Le Moulin

[capt_birdseye]

What a great way to continually get free food and wine! Disparage a business online and then get them to change your viewpoint by cooking ou a slap up meal on the house.

That Franklins looks a dive.

[Louisa]

Has anyone thought that perhaps Eric and Margaret are quite happy with the customer base they already have, and therefore do not feel the need to expand the business or attract new customers? I dont mind people thinking it's grubby and dirty, it means I can enjoy a meal in peace without being forced to listen to some young professional talking about mummy and daddys lovely new 12 bedroom bungalow down in Surrey lol ;-)

[mockney piers]

Yeah, and Claridges could do with a bit of a face lift, I hear it's letting its standards slip.

[*Bob*]

Eric and Margaret. I feel like I know them now.

Good luck to 'em, I say. If they're making a living out of it, why should anyone be bovvered??

But alas, these sorts of places are the ones that usually end-up on "Ramsey's I'm-Going-To-Point-Out-The-Bleedin'-Obvious Kitchen Nightmares".. when the old clientele dies away (sometimes literally ha ha) and Little Eric Junior, successor to a 'successful family business', is left crying into the prawn cocktails, wondering where it all went wrong.

[rob]

You know what, the more I think about it, the more convinced I am I'll pass! "Have we got any pea fritters in the deep freeze Margaret? Only we've got a coach load coming up from Steeple Bumstead on their way to Mama Mia..."

[Louisa]

rob you are a card!

[Louisa]

For anyone brave enough to venture into such a common looking place, I highly recommend the Gratin?e de Coquille St Jacques, and the escargot for starters ... mmmm wonderful :)

[hot-diggedy]

With reference to Green and Black - what a turn around. After taking a beating on the forum and since expanding into a trendyfied but bespoke cafe/deli/winebar its not just taken off, it's taken the runway with it! I think they realised that appearances are vital for NEW business in LL and they've got it 100% right.

[rob]

Agreed on G&B. I actually went back in a bought a load of (extremly nice) prosecco on Saturday. And they were all really, really friendly.

[Vickster]

We ate in Le Moulin after reading some review on this forum. Looking past the decor which I really don't care about, the food was good but not exceptional, but then I wasn't expecting it to be Gordon Ramsay! The thing that put me off and will ensure are unlikely to go back (well at least unitl after 1 May), was that nearly every single table around us was smoking. A little but of smoke normally doesn't bother me, so perhaps the restaurant was poorly ventilated, but we came out absolutely reeking of the stuff. I expect that froma bar, but not a restaurant.

[Jeremy]

G&B does look very open and welcoming, and once you're inside it gets better - good wines (and beers) with some very tasty snacks to boot.

Louisa does paint a tempting picture of Le Moulin... I am a big fan of rustic, traditional French food. Maybe I can get a free meal if I offer to clean the menu board, and put a brand new print-out of the menu inside!

[SeanMacGabhann]

I also live about 3 mins walk away and despite having been in the area 6 years I have only been twice - which is in no way a reflection on the restaurant - I can honestly say I had a great time both times and enjoyed the food. If a youngER person can not find anything to enjoy from a nice french bistro style menu then.... we can always wait for them to grow up

I guess the reason I don't go as often is that it's a bit TOO close - if I'm out I'm out.

I passed again this evening just to reappraise the exterior - The menu for sure could do with a dust-down but I actually consider the rest of the outside...quaint really. If I was on holiday in a small Spanish or French village and happened upon a place like this I would be raving about it..

[Clazza]

I took my Mum & Dad on Saturday night ok I was the youngest person in by a good 20 years but the food was good, very reasonably priced & no one smoked when we were there.

[Ant]

If I hadn't heard about it from on the forum I doubt I'd ever go in as it looks so thoroughly grotty. As it is, I'll give it a go.

I'm not sure any business can afford to rely on its existing customer base at the expense of attracting new clients. It's not snobbish, it's just common sense: the place needs cleaning up a bit.

[spadetownboy]

Jeremy Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> If they paint the outside and stick up a readable

> menu, I will try it. I expect Rob will too.

>

> Proof that they have already lost customers.

>

> There's your business advice!

im sure their worried.

[spadetownboy]

capt_birdseye Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> What a great way to continually get free food and

> wine! Disparage a business online and then get

> them to change your viewpoint by cooking ou a slap

> up meal on the house.

>

> That Franklins looks a dive.

yeh i wouldnt let my dog eat in the ivy.

[Louisa]

Eric and Margaret love the existing customer base because they are on first name terms with most of them, they will deviate from the existing menu if anyone fancies something a little different or less common (and trust me eric knows his regional French cuisine), and most importantly they do take things on board if they are realistic for the business, but they are not ones for being given advice by people who were probably in nappies when they first started running the restaurant lol, if he needed advice on how to stay open, i'm sure he would have approached Gordon Ramsey by now!

[Pierre]

I really don't see how this thread can be seen as snobbish! It's a fact of life that passing trade are unlikely to stop off at a restaurant with a shabby exterior.

It's a fact of life that snobbish passing trade are unlikely to stop off at a restaurant with a shabby exterior.

If I see an old business with a shabby exterior that's still going, I'm more inclinced to believe that there must be something other than fancy decorating that's kept the business alive.

: P

[TillieTrotter]

Where is Le Moulin please?

[jim_the_chin]

why do they want passing trade? they trade on word of mouth. its just a bit olden days in that respect - they're like a community restaurant. we're all a bit too wrapped up in global branding to understand that this sort of thing still goes on.

[*Bob*]

Yeah... that's it. They don't want passing trade. Actually, they keep the outside like it is because they actually want to put people off coming in. See?

They can do 50 covers on a Friday night, but secretly they only want to do 40.

Maybe.

[TillieTrotter]

ooh bob, put those claws away(6)

[jim_the_chin]

maybe not everyone wants to be rich bob, maybe they have enough customers the way it is, maybe they're happy.

[*Bob*]

(doghouse)

To make amends, I shall go to Le Moulin and REPORT BACK (as, I suspect, will others who otherwise wouldn't have)

Inevitably, the discussion has now become totally polarised beyond the initial point. "WE won't go in there unless Eric DJs and Margaret does freestyle beat-boxing on the mic!" "Well we don't want you in there - so we won't even clean the toilets!" etc.

All I can say is, every time I go past a restaurant (in England - we're not in provincial Italy here), which looks a bit run-down from the outside and is filled with oldER diners, my brain instantly recalls all those places I went to with my folks over the years, serving melon balls and parma ham, steak diane and prawn cocktails to people who didn't know any better. And in that instant, my feet just walk on by. That's all!

[mockney piers]

From what I gather that's pretty much the fare on offer there.

Sounds alot of fun though.

I'll check it out myself at some point, but not until i have my polyester flares and kipper tie dry cleaned.