Café Monette — Restaurant in Saint Albans City

We were so excited to try this much-anticipated local addition on their opening week. The space is fresh and tidy, as many have mentioned, it's clear much thought went into decorating the space; the fresh cut flowers bouquets set around were an especially lovely touch. The entry area is rather awkward for exit/entry if anyone is waiting for a table at the front, luckily we were seated quickly with reservations.

We ordered the bread and tarte tatin to start. The bread was crusty and flavorful but I wished so much it was served warm to really bring out it's best properties. I was surprised by a fresh, but cool baguette, though I did love the crunchy, flaky salted butter. The real winner of the starters was the boursin, which was a lovely compliment to the sweet and crispy tarte tatin. For our meal we tried the curry scallops and the putinesca. I will only order pasta when it is made in house and this was delicious! Perfectly cooked and shaped just right to scoop all those salty, savory pieces. The sauce was less tomato forward and richer than my usual experience and the portion size was perfect. The curry mussels were amazing, but funnily enough, they tasted nothing like curry. If it hasn't been for the color I wouldn never have attributed any amount of curry to them. Having said that, they weren't remotely disappointing. They were beautifully cooked, so tender, and the flavor was rich and satisfying. Once you swipe the aioli around the edge...wow, absolutely delicious. It should read as a compliment that, while knowing it is the chef's specialty, we wanted to try the dessert but were just too full! We saw some options being delivered and they all looked gorgeous. I'm excited to visit again and will definitely leave room next time! We finished with a perfect espresso, complete with the tiny spoons I always hope for.

The staff were charming and attentive, though I believe they were, in fact, short FOH that evening. It's clear they are eager and striving to present a more elevated experience for the area. A small grievance with this in mind: when our server asked us to go up to pay at the counter, I was surprised. The rest of the experience was so lovely, to end it on counter service like your average diner really burst the bubble. I assume this might be easily attributed to being freshly opened and working out the kinks of many new systems and not the permanent intention. We will certainly be happy to come back and taste our way through the rest...

My husband and I visited for the first time last weekend and I can say, this is certainly our new spot. This is exactly what St Albans needed. We had made a reservation almost 2 weeks ahead and were seated immediately. The atmosphere was very open and welcoming, yet relaxed for the type of menu it is. We sat next to the kitchen window and were so impressed with everything. The kitchen was spotless and the operation worked so efficiently. Adam and his fellow chef seemed to work so well together, and they were always smiling or laughing. This was so pleasant to see.

Every dish was a work of art and felt prepared just for us. We had the onion tarte tatin, french cheese puffs, goat cheese and beet salad, a cured salmon special on some sort of potato cake, the duck sausage and beans, potato gnocci, and then he surprised us with some of the special that night that was a pork belly roll. Everything had SO much flavor and was plated so beautifully. For dessert, we shared the apple tart and a plate of confections and had cappuccino. The wines we had were fantastic. They had a very nice selection of wine and beer. The service was great and we felt spoiled by the entire experience. We can't...

Café Monette, thank goodness you have arrived! Had an absolutely amazing meal with my fellow food-nerd father. We were lucky to sit at the chef's table, and had an inside look at just how wonderful a kitchen you run. Everything is SPOTLESS and even in the midst of a very busy service, I watched both Chef and sous wipe down all surfaces repeatedly.

Enjoyed all we ordered, but would highly recommend the country plate for all terrine/paté/mousse lovers. AMAZING poulet a la moutarde was the clear hit of the current menu (watched +20 be made while we ate). Mismatched plates and very approachable flavors dishes mean despite the meticulous execution and French on the menu, it is a very comfortable dining experience! Noting that despite our reservation, we waited around an hour to be seated, but given it is only their fourth week of service, I am very understanding of this. Plus, once we were seated, everything was extremely prompt and we were provided with attentive service despite a small team. Keep at...