A useful bolt-hole if you don’t fancy the Opera House bars, this Covent Garden veteran is determinedly French in outlook. Done out with mini-chandeliers, dark alcoves and prints of prima ballerinas, the studiously inoffensive basement bar fills up quickly at peak times; a late licence allows for more protracted post-show drinking.
Wines are split between France and vins étrangers, with an emphasis on the former, especially among the reds. The quality is sound and there are around eight of each colour by the glass.
Bar food is standard brasserie fare: starters including onion soup and own-made terrine, followed by omelettes, steak, some large salads and moules marinière. The brasserie and restaurant menus are much more extensive, with prices much lower on the former (£6.50 for all starters and £10.50 all mains).