Bistro Guillaume

Having taken over the old Prada store at Crown Casino - Bistro Guillaume is simple and evenly tempered French. We started with drinks downstairs - I didn't even know there was a bar there, but our table wasn't ready so we opted for some bubbles. Good selection too. Not many places stocking Salon in Melbourne. Just going back to Prada - What the hell is taking so long with their Collins Street store??? I mean how hard is it????

There were 6 of us at dinner - the bill was about $800 which included 2 glasses of Dom at about $60 a pop so not too bad. Overall everyone loved their meals. I had the french onion soup and steak frites. The soup was fantastic - thick and rich - probably down to the hearty veal stock that is used as the base. One of my fellow diners had the smoked salmon - served with a toasted brioche. Almost exactly the same as the bistro at Vue de Monde.

The steak was a treat - perfectly medium rare and full of flavour.

Complaints - well the staff were a bit of a let down but I think that may have been just our young lady. The more senior staffers seemed to be on their game but our young girl had to be reminded of some drinks that never found their way to the table and there was a noticeable lack of knowleged or confidence when she was telling us about the specials.

For those of you who want a closer look at the menu you can find it here .

It's a gutsy call to open this place given the success and hype that surrounds Vue. But I think they do it well. The bar and restaurant work well together and the menu, overall, is quite tempting and well crafted.

Worth a look - especially for a special night out but maybe a little crowded for an intimate dinner for two.

Enjoy!