We love a laidback bistro as much as anyone but sometimes you really want to step it up a notch and these are some of the best restaurants in town for French flair and finesse. 

22/7/19 update, unfortunately, the residencies have been cancelled. 

Sweet-toothed fans of afternoon tea will want to make a beeline for Harrods this summer. The Knightsbridge department store has enticed four of the best French pâtisserie chefs – Pierre Hermé, Angelo Musa, Cédric Grolet and Yann Couvreur - to put on residencies in their tea rooms.

The series, which runs from July through to

The much-anticipated sequel to Bob Bob Ricard has opened in the City with Eric Chavot at the helm. We went to see how the millions have been spent.

French chef Thierry Laborde is back in London and this time he's bringing a taste of southern France to cobbled Bruton Place.

It's always lovely being the bearer of glad tidings, and for anyone who was a fan of Mayfair restaurant Wild Honey, this is very good news.

Chef Richard Wilkins has moved into West London to open his solo venture, serving up a modern French fine dining menu.

For almost three decades this French restaurant has been looking after folk on Charlotte Street. We went to see why Pied a Terre has stood the test of time.

Neil Borthwick has taken over the kitchen at The French House and is getting rave reviews. We popped down to check out the menu. 

It's most definitely the time of year where everyone's searching for something seriously hearty to eat - and a month-long pop-up in Hackney aims to provide just that. Cassoulet Nights - as the name suggests - focuses on rural French cooking. The chef in charge of things is Jacob Rosen - the former Head Chef of Pitt Cue. He's teamed up with Quite Nice Wines to provide the perfect winter combo.

They'll be taking over Apiary Studios on Hackney Road

A new Spitalfields popup sees a former City worker do just what so many of probably fancy doing - opening a restaurant based on the food in our favourite holiday destination.

Monsieur Le Duck is the result of London Richard Humphreys' many trips to Gascony. Loving the place (and its food and wine) so much, Richard decided to jack in his job and open a restaurant around the corner from his old office.

The restaurant, which is popping up at

Classic French bistro dishes, wines, coffee, and pastries will be the order of the day at this revamped neighbourhood spot.

One of the founders of Le Bun has opened Carte Blanche in Hackney - a mix of French and American food, with some excellent burgers too. We head down for a look. 

Burgers and poutine are given a classic French treatment at this Francophile street traders third London opening in Tooting Market.

One of the co-founders of Le Bun is carrying on the French/American theme with his latest restaurant, Carte Blanche, in Hackney. Expect southern American comfort cooking with a touch of French cuisine too.

With restaurants in all the key globetrotting hotspots - NYC, Miami, Dubai etc - a London branch was way overdue for this upscale international chain.