Review: L’Ardoise

I must strongly disagree with your 4 and a half stars. For me, L'Ardoise is a great example why French 'brasseries' have taken a hell of a beating in the last couple of years, closing left and right; while Italian, Indian, Thai, Japanese restaurants, just to name a few, went from strength to strength. Put simply, L'Ardoise is boring and overpriced. By like 40%. The decor and service are just enough appropriate for the price range, and I think the food 'quality' (=ingredients) are ok as well. Problem is that the restaurant is not 'special' in any way, the menu is not inspiring, the food is not 'oh-my-god', and yet you will pay twice as much as in an Ambiente restaurant. Why would you want that? L'Ardoise will give a steady, but not exceptional, dining experience at prices that merit more. If you HAVE to eat French and Brasserie M is too far for you, AND you have money? Ok. Fine. But if not, there are tons of restaurants in the area where you will have the same kind of experience at lower price, or a better experience at a higher price. For example, compare L'Ardoise (French) with Enoteca Il Giardino (Italian), which is 200m away. Similar quality of decor, food and service. However, Enoteca has a more interesting menu (= easier to understand) and is 40% cheaper. A gem. Or compare Aromi, which is the same price range, but is like a category higher in terms of a rewarding dining experience. But ok. Most of the times I agree with your reviews and you made me discover amazing restaurants such as Noi and Fosil, for which I thank you. Even though I find that you give way-inflated stars.