After honing his Gallic classics for seven years at the NW5 bistro, Louis has taken over the kitchen at its new little sister a few miles away.
French Society occupies a slim site in Mill Lane, yet somehow they have managed to carve more than 30 covers out of the restaurant, pavement terrace and a cute little snug.
On a warm Tuesday evening, every table was full and you could just make out the chef juggling pans through the window at the back. (Though not literally.)
He’s wisely kept the menu short, sweet and classic – from steak tartare to salmon with sauce vierge.
But every dish we sampled was absolutely note perfect and tasted like happy French holidays of yesteryear when any provincial restaurant would deliver reliably top quality comfort food.
A little basket of bread with butter and cold tap water arrived at the table as we selected starters – a deep, rich moules a la creme flavoured with roasted garlic for him, and duck rillettes for me.
Sat atop a pickled disc of crisp apple and soused with an orange reduction, the fatty meat was beautifully cut by the sharpness of the accompaniments.
An impeccable St Germain – made with elderflower liqueur, gin, lemon and frothy egg white – turned out to be a good match too.
Next came a longhorn onglet steak, nicely seared, red in tooth and claw, with a spicy Cafe de Paris butter that just sang with a glass of chilled Burgundy pinot noir poured straight from the bottle.
For him, a melting soft confit duck in a sticky marchand de vin reduction.
To accompany we’d chosen ‘pommes de terre’ along with buttery, garlicky French beans. The thousand layer potatoes, came with a slick of mayo. Deep fried they were impossibly crispy on the outside and soft on the in.
Remembering how good Patron’s cocktails are, I ordered a French Martini, a luscious blend of vodka, raspberry liqueur and pineapple juice with a sweet sour cherry at the bottom of the glass.
It was just the thing to go with desserts, which were simple but knockout.
A bewilderingly light creme brulee, sugar topping just slightly burned and vanilla pod seeds collecting in the corner of the finished dish.
And Patron’s famous mousse au chocolat, rich and creamy, dolloped straight on your plate from a huge bowl.
A stretch from West Hampstead’s transport hub, French Society is a neighbourhood gem that I predict will draw foodies from further afield in Brondesbury, Kilburn and Cricklewood once the word gets out.
French Society is at 77, Mill Lane, West Hampstead. www.frenchsociety.co.uk
