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food	price	service	smartness	overall:

"I've never rated the public rooms of The Midland as aesthetically pleasing but the French is the exception. It seems to have been parachuted in from the Palace of Versailles and provides an oasis of opulence in the midst of a modern hotel. Even when the room is quiet the ambience remains warm, comfortable and luxurious. I've not actually eaten there for a few years and it's great to report that standards are still as high as ever. From the superb breads, the complimentary Amuse Bouche through to the desserts, every course of our meal was top class.

For starters, my wife chose an outstanding potato, cod and scallop veloute (£14.95) whilst I stuck to my tradition of hitting the calories with a slice of pork pie, which somewhat surprisingly worked very well, particularly if you like terrines and pâtés. We both went for fish main courses and weren't disappointed. My Seared Halibut (£27.95) was cooked to perfection, as was the Red Mullet & Scallop Linguine. The service couldn't be faulted. The meal was served at exactly the right pace and the waiters were always attentive and highly professional. The Dessert Menu (all £7.95) kept the ball rolling nicely. A custard tart coupled with liquorice and blackcurrent sorbet was a great combination and the Panacotta with ginger sorbet was top notch. An excellently balanced menu which just oozes class.

If you want top quality you pay for it - or do you? We went mid-week and got a fantastic value deal using our Platinum Hi-Life card card and also taking up the Restaurants Of Manchester free glass of wine offer. The bill of £127, including all drinks, was sliced down to just £77 with these offers. With such great food, service and ambience this is up there with the best deal in town. Manchester isn't well endowed with top quality dineries and the French is for me a very special place which we need to cherish." - Ian, Stockton Heath 22/2/12 (visited on a tuesday evening)

food	price	service	smartness	overall
"top class"	"use a hi-life card"	"professional"	"luxurious yet comfortable"	"one to be cherished"

"The French has always had a top reputation in town, has played host to several important people over the years, not to mention being where Posh and Becks went on their first date, which in modern terms really does equal the famous first meeting of Mr Rolls and Mr Royce in the same place, all those decades ago.

Anyway, we had a bit of a reason to celebrate this week, so I told the Mrs that I was taking her out on the tiles. From the off, she was suspicious, as she knows me better than that. In actual fact, the special occasion, although not the one which I admitted to, was Wayne Rooney's 50th cap, but I kept that quiet in fear of getting a backhand.

First impressions pointed to an experience which was very well done, if a little old fashioned and traditional. Waiters in waistcoats, a stiff upper lip, formality, and what you would class as stereotypical fine dining, which is becoming rare these days. Anyway, since we were celebrating (come on Rooney), we kicked off with a bottle of Bollinger whilst having a look at the menu and wine list. Around the same time, we received a chef's complimentary appetiser of chicken and pork terrine, with carrot, wrapped in spinach, accompanied with a cauliflower puree. All very nice.

As you would expect, the wine list is vastly French influenced, most of which was beyond me. We went for a bottle of Beaujolais, since it went with our mains, and, to be honest, one of the few that I could pronounce! Unfortunately, this had sold out. We wanted something French, but didn't overly mind going for a bottle of one of my favourites, a 2007 New Zealand Huia Pinot Noir, for a relative snip (£32), as I've seen this at other less esteemed places in town for pushing £40. There isn't anything around the £15 house wine kind of mark on the list, but the quality bottles that they do have are very fairly priced on the whole.

For starters, we chose the Scallops (£14.95) and Goosnargh Chicken Cannelloni (£12.95). Both were perfectly cooked, very well seasoned, oozed quality and went down a treat. My scallops were moist and sweet, came with an apple puree, and thin slices of apple as garnish. Perhaps a bit too much sweetness, and some acidity would have helped, but no complaints really. The Mrs' cannelloni was. as is usually my luck, the best of the two dishes. I cant work out how she does it!?! The chicken was perfect, and the pasta coating was outstanding, all topped with foam and mushrooms. Old school indeed, but far from old hat.

For mains, I had the Honey Duck (£25.95), and the Mrs went for Lamb (£28.95). My duck was again perfectly medium rare, and the accompanying sauce, distinctly orange. At first, I must admit to not seeing too much 'French' on the menu, but this was a revamped, gourmet Duck a l'Orange, and went down a treat. The lamb, wasn't just a lamb fillet, but in fact came cooked 3 ways, on a bed of leeks. Really good stuff all round.

I should mention the bread trolley, from which you can choose your own bread, and have it sliced in front of you. There was a massive selection, and various different flavours. The blue cheese deserves special mention, although they were all quite heavy dough, and some more airy, lighter breads would have added more variety.

To finish up, we went for the Raspberry Soufflé (£7.95). Which again, like a broken record, was perfectly cooked, light as a feather inside, and tasted great. It came with raspberry sorbet, which was lovely, but perhaps should have been something slightly contrasting in flavour to the soufflé itself. Still top drawer though. We also got a cheese board (£9.95), which wasn't listed on the menu, but the guys sorted one out for us anyway. To be honest, it was the best cheeseboard that I've had in town, by a mile. A lovely, melt in the mouth soft, a mellow but brilliant blue, a hardish white, and a smoked cheddar. Only one was French, but all four were great, so we made a point of letting the guys know that a cheese board should be on the menu permanently. We were assured that they do offer cheese, but don't list it, as the cheeses that they have in stock do vary.

Criticisms, well, sometimes the piano (as nice as it was) bordered on intrusive, and it's far too old school for most people, which again, probably comes down to its tradition. So, expect formality, a slightly serious side, silver domes, real fine dining and silver service, which to be honest, doesn t exist anywhere else in the city, even in the very top eateries. This isn't really a fault, its just that I'm only 32 and, other than my better half, was by far the youngest diner in there, and this kind of style is possibly 10 years before my time. It already has 2 AA rosettes, and if I had to pick one place in town which would get a Michelin star, this would probably be it to be fair, and the fact that its been open so long and hasn't got one, really makes you wonder what needs to be done if it's ever going to happen. Other than that, there wasn't really much to fault, and it's the food and service which speak volumes, whether you're old school or not.

Overall, this is without a shadow of a doubt one of the top food places in town. Of course it all depends on what you like, but if it's not the top, then it's in the top 2, but I'll let you decide on the other, and the order. The service is exceptional, probably the best in town if you like proper fine dining and formality. The dining area is stunning, rivalled only by places around King Street with their palatial domed roofs. It's expensive at around £50 for 3 courses, which does outprice it a bit in Manchester, regardless of quality, but with the Hi-Life card, this soon becomes a lot more reasonable. Definitely a special occasion place, and one for traditionalists or the more mature crowd.

Upon leaving, the manager asked our opinion in comparison to other places in town, and I summed it up in saying Its top notch in the locality and, that whilst it may not be to everybody's taste, is a BMW better than a Jaguar, or just different? However, even if you're perhaps a bit too 'new school' for a Jaguar with cream leather seats and walnut dash, you still couldn't ever doubt its quality and class." - Chirs Handley, Salford 3/4/09 (visited on a wednesday evening)

food	price	service	smartness	overall
"old school, not old hat"	"expensive"	"formal but exceptional"	"stunning and historic"	"one for special occasions"

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