The French Table, Surbiton, Kingston upon Thames

Ate at The French Table yesterday lunchtime. The atmosphere was warm and welcoming on an autumn day.

We don't normally eat in expensive restaurants, but thought this would be a nice treat. It was my wife's birthday - a fact that the waiter subtly extracted from me at the beginning of the meal.

Champagne cocktails and home-bread were brought to the table, followed by some interesting starters.

We had a carafe of house red which was delicious. Why don't more places do carafes? It's a much more sensible amount of wine for a meal.

I had a vegetarian main course which was very tasty, and my wife had the guinea fowl, which she said was fantastic.

The meal was rounded off with two delicious dessert wines, one white and one red, to complement some amazing puds.

The service was really very good - nothing too much trouble. The bill was £100 for two people - steep but for such a great experience we did not resent it.

Have been going to this restaurant since it opened, usually for an occassion as it is quite expensive. Not been there for lunch so can only comment on the evening. They have opened upstairs recently and I feel this has impacted considerably on the service. They just don't have enough staff to cope with 2 floors and the last time we ate there (April 2011) the wait to order and then between courses was just not acceptable. Hopefully this will be rectified.

This is a little gem of a restaurant on Maple Road in Surbiton.The French Table waiting staff are extremely knowledgeable about the food and the wine list. I'd recommend the venison. My particular dish was cooked to perfection. The accompanying vegetables were cooked well.I opted for the cheese board for desert. The selection of French cheeses was tasty and also diverse.I'd recommend the French Table in Surbiton to anyone.