Le Petit Auberge, 283 Upper Street, London, N1 2TZ

This is another restaurant that I've visited over the years. Last night, the experience was shared with a friend.

I have decided to give the people I dine with pseudonyms for the purpose of this blog (and complete boredom from typing 'my friend', 'my fiancé' or 'my cousin', repeatedly). Let's call the friend that I met for dinner last night, 'See food eat food'; I'm sure she'll love it. 

The ambience is the epitome of cute and cosy, especially when it's raining outside. I should really stop adding weather references as a marker for cosiness factor as it is always raining in the UK. Even when it's not raining, it's thinking about raining. Enough of speculating about how much it rains in the UK, let's get back to the ambience. 
Were it not for the predominance of groups and the new addition of plastic tablecloths that look deceivingly cloth like, Le Petit Auberge would veer sharply towards a romantic night only zone. 

Onto the staff, whom I always find to be very accommodating, polite and professional (in a relaxed way). Last night was no different. 

Vegetarian options are numerous in both starters and mains, albeit not all of them are totally French. That being said, a plethora of vegetarian dishes that hail from France might be akin to finding the Holy Grail...or, it is simply an oxymoron of sorts. In my opinion, so long as the taste of the food matches up to the price, then the cuisine does not always have to be 100% authentic. Vegetarian options followed a theme of world cuisine fusion, as did the music; and all the food was hearty. Last night, I had roast butternut squash, stuffed with ratatouille, served with rice and salad. 

See food eat food, ordered the lamb, medium rare; an order that she makes every time she frequents Le Petit Auberge because, and I quote; "I love the lamb here, drooooooooool!". OK, it's possible that she may not have actually said drool, but she did say the rest of the sentence while looking like she was trying not to drool.

Profiteroles were my dessert of choice; they were average. The chocolate sauce and choux pastry were perfect but the cream filling was an unexpected let down; strangely tart and a tad too stodgy. 

All in all, this experience was like all others; good company, good food, good wine, good time. 

Price: Approx. £49.00 for garlic bread, a carafe of red wine, 2 x main, 2 x sides, 1 x dessert and service charge

Veggie Friendly: 3.5/5

Food: 3.5/5

Service: 4/5

Atmosphere: 3.5/5