Lechevalier Wine Bar & Shop — Restaurant in London

There aren’t enough wine bars in London! So it was great to find Lechevalier wine bar in Bermondsey offering over 120 bottles of wine with bread, charcuterie and cheese. The wine bar was founded by Christophe Lechevalier, who helped establish Artisan Foods in 2000 and sold wine at Borough Market for more than 15 years.

As you enter Lechevalier, you can see all of the bottles on display on offer as well as the fresh produce. You can also purchase a branded glass bottle for £2.50 and refill from one of the six wine taps ranging from £8-12.

There are a number of stools along the bar to be in the centre of everything which is where we sat. For a little more privacy, there are a few tables at the back.

Christophe’s years of experience have paid off in this venture and his knowledge and enthusiasm shine through. We started off with a few tastings so we could become familiar with the menu (although note it does change regularly).

There a wide selection of wines by the glass set out in price order for each section – sparkling, pink, white, orange, red and sweet. The menu helpfully highlights in bold important information including the name and grape type and then includes more detail (the region, country and year) for those who are keen to understand more.

We could not resist trying some of the fine cheeses with our wine. We started off with a Mix Sourdough & Olive Oil (£3) from Hackney . The three different pieces of sourdough were so fresh and paired well with olive oil. We also had the Mix Almonds Marcona & Smoked from Spain (£3) which were very moreish!

We tucked into:

London Raclette: Unpasteurised cow’s milk, served cold with Pear, ale and date chutney, produced in Bermondsey (£5.5) Parmigiano: Unpasteurised cow’s milk aged 24 months served with balsamic vinegar, produced in Emilia Romagna, Italy (£4.5) Boffard Curado: Unpasteurised cow & sheep’s milk, aged for 4 months (during which it has been oiled 3 times with olive oil to give it its unique taste) produced in Castilla & Leon region of Spain. Served with Red onions marmalade made in Bermondsey (£6).

These cheeses were absolutely AMAZING. The parmigiano was my favourite – crumbly and tasty, paired perfectly with the balsamic. I have never had cold raclette before but it impressed – it was quite a mild cheese so the chutney was a great accompaniment.

Lechevalier is a wonderful wine bar in Bermondsey offering a vast selection of wine and fresh produce. The setting is perfect for a date night or work event with...

I came in Lechevalier's today with the intention of finding a wine to pair with roast goose. Unfortunately the customer service was so poor that I walked out with nothing. Christophe the assistant asked me how much I wanted to spend (the right question) and I told him £20. This wine shop has wines from £10 - £40+ so £20 is perfectly reasonable.

He told me I was to spend at least £30 to get a quality wine to pair with Goose. I said quite clearly around £20 was the budget, to which he said I would only be happy with a more expensive wine. I don't mind a bit of upselling but this was hard guilt tripping. We went back and forth for a bit until he said 'you will have this one' and just took a £20 bottle for me and started wrapping it. Even while wrapping it he said this was a mistake and that I would be disappointed!

I then tried to pay with my AMEX to which Christophe said they did not accept AMEX. Now, Lechevalier's are part of AMEX's 'shop small' campaign in December so they definitely do accept AMEX. I told Christophe this and he said that he was choosing not to accept it from me. At this point I told him I was wholly uncomfortable with how this shopping experience has been and was going to leave with nothing.

I am sure this place sells some decent wine but clearly some revisiting of customer service training wouldn't go amiss. I also suggest Lechevalier remove themselves from AMEX's 'shop small' campaign if they aren't going to...

Came here with some friends who live locally but have never been before. As so many reviews state, Le chevalier is a hidden gem. They have a beautiful range of wines for all tastes and the food quality is superb.

It is a cute venue with a sophisticated, whilst rough round the edges kind of vibe where you can feel relaxed and in good hands. The staff here are so knowledgeable about everything that they stock and once they get a sense of your palette... only god can help you and the calories you will consume but believe me it is worth it.

Having read some of the bad reviews (as so many people do) I would like to say to those people perhaps they should visit such establishments with a more open mind. Yes borough market has more selection and yes there are cheaper wines out there and other wine shops with what might appear to be better customer service but Le chevalier provides you with a personal and very upfront and honest experience. Not only can you enjoy some great produce here but you can also learn a thing a two about where it is sourced and how it is made. There is no fake upselling in disguise here.. and if honesty is an acquired taste for you, then perhaps you should grab a bottle of wine from sainsburys...