7 recommendations

I recommend this...

C'est Bon

Editorial Review

Editorial Review

C’est Bon (which means “it’s good”) is so attractively French that there should be a Paris end of Bay Street to support it. Its decor is fairly simple, with soft smoky pink walls adorned with posters and mementoes, timber floors, bentwood chairs, tables covered with white cloths and topped with good glassware. Mirrors are used to open the dining room up and to list suggested drinks, while there’s a blackboard scrawled with the day’s specials.

Owner Amelie Bonnet was born into a family of chefs and restaurateurs and C’est Bon has a sister restaurant in Cairns and one planned for Brisbane, too. The printed menu gives the name of the dish in French but provides a good (and not too wordy) description in English. This is classic fare – onion soup, goat’s cheese wrapped in prosciutto served with toasted brioche, and a great seafood souffle among the starters. Main courses include steak – rib eye on the bone, or fillet with green peppercorn and cognac sauce – and duck, served with red cabbage and sweet potato. Desserts are not to be missed – the cassis-poached pears are terrific. The wine list is well-chosen and reasonably priced, with some good half-bottles as well as wines by the glass. There are some lively aperitifs to start and cognacs to finish, if you’re lucky enough to live within walking distance.

Rita Erlich, March 2008