Bouchon Racine

On the first floor of the Three Compasses pub, this reworking of Henry Harris’s much-missed Racine in Knightsbridge revives the chef’s avowed mission to provide resolutely French food and drink after a gap of more than a decade. Reached via steep stairs, it’s a pleasant, light-filled room, where a lot of effort has gone into creating a mood that is warm and unpretentious. Come here if you want straight-talking Gallic brasserie classics, dishes straight out of Larousse Gastronomique. Escargots à la bourguignonne, perhaps, or Bayonne ham with celeriac rémoulade, then rabbit with mustard sauce or côte de boeuf with sauce béarnaise. All dishes are listed on a big blackboard menu, hoisted from table to table – a convincing slice of France if it weren’t for the mainly English accents of the on-the-ball staff. Kick off with a gutsy, rich scallop dish atop a purée of fennel, lemon and olive oil, ahead of a Racine classic – tête de veau with a punchy sauce ravigote (a best-seller). To conclude, go for the pot de crème aux griottines. The mainly French wine list offers more than a dozen by the glass.