Restaurant La Tour — Restaurant in Versailles

I’m writing this review with a heavy heart. I’ve been to this restaurant three times before — the food was always authentic and the ambiance pleasant, which is why we chose to celebrate my husband’s birthday there this year.

I brought a birthday cake and, upon arrival, kindly asked the staff at the bar to keep it fresh for later. The waiter accepted it with a smile — a kind gesture that made us feel welcome.

After a good meal, we asked to have the cake, and that’s where the experience turned sour. We were told we’d need to pay €9 per person to eat a “non-restaurant” dessert. While I understand restaurants have policies, we tried to discuss a compromise: we’d each order an aperitif instead (well over €28 total). But the manager interrupted with hostility, repeating, “You’re not negotiating, you’re annoying me” (“Vous m’énervez !”).

My husband tried to stay polite and said, “It’s my birthday, I hope we can find a solution,” to which the manager replied, “Everyone has a birthday, it’s nothing special.” That sentence hit hard. It made us feel unseen, as if customers — even regular ones — mean nothing.

Things got even worse. When I tried to explain myself in English (since French is only my third language), the waiter mocked me loudly inside the bar: “Whoa, what is she even saying?” He rolled his eyes and asked my husband what I was talking about, making the whole situation humiliating.

To make matters worse, another customer, tired of waiting while the staff argued with us, started verbally attacking us, calling us “poor people” for not ordering bottles of champagne. We were shocked. Not once did the staff intervene or try to calm the situation. They just let it happen.

This whole incident ruined our evening. What used to feel like thoughtful service now feels fake — respectful only when things go smoothly. I regret bringing the cake, and I do apologize for this trouble, but more than that, I regret choosing this place for a special moment. I believe we deserve an apology for the way we were treated — and for a birthday night that turned into...

Service was excellent, Vincent was an absolute star, he made one feel so welcome and was fun! On a less positive side, though home made terrine was lovely, baguette it came with was dry and stale, I wondered if it is like Italy, Italians get pane fresco and foreigners left over stale lunch bread at dinner. My steak fillet didn't look 200g, other guys who ordered fillet next table got more generous serving from the kitchen. It also was completely unseasoned, not even seared that well and medium rare was completely raw and cold on the inside except for about 5mm, maximum, sear. I couldn't finish it because of it, plus it was so cold and chewy because it was so raw. I saw French guy at larger table next to me had the same issue. Left all the raw bits on his plate. At €38 a pop, that's expensive food not to eat. I would suggest if you normally take medium rare ie very pink, with some blood and don't want to eat cold raw meat, that you order medium, or send it back as soon as you take first bite of cold meat inside, which i didnt do hoping it was just the middle, plus paranoid about people spitting on my food if I send it back. Chip, though quality potato used, were tasteless with zero seasoning used, not even modicum of salt, again, for a steak restaurant, I find that just ok. Dessert of proper vanilla ice-cream with armagnac prunes was lovely. Wine not great value for money at €14 a glass. Mine was very long open and very oxidised, i left half of it in the glass. For a relatively small dinner, total price tag €73 for one. That's Michelin 1star set menu pricing nearly! For contrast, I had excellent meal plus cocktail the following night at my usual hangout in Versailles (Vous) and it was total of only €60 and excellent, very cosy in St Louis quarter, but they sadly don't have friendly Vincent to provide same level of service, just German-like efficency. Personally, I would skip La Tour next time in favour of other...

The service and ambiance were excellent. I really enjoyed the creamy mushroom soup, but the steak was quite disappointing.

I made a reservation from the website, and my table was ready as soon as I arrived. Both servers greeted me warmly. They mostly spoke French, but didn’t mind switching to English when I struggled. They also made sure that the label of the water was facing me, great attention to detail!

For the entrée I ordered the Velouté de Champignons. The soup was delicious, had the perfect temperature, and was well-seasoned. It was the highlight of the meal. I initially found it odd to have a cold, vinegary egg in the soup, but it tasted good and I really didn’t mind it.

The main, Belle Entrecôte poêlée, was significantly below my expectations. While the portion was large, and it was perfectly cooked to the medium-rare that I ordered, the quality of the cut was terrible. There was close to no marbling and as a result the texture was very dry. It was beyond help. Interestingly, it was grilled without any seasoning, and I was expected to season it myself with sea salt at the table. I wouldn’t have minded this had the quality of the steak been better, but it really felt like eating beef jerky. There is no excuse using low-quality ingredients for a €44.5 steak.

The ambiance was good. They had light music throughout the night, but the volume was low enough to not be intrusive. I also liked the table setting, the style of the furniture, and the...