With the black and white tiled floors, posters and chalkboard, Café de Paris may not be the most imaginatively decorated restaurant in Soho, but nevertheless, it does achieve its goal of transporting diners to a little French bistro in Paris. The tables are cosily spaced apart but still maintain privacy, while the dim lights, dark wood and burgundy walls offer the ideal ambience for date night.

Just like the decor, there are no surprises on the menu: rather, traditional French fare is on offer here with a focus on simple, hearty dishes. To start, we order the gravlax with dill, lemon, capers and honey mustard dressing (HK$108), which is well- balanced and flavourful, unlike the more disappointing gratinated onion soup (HK$72) which lacks in seasoning. The whole sole fish meunière with parsley lemon and steamed potatoes (HK$188) is generously portioned and flaky, with the freshness of the fish apparent. For meat lovers out there, the Black Angus sirloin with Café de Paris butter (HK$198) is sure to please as it is tender and juicy and the accompanying French fries are a perfect texture. The classic crème brûlée (HK$58) boasts a satisfyingly crunchy topping, contrasted with a sweet vanilla cream underneath. The lemon tart with honeycomb ice cream (HK$62) is silky and tart, however the immense chunks of honeycomb can be hard to chew and awkward if one were keen on making a ladylike impression.

Though offering solely French wine, the selection at Café de Paris is both fairly wide and suitable for all budgets. The staff however should be more familiar with their own wine list, in order to be able to recommend a suitable pairing.

Though bustling on a Friday night, it is easy to catch the eye of the staff, who are more than accommodating and happy to answer our questions.

A meal for two excluding wine will come to about HK$400 per person which is altogether not too pricey considering the location and quality of food, but staff could be more knowledgeable on the whole.