Cafe Francais — Restaurant in Regina

I got extremely lucky that my boyfriend and I were able to walk right in on a Saturday and be seated immediately. This is a small cafe and I don’t think it would fit more than 4 at a table. I highly suggest booking a table in advance so you can have a reserve table.

But because it’s small, there are a lot of positives I noticed. Staff pay attention to you, refill your glasses and are able to spend more time with customers. But also, your food and drinks arrive fairly quickly.

This Saturday, we ordered Brioche French Toast, croquettes Madame, frangipane, hot chocolate and a Parisian fog. I am happy to say that I was extremely pleased with everything. Our drinks tasted high quality, it’s hard to find a Parisian fog anywhere in the city and I’m very happy that they nailed it. French influence with their drinks and menu is a good experience. The French toast came with fresh berries and candied seeds. It was very delicious. My Croque Madame was a great experience, especially considering I’ve never had it before. The amount of meat in this dish was very reasonable and the potatoes were easily the best potatoes I had ever had in this city. Simple yet elegant is the best way to describe it.

My only issue was with the frangipane that we took home. My only issue was with the frangipane that we took home. I had an issue with this dessert (couldn’t eat it) but the staff gave me a new one for free another day which was very appreciative 💕

After tax and tip, for 2 people it was $80.72. While it’s a higher price for brunch, I would do it again. At this price, you’re guaranteed to leave happy, satisfied and excited to come back and try something else.

UPDATE Nov 3rd: ANOTHER 5 stars for their High Tea

his is a long over due but well deserved High Tea review. This experience is $63/person without tax or tip. But I will sell you on it.

1st course: Spinach, sun dried tomatoes and pepper quiche.

The first course was fresh from the oven and house made. It was surrounded by a red lead lettuce with a gentle dressing. I give high praise to whoever made this because I know tarts, especially quiche size is an art. It’s a gentle taste, but a good start.

2nd course: A palette cleanser of raspberry sorbet in a lemon cup. In house made sorbet. Can you see the theme? Made in house, fresh tasting. I’m not a huge sorbet fan, but it’s a great palette cleanser. Who can say they had in house made sorbet? I can!

3rd course: the high tea tier. Assorted petit fours accompanied by yuzu lemon panna cotta, Chocolate fudge Brownie, Apple crumble tart, coconut macaroon and Golden Raisin Tea biscuit served with mixed berry compote and Chantilly cream, Beef Pastrami Croissant, Egg salad Brioche and Crab Crostini.

The high tea tier was phenomenal. Starting from the bottom, you have in house made breads. Brioche is delicious. But also REAL tasting crab. You can’t fake that taste. Middle tier was full of sweets. My absolutely favourite thing to try that day was the golden raisin tea biscuit. Seriously, please give me the secret recipe! It didn’t even need cream and jam. But also, it was WARM. Fresh out of the oven warm. It was the same with the apple crumble tarts it was also warm, fresh out of the oven. Now the top, these are house made coconut macaroons. They were very light and tasty to finish. I didn’t have room for the yuzu lemon panna cotta but it was extraordinary.

Where else can you do to get a high tea that’s fresh out of the oven and made in house??? The quality is astounding.

I’m also happy to say that they had a variety of tea options. 5 to be exact. And if you weren’t feeling like caffeine, 2 of the 5 options were non caffeinated teas.

Best High Tea...

I went with a group of 11 for lunch on Friday. Cafe wasn't busy, service was friendly and reasonably fast. The food was fresh and meals were well plated, balanced and tasted wonderful. However the soup of the day was quite dissapointing. I would recommend the smoked salmon croissant!

Full review below.

The atmosphere is modern, comfortable but not pretentious. Beautiful decor, extremely comfortable seating which is hard to find in a cage! The sever was knowledgeable and served with an extra touch of care. Cold drinks were mixed at the table with a touch of class. Food arrived all at once but took a while for our large table. Restroom is clean and also modern but lacks wheelchair accessibility.

The smoked salmon is a well balanced sandwich with a sweet caper dressing with a raw veggie side with ranch dip and pickle. The salmon is thinly sliced and deliciously delicate tasting. The sweet capers pair wonderfully. The raw veggies keep the dish light tasting and offer much needed texture. However, the ranch dip can overtake your palate and mask the subtle salmon flavor. Priced at about $12.00, this is also great value for your money.

The soup de jour, curry noodle soup was most dissapointing and does not belong on their menue. The curry is medium heat and has good flavor. The rice noodles were over done and the veggies in the soup were the frozen bagged variety and tasted off, with a freezer after taste. Compared to the main dish, the soup is extremely poor quality and does not stand up to the caliber of the restaurant in any way. Priced at $4.50 for a measured cup of soup it is also poor value. Take this off your menue, it will ruin...

I needed a light lunch and I just drove down the street until something caught my eye, and this restaurant did. I haven't looked at any other reviews and I don't know the owners so this is totally my personal view.

This place is fun and a breath of fresh air for Regina restaurants. It's located in a small strip mall in an end unit, but they have taken advantage of large windows and it's quite bright and cheerful. Don't expect a large portion for food, but the quality of the ingredients is excellent. I can't quite say that it replicates a French café, but it gets the basics right with a homey Regina spin.

I only tried a normal dark roast coffee, but this coffee was perfect. Living in the Vancouver area, good coffee is expected. But, in Regina the water is very hard and it has a slight aftertaste. It's tolerable as water, but in coffee it gives a nasty aftertaste. Unfortunately, most coffee I've had in the city can't get rid of this flavour. No aftertaste here - they filter the water properly. I normally take cream, but this coffee was good enough to drink black. It's not over-burnt either unlike some dark roast coffee.

In short, this is very good place to go for a coffee and conversation and snack or light meal and I left...