Restaurant Le 1815 — Restaurant in Avallon

We had lunch at your restaurant on Monday to celebrate a friend's birthday. It was my idea to celebrate at le 1815.

I hate to say it but I felt personally embarrassed by the food and service we experienced.

When asked about wine, the serveuse said she didn't know anything about wine. When we ordered a bottle of Saint Bris - it arrived at room temperature. We asked for it to be chilled and it was not properly done by the serveur. The serveuse dropped a plate on one of my guests, but accidents happen. The serving staff seemed shy, uncertain, hesitant and uninformed.

After perusing the other menus, we all ordered the 29 euro menu. When we asked to swap the boudin and snail starter for the beetroot starter, we were told it would cost a supplementary 12 euros. This struck us all as completely ridiculous.

The amuse bouches were good and the mis en bouche was well presented by not flavoursome. On the whole, our dishes, while they looked pretty or just okay (for the mains), they really lacked taste and all arrived lukewarm. At the time there were only two other tables so I don't think the kitchen was overworked. Also nothing seemed fresh.

We wondered - was as the chef not working that day? Were you trying to push people away from the 29 euro menu by making it unappetising?

As I said, we were all very disappointed and especially disappointing for the celebration of our friend's birthday. At one point she had to got into the kitchen to ask for some service. We left the restaurant feeling angry and regretful.

Even though our mains were returned to the kitchen with some plates hardly touched, no-one asked us at any point how we had found the meal.

I really really want you guys to succeed and I write this not in anger but with the hope your restaurant and your staff are...

The restaurant, housed within a beautifully restored hotel, is nothing if not atmospheric. The setting is gorgeous, filled with antiques and curated with the sure hand of its new owner. It’s a place that promises sophistication from the moment you walk in. Unfortunately, the promise ends at the table. For a restaurant with evident ambition, the food is strikingly forgettable. The black squid-ink “risotto” was a particular low point — overcooked, textureless, and devoid of flavor. More a bowl of dyed rice than a risotto, it would be considered unredeemable in Italy. The chicken, though competently cooked, came cloaked in a tomato sauce that tasted as if it had been poured straight from a can, evoking airplane catering more than fine dining. The amuse-bouche, meant to delight, were instead puzzling, their odd flavors distracting rather than intriguing. The plating, while visually elaborate, leaned on the tired crutch of foams — a gesture that felt more 1990s nostalgia than contemporary elegance. Even small details betrayed a lack of refinement: a single butter cup and lone knife on the table (to be shared?), and a maître d’ who seemed irked that I wasn’t ordering according to the sequence on his tablet. Worse, when I ordered a single glass of red wine (12€ a glass), he opened a new bottle, poured without offering a taste, and left — a brusque gesture that felt out of step with the restaurant’s pretensions. To their credit, the younger servers were attentive and professional, offering a welcome counterpoint to the overall experience. It is a shame, because the setting is genuinely beautiful — the kind of place where you want to have a memorable meal. For now, though, the food and service are not keeping pace with the stage...

One of the most memorable meals I have ever had. Not just because the food is glorious but the service achieves that difficult balance of professional, knowledgeable yet friendly, welcoming and warm. The decor itself is sublime yet at the same time functional and comfortable. Tables nicely separated without feeling cold. The prices on the menu are deceiving. Not reflected are all of the wonderful extras, the many amuse-bouche nor the exquisite expertise of each dish. Excellent wine cellar and a sommelier who provides the right guidance without dominating. Finally a restaurant that will replace my cutlery with each dish and not place a dirty knife on the tablecloth. While controversial, I adored that we could take our time. A lovely, long, lingering evening absent of that pressure one often feels to turn over a table. Thank you M. Cohen and team. We will...