experience here has been a little hit or miss. When it's good, it can be damn good.. but when it's bad... well...yeah. And, let me qualify that to be totally clear: they are actually very consistent and delicious with their brunch, but not as much around the dinner menu. For example, I've had the mussels when they were quite excellent, but also when they were pretty awful. It's a little puzzling why it varies so much.
Overall I like it a lot here (in large part because of the super-quaint, romantic atmosphere of the building and decor) but I think I will stick with brunch for the most part in future visits since it's so awesome and dinner seems a bit of a crapshoot. Still...I'm sure I'll be back sometime this year.
My boyfriend and I went to the cooking lesson thing they do once a month- three separate chefs give you recipes and walk you through how to make an appetizer, main course and dessert. Then you go to the restaurant part of the building and are served the same foods you just saw prepared. The poulet provencale was some of the most delicious food I have ever tasted, and the goat-cheese turnover and flan with berries were not far behind it. This is an absolutely wonderful restaurant and I plan on returning soon.
I was in town visiting some friends and she took me to this very charming place. The ambiance is nice. We sat in the "inside/outside" part (which is the back section of the restaurant, like a deck, with plenty of windows). The server was very friendly, accommodating and professional.
Here is "Le Central" menu concept: it changes daily. The menu includes a different type of meat (lamb, chicken, beef or pork), fish and vegetarian dishes all cooked with different sauces and side dishes. In addition, to help with the budget conscious person, they also offer a "price fix" menu with a choice of an appetizer, main course and dessert for $19.95.
As it was a very cold day, we order soups to warm up. I ordered the onion soup which was very rich, creamy, cheesy and delicious. My friend order another soup which was not that good but our very accommodating and friendly server changed it right away to the onion soup. We also order the warm brie appetizer with toasted baguette which was super delicious.
I ordered a French martini to start with and it was one of the best ones I've had. Then we switch to the house red wine and it was even nicer. For the main course, I wanted the "price fix" menu entree which it was not available in the 'a la carte' choices. The very accommodating and friendly server spoke to the chef and they allowed me to have the "ribs" from the 'price fix' as an 'a la carte' dish. The meat was so tender that it just melted in my mouth, but the only problem was that it was quite a bit of fat in the meat but I still ate most of it. The side veggies, spatzele and red wine sauce was amazingly good!
We had friends join us later for drinks and desserts. Our table of 4 became a table for 8 and we all order coffee, tea, more wine, and plenty of desserts: the creme brulee, the chocolate cheesecake and chocolate mousse. They were all delicious and we all enjoyed every moment of our stay at Le Central.
The Final Verdict:
Restaurant Ambiance/Decor: 5.0 out of 5.0
Staff Service/Friendliness/Professionalism : 5.0 out of 5.0
Seating Arrangement/Layout: 5.0 out of 5.0
Seating Comfort: 5.0 out of 5.0
Food Quality/Flavor: 4.5 out of 5.0
Food Price Value: 4.5 out of 5.0
Wine/Alcohol Selection: 5.0 out of 5.0
Wine/Alcohol Price Value: 4.5 out of 5.0
Bathrooms Cleanliness: 5.0 out of 5.0
Final Score: 43.5 out of 45 (97 out of 100% or A+ grade)
Final Comment: A great place that, with the constant menu changes, will keep you guessing and amazed as to how they can keep a ever changing menu and the quality of the food so high. The wine and martinis selection is superb. Desserts is worth having. Highly recommend this place.
Historically, I have enthusiastically enjoyed Le Central. Last night I went with some friends, and while they had a great time with mussels and bottomless french fries, my plate was not as enjoyable. I ordered the "Carrelet aux Capres", which is their flounder plate. I had two issues with this dish.
The first is that the fish came out "whole" which I did not care for. Even though I try to challenge myself and my palate, I can't eat a fish that comes out looking like a fish. That was the situation here. I will take responsibility for this poor order choice because the menu reads "whole" but apparently I glanced over that part. If Le Central visitors enjoy picking their fish off the bone--this is the dish for you. Visitors will pick off the front half of the fish, and then flip it over to get the underneath side of the fish. Tip: preparing the fish in this manner is traditional in french restaurants. I didn't realize that either when ordering. Also note to visitors: it isn't really pan seared though or at least mine was not.
My second issue was the sauce on the fish. The menu reads "light sauce of sweet butter, fresh lemon juice, capers and shallots". The sauce actually had more cream that either butter or a lemon flavor. It was almost too much to eat. It definitely was a heavy cream sauce and not a light sauce.
Overall, I didn't finish my plate and left feeling hungry.
Very disappointed here.. I have a fondness for french cuisine and had high hopes for this place. Nothing we ordered was tasty at all. Everything was extremely bland and had to pour on the salt for any dimension. The mussles tasted like they had been brewing in plain water and if you've had mussles before, the best part is when you soak your bread in the broth. No thank you. I would have had soggy bread. The scallops weren't even cooked well. Felt like someone just pulled it out of the freezer and microwaved it. I tried a bit of my friend's dish, something meat with a gastrique sauce. Interesting, but not in a good way.. Didn't order dessert because what was the point? And who doesn't order dessert at a french place?
The only good thing, was the ambience and the service. It did remind me of a little cafe in the Bastille region of Paris. Somewhere off of the Robert Lenoix street.. Our server was fabulous, but just didn't have the heart to tell him the food was terrible. Sounds like this place is a hit or miss, and unfortunately, it was a big miss for me....
After my boss put me up in the dumpy VQ hotel, he redeemed himself by recommending this charming restaurant.
The atmosphere is homey and cute. The hosts were sweet. But the real thing that sells this place is that it's good, French, and CHEAP.
I had the French Onion soup, which was delicious although could have had a bit more pizazz. The house salad was pretty standard. But the curry mussels. WOW. I have never seen that many mussels in one place! Unfortunately, I was so full by the time I got to the bottom of the bowl, I could barely enjoy all the delicious broth my mussels were swimming in.
My colleague and I had dinner and a bottle of wine and it came to $63. We would easily have spend twice as much in LA! The food isn't knock-out, but I'd definitely go again for the true bistro-like atmosphere.
I'm sorry, I just don't get it. The concept is great - affordable French food - but the execution is flawed, really flawed.
Three out of six people ordered mussels. This is one of their big menu items so you would think they would be good right? Yeah, well their not. The mussels were small and dry. And, I seriously think that they just make a huge vat of them and then pour on whatever sauce you choose. In each of the variations the mussels were tasteless with some mediocre sauce on the bottom of the bowl. Not impressed.
A brie appetizer was boring. I think our server would have preferred to have been anywhere else but the restaurant and certainly wasn't interested in making our experience a good one.
There are far too many good restaurants in Denver for me to go back to Le Central. It's a pity really, I still think it's a great concept.
Le Central is definitely a place to get a great meal at a great price! Six of us went there last night for mussels. You get a bucket of mussels for $10 and the wine list is relatively inexpensive as well. We got out of there for $20/person - very reasonable!!
We had the Italienne, Basilic and Montago? (curry), mussels and they were all very good. The mussels were HUGE - not sure where they are imported from. We also shared a goat cheese appetizer which was amazing - anything goat cheese is devine to me. :)
Service was a little slow but we were with all our friends so we didn't mind.
Great place! Can't wait to go back when I crave mussels!!
Neighborhood: Northwest
Category: French
Neighborhood: Lodo
Category: Creperies
Neighborhood: Southwest
Category: Jazz & Blues
Neighborhood: Southwest
Category: Creperies
Neighborhood: Southwest
Category: Creperies
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