There are fewer finer things in life than good bubbly and decent cheeses, which is why London have welcomed the new Champagne & Fromage informal style bistro with open arms. Located in Covent Garden the French styled brasserie/deli seats just 30, with walls full of champagne sourced from the smallest, most independent producers available to purchase by the bottle or glass and a fridge full of cheese which can be taken home or enjoyed as a platter.
Now for the important bit, the champagne! On our visit there were five champagnes available by the glass, our favourite was the Pertois-Moriset Cuvee Camille Vintage 2005, golden and sweet, this is the kind of champagne you could blow your whole credit limit on – don’t! The Michel Furdyna Rose also scored highly, made with red grapes, the champagne had a lovely summer feel and taste to it.
Food wise, aside from the stack of impressive cheeses there is a selection of rustic French fare, all of which contain an element of cheese from a variety of tartines, to Frogs legs, snails and Oeuf Cocotte, even the desserts have cheese in them! We sampled three cheeses which we choose from the fridge, the Montbeliarde tartine, a little like pizzas without tomato puree, ours was topped with Montbeliarde sausage under a cover of melted cheese and the Terrine Du Jour which was chopped pork and herbs.
We ended the meal with a champagne, strawberry and mint chilled soup – summer in a bowl – and the Fondant au Chocolat which was a chocolate fondant with cheese inside, extremely rich if not a little strange, but a great conversation starter!
Champagne & Fromage knows what it does, bubbles and cheese, and it does them exceptionally well. We also hear there are plans for expansion with a champagne and chocolate on the cards and they deliver champers within the hour. Oooooo la la! Those Frenchies know how to roll alright….
Champagne + Fromage, 22 Wellington Street, WC2E
www.frenchbubbles.co.uk
