The French Spring A Leak

2 courses for £12. Oh La La...

The Imaginary Cage

Pretty Romantic Bone China eh ?

Rose Wine + Red Mesh Bow On Real Red Rose

Painting the Scene: Gold Frame, Gold Dimmer Switch

Laying It On Thick With A Red Rose

Squid Rings.

Imagine This Is French Onion Soup

Batchelors Packet Noodles Anyone ?

Strawberry Cheesecake Served On A Scallop

Tiny Crumbs Of Comfort

How An Artist Imagines The Cage

#41  Time for Fun

Ooh La La.

Some restaurants become your favourites because the food is par excellence... or because the ambience is cosy, and relaxing or the location homely and handy or because the other patrons who go there are friendly and stimulating to be around. 

Sometimes they become your favourites because you felt it a risky business going in...and ended up spending a lot of time laughing and giggling at your table. We have a phrase that refers to that as banking tummy dollars. We banked lots of dollars at La Cage Imaginaire.

This was so cliched romantic in the wrong way that it kind of worked in the right way. The food was a surprise too. We ordered fresh wild Salmon on a bed of spaghetti and recognised the kinks found in Batchelors packet noodles. The French Onion Soup, a classic staple of any french restaurant resembled brown water with two bread flotillas that were stopping the dried onion from drowning. We ordered a homemade strawberry cheesecake and suspected the homemade bit was removing the wrapping in the kitchen. And we should add, even though we ordered it for one to share, it was very kindly cut into two pieces and served on two separate shiny black Scallop shaped plates with real stawberries diced alongside.

To conclude even the most staunch Francophile might be bemused not to find an authentic frenchman in this Romantic restaurant. Our waiter was Ukranian and the kitchen was being replenished by a little Chinese delivery man running in off the street. We let our imagination run wild that the chef had a french auntie.

Now sadly I don't parlais Francais and I am going to have to take a wild guess that 'La Cage Imaginaire' means the Imaginary Cage... or well at least that's how I like to think it means. A cage that on the one hand traps you and doesn't let you leave and on the other lets your imagination run wild... It's a dangerous combination.

We kind of thought this might be a place that Gordon Ramsay's TV producer would like to get their hands on. 

But no thanks Gordon, no make overs here please we love it just as it is...