Côte Brasserie – our review

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We have been waiting with some excitement for our first visit to the newly opened Côte Brasserie in Marlow.

Having announced it’s imminent arrival in town on our Facebook page, all the comments made on the post were positive such as

  • “Love the one in Reigate. Lovely food & excellent service”
  • “Love Cote! We have a really good one in Salisbury…”

Furthermore, checking the Trip Advisor reviews for the Cote in nearby Windsor – the average rating is 4.5 out of 5, and is ranked an impressive 12th out of 160 local eateries.

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The impressive garden. Or “le jardin” as they say.

So how does the one in Marlow stack up against this?

It gets off to a good head-start based on location and layout. A spacious interior seating 118 inside , and even better seating for 50 outside. This quantity of outdoor seating is unique for a Marlow restaurant and I’m glad they made use of the old pub garden from the buildings historical incarnation as the Red Lion pub – which the previous tenants That Square did not!

They seem to have left plenty of free space inside too – so you don’t feel overly crammed in.

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Steak Tartare – ooh la la!

On the food front, I decided I had to plunge straight in with  a French classic – steak tartare (£6.75) – which for the uninitiated is basically raw minced beef!  However, it is packed with flavours – capers being most prominent -and was a tasty and tender treat.

I thought I would try steak for main course – always worth a test to see if they can cook it as ordered. I went for 10 ounce sirloin cooked medium (£16.50), and that’s how it came out.  Some of the best steak I’ve eaten have been in France, and this was up to scratch – very tender indeed and the Roquefort butter I selected to go with it was an inspired choice, if I do say so myself.

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Steak… but cooked this time!

Mrs MyMarlow went for the Beef Bourguignon (£13.95), another French classic, and in this case accompanied by potato and chive purée (sounds fancier than the good old English mash!) .  It was rich and packed with flavour – making me feel a bit embarrassed about my previous efforts to make it at home. Simple answer – give up trying, and come here instead!

It was all rounded off with a lovely Tarte aux Pommes (£5.45) and Chocolate Fondant (£5.25). There were other French classics on the menu too, although nowadays many of these are common in non-French restaurants of course.

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Beef Bourguignon

We drank a “Kir Royal” (£3.95) each, with wine afterwards. (by the glass from £4.40 or £14.95 by the bottle).  Other nice touches – included free filtered water – better than just plain old tap – but without the need to buy bottled .

We holiday in France most years, and the food did evoke memories of meals we have had there. We didn’t notice any French staff – but then , we are not IN France, and the restaurant is not run by a French family or anything. It is part of a chain, but one that does seem focussed on the quality of food and service- not just having an ever increasing number of locations.

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Tarte aux Pommes

We will certainly be back – in fact we are booked in for next week, and I’m looking forward to reviewing a breakfast trip soon!

Bienvenue à Marlow Côte , je t’adore!

1 thought on “Côte Brasserie – our review”

  1. I went with my husband and friends for a preview dinner on 24th May, which was lovely and then for breakfast with our family on 27th May – gorgeous food, lovely surroundings and really nice staff. Would definitely be going back on a regular basis were it not for the fact we have just moved away! But a real winner for Marlow, especially the outside seating area – lucky locals can enjoy the Summer in comfort!

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Article author: Paul Merchant

About the author: Founded MyMarlow.co.uk in its original version back in 2000 - yes the internet DID exist back then. Brought up in Marlow, went to school here, now has children at the same schools. Quite clearly loves all things Marlow - hence spending over 2 decades doing this!

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