The French — Restaurant in Hamilton

We went to the French for our Rehearsal Dinner, we were a group of 15. The Manager Kate was excellent & able to accommodate us as best as possible with the space they have. Although we had to sit a two separate tables, we were right next to eachother. Kate was very friendly, engaged with us, seem to get to know us personally. We had two different servers, which Kate explained to us, which was fine. Our table that we were at, we started off with a very friendly gentleman who was answering all of our questions, very prompt & great & then all of a sudden it got switched to a different server, who had a completely different attitude, she definitely wasn't as friendly didn't seem like she wanted to be there, very short with her responses, barely smiled or made eye contact. The food was fantastic, no complaint about the food at all, everyone enjoyed everything, it was delicious. Just not the service you really want when you are celebrating one of the happiest times with your loved ones. I wish they had not changes our server & we had our original the whole time. The lady serving the other table was great as well, mo complaint there. At the end of the night, I wanted a group photo for our memories & I asked our server if she could take a photo for us, when I tell you the look that she gave me & even rolled her eyes & said "sure", I almost said nevermind, that's how off put I was. Not what I expected after reading all of the wonderful reviews & meeting the manager, I had high expectations. Another reason for the 3 stars is my niece ordered Virgin Sangria (No Alcohol) & when we got the bills it came to $15 for a VIRGIN Sangria, we questioned our waitress as to why it was the same price as an alcoholic Sangria & she said "yep, thats right" and then said "we use a special sparkling wine, that's why it's expensive". Even if this is the case & a sparkling wine is used, there is no reason it should be costing the same as an alcoholic Sangria, it cost more than my cocktails & the beers others order. That's unreasonable if you ask me.

I would still recommend The French for those looking for a great meal, I hope our server was just having a bad day. It unfortunate, that this is what I will remember from the evening, but the food was phenomenal, and I'm sure if we go back to Hamilton we will try The French again.

Thank you Kate for your...

Good food and a nice addition to the Hamilton food scene. After my second visit I've decided to knock it down to four stars. Each time there were inconsistencies.

Our second visit was better. Croissant was excellent, croque monsieur was delicious, but the fries were coldish. Timing was improved this time, our stuff didn't come all at once. Our waitress was very good and attentive. She must've gone on break though as we didn't see her in the restaurant after our food came. Whoever was assigned to our area was not doing their job. No one came by for at least 35 mins. I had to get up for water and the bill, and the waitress from the other side was surprised. Our new waitress may have been the ginger/red haired girl that spent 10-15 minutes chatting to the guy at the table behind us. His date was silent and walked off stony faced. Not very professional. Also, the hostess failed to tell our booking service that we turned up for brunch, and we got dinged. This place could be a solid five if they fixed the gaps.

First visit : I started with a raspberry scone and a cappuccino. The scone was exceptional, fresh and just the right amount of mild sweetness. The cappuccino was not great, way too bitter. Next time I'd stick with drip. Next up was an elder flower kir; very nice for the morning. For my main I ordered a croque madame; it was phenomenal. Service was very good. The interior is beautiful.

While the food was good, there were some negatives. Firstly, the timing was rushed. We were out within 45 minutes. Brunch should be a 90 minute activity. Our food and drinks arrived very close together, I was drinking my cappuccino with my main and elder flower, so it was all jumbled up together. Second, it was cold where we were seated. We were right in the front at the corner, and the old original wall is not well insulated. This could be fixed with ground heating vents. Also, the cheap Yellow gap filler was prominent, suggesting rushed renovations that detracts from the beautiful interior. It's a new place so these things can be fairly...

We travelled 2 hours to eat dinner here. Destination choice. Us and our friends (4 top) The dining room was busy, loud and full of laughter. The Kitchen was on a lull when we sat down for our 7 pm table, as we had a front row seat to see what they are up to. What they are "up to" is a LOT. As is the whole restaurant. Great greeting at the door, good well timed and solid service by the whole team, table visit from the Manager to say hello and chat for a minute. Very well made drinks, good wine selection by the glass, big tables, nice big chairs. Details. They have these covered. As the second rush hit, and the Kitchen crew was heading into what I know was the second stretch of service in a 10+ hour day, they did not let up. All of the parts of the dishes we ordered had their full attention. The salad, venison carpaccio and squash fritters were delicious, proportional and looked fantastic. The frites on the burger and flat iron steak (both cooked as ordered, delicious and served hot) were crisp and seasoned. The gnocchi was so good my wife purposefully did not finish so she could take some home to have the next day and my duck leg had crispy skin, soft delicious meat and slightly textured cabbage, with potatoes, proper lardons and a balance of tart mustard. There was dessert too after all of that great food, a smooth and full-of-real-vanilla-bean brulee and a light lemon tart. Espresso martinis after the meal instead of coffee. I am a full blown celiac diner who understands that there will be dishes that I just cannot have and yet I had numerous menu choices as well as un-requested thoughtful additions provided (gluten free crackers for my carpaccio) This is a restaurant business that you can go to knowing that all of the people that are here are working to put out the very best over-all experience they can, and have been doing so for the past several years. In a changing time of eating out and deciding where to go and what to get, my wife put it perfectly - "Go somewhere that can exceed your expectations" The French...