Le Pont de la Tour

“Magical”; “phenomenal”; “gorgeous”: readers can’t help but eulogise about Le Pont de La Tour and its photogenic location right by Tower Bridge. The restaurant has gone through a few different guises since opening back in 1991, but this latest incarnation is its most accessible.

Inside, leather banquettes and moody lighting create a “luxe” club-like feel, while dinner on the riverside terrace – with the sunset silhouetting Tower Bridge – makes you feel like the lead in a Richard Curtis romcom.

The restaurant still holds up as a “special occasion” venue noted for its “top-notch French cooking” – think seared foie gras on brioche with peach and pomegranate or roasted wild mushrooms with cep ketchup and consommé ahead of poached native lobster, tournedos Rossini or saddle of Yorkshire venison with baby beetroots, goat’s cheese, watercress and crispy kale. There are meat feasts for sharing, while dessert could be tarte Tatin or chocolate fondant with blood orange and a crème fraîche ‘cigar’.

While the carte is quite pricey, a seat on the coveted terrace needn’t cost a fortune – especially if you go for the astoundingly good-value set menu (including a glass of Moët & Chandon NV Brut): sweet, slightly saline ham-hock terrine with truffle mayonnaise, and a meaty slab of sea trout with broad beans both impressed on our visit, as did the “super-friendly” and “efficient” staff.

Our only complaint is that we’d like to see more accessibly priced wines on the lengthy global list, but that aside, Le Pont remains “a real treat” – a destination that can’t be beaten for its gorgeous riverside setting.

Located right next to Tower Bridge, Le Pont De La Tour is not just a restaurant, but also a bar, shop, wine merchant and bakery. Occupying the spacious ground floor of a warehouse building right by the edge of the Thames, this stylish venue is unsurprisingly home to some seriously stylish cuisine. 

Starters here tease what is to come with the likes of velouté, Devon crab with brown shrimp cocktail or foie gras with ceps, spiced plum preserve and toasted brioche. These dishes send a clear message: unpretentious French fine dining. For seafood lovers there are oysters from Mersea, Porthilly or Colchester, served with the traditional mignonette, as well as lobster, crevettes or cherrystone clams. Increasing in decadence still, we see four choices of caviar, served with sour cream and blinis. 

Main courses at Le Pont De La Tour's restaurant are again simple and elegant. Choose from lobster, sea bass, Dover sole, chicken, duck, pork, beef or cauliflower, each prepared in a traditional French manner but with modern updates. The Lake District pork cutlet, for example, comes with plum compote, seared lardo and red wine sauce, while the roasted lobster comes with garlic butter and sauce choron. For a romantic evening, or simply two guests who agree to share, there is a whole flame-grilled Cornish Turbot with hollandaise, or a 750g dry-aged Cumbrian fillet of beef with fries and béarnaise sauce.

Guests can round off their riverside revelry with French classics like crêpes Suzette, a selection of cheeses or, for a more simple dessert, house sorbet. There are extremely reasonably priced two and three course set menus for those not wanting to break the bank, and a children's menu too. The wine list doesn't focus entirely on France, although it is the epicentre, with plenty of red, white, rosé, sparkling and fortified options to accompany the food.