Bouchon Comptoir Brunet — Restaurant in Lyon

Absolutely the worst dining experience I have ever had. I waited until the morning after to write this review so I could calm down and make sure I still felt the same way. I live in NYC where I work as a executive chef; I spend my life eating in restaurants and learning as much as I can about cuisine. I love restaurants and am probably the single most understanding people when it comes to mistakes. That said...

We were seated immediately and within two minutes our server was aggressively asking us to order our meal. We asked for one minute to make our decisions. When he returned he proceeded to make an annoyed sound and again pressured us to make our decisions. I am not exaggerating at all, this adult man was ridiculous. Enough about the service, because this went on for the rest of the meal.

Our apps arrived, we ordered the foie gras, beef cheek, and the chicken terrine. The beef cheeks we served chilled so everything was very gelatinous. Not in a good way either, I love fat and flavor. All were completely under seasoned. On person in our party constantly complains about over salted food and she agreed there was no love in this food. The foie gras was served with no bread either. When I asked they said "oh of course."

Main courses hit the table. Before I ordered the grouse I made sure to ask if it was possible if I could get it medium. The grouse was absolutely hammered, zero chance for life in this dish left. The mushrooms that accompanied had so much salt I could not eat it. Mind you, I am a chef, I love salt and this was inedible.

At this point I just wanted to leave so we requested the bill after sending all entrees back half eaten. The bill was presented which had every dish in it including the desserts which we never received! The server then began arguing with us saying we had to pay the full amount! He reluctantly removed the grouse at which point I left the table a found the chef hoping to have a conversation with someone that would see eye to eye with our situation. The only message I wanted to get across was this was not how he would want his guests treated I'm sure and explain the situation. The server asked if I wanted to give an autograph?!?!? I am not a star, but I do work my ass off in a kitchen 70-80 hours per week and expect decent service when I go out. Especially in Lyon! The stomach! The heart of cuisine in France! I forgot to preface that I am an American, maybe that was my problem from the start I am not sure. All I know is if anyone acted the way this team did to a guest at my restaurant they would be fired on the spot. I work in this industry to serve people and do what I love which to cook. This was an embarrassment to everyone that is a part of the hospitality industry. Again, I am very reasonable and rarely leave reviews. This was the absolute worst experience I have ever had in a restaurant. Save yourself the grief and go to one of Lyon's many other...

I approached Bouchon Comptoir Brunet with high hopes, drawn by their promise of exceptional service. Unfortunately, this commitment seemed to falter the moment they realized I wasn't a native French speaker - probably - because I have never encountered such a dining experience before - having residing in UK and travelled to many countries and cities before. The only notable positive experience was from a young lady staff whose service was impeccable!

While the food was undoubtedly disappointing, the entire experience felt somewhat sidelined, and at times, hostile.

The food, far from the culinary masterpiece I had anticipated, was surprisingly plain. The pork ribs (main dish), which I could have easily obtained at a fraction of the price from the morning market at Quai Des Celestin, were lackluster. The lobster/shellfish pastry (main dish) was even worse, falling far short of my expectations given its price and my positive experience at Les Halles Boscue.

Furthermore, the culinary shortcomings were overshadowed by the behavior of the restaurant's old female owner (I assume she is the owner). She seemed deliberately antagonistic, insisting that I moved my jacket and bag, which was placed behind me on the chair, to another chair despite the fact that there were no other patrons nearby. The suggestion also did not make sense as I would have gladly provided space if there was anyone trying to move in the table beside me. As such, her actions suggested a level of hostility that was both unwarranted and uncomfortable. Not sure if she probably felt ashamed of having to squeeze so many tables in a small shop?

She also gestured impatiently when she noticed a slight imperfection in the tablecloth and let out a sigh of exasperation when she accidentally knocked over a salt bottle. I was left bewildered because I had never encountered such an experience before. It was clear that she was intent on affecting my dining experience in a negative way.

Given the combination of poor food and unpleasant service, I cannot recommend this restaurant to anyone.

It is no wonder why other restaurants offering Lyon traditional dishes were mostly closed on Sunday, particularly another similar restaurant in the same street with much higher Google rating. Unfortunately, I had to travel to another French city the next day, if not, I would have trusted the Google rating and reviews for Bouchon Comptoir Brunet and steer clear of this food place in the first place. My guess is that the restaurant is probably desperate for...

This is the absolute worst meal I never had. Let me start by saying, I put great effort into not having unnecessary conflict with people I meet, I mostly travel for great gastronomy and I love France. This restaurant experience or the lack here of was something else. I arrived at the earliest booking with my two children to insure we could get in for a quick meal and get back home. The restaurant was empty. We were greeted by the saddest and most irritated waitress who spend the first 5 minutes complaining about we had brought our kids in strollers even though we could easily collapse one and keep the other outside on the street. As she said “if it was raining you could not have had your strollers inside, so you should have written in the booking you brought strollers” (as if the world hadn’t any bigger problems than potential strollers in a restaurant). She remained offended and in a bad mood even though her most important role was to care for us and make us feel welcome. After 5-10minutes my son unfortunately hit his head against the table as he slipped his arm and cried a little, after which the junior waiter came and said that if we cannot “manage” our children we will have to leave. At this time the restaurant room was still empty. When you feel this unwelcome in a restaurant you are left with no other choice than to leave, which the Junior waiter supported. The waitress was still sad and irritated. I unfortunately cannot say anything about the food, but it must be bloody amazing to compensate for the arrogance and extreme lack of service. As a small family with two kids we felt extremely unwelcome and discriminated against. I wanna give my son the best experiences with food and take him places because I believe food and food culture is one of the most important things we have. With institutions like this he will have a hard time getting to know food culture. Cannot recommend this...