Les Bouchons Review: Authentic French Bistro in the Heart of KL
Les Bouchons is a franchise of French bistros that first opened in Singapore. Having found success there, they opened their first branch in Malaysia in Johor and now they’re open in KL.
Located at the intersection of Jalan Mayang and Jalan Yap Kwan Seng, Les Bouchons shares a building with other restaurants like Nadodi and Canopy. The lot has a single three-storey building and very limited parking that’s available by valet.
We recommend you park at the nearby hotel or take public transport if you don’t want to fuss about finding parking. Don’t park along the street as we saw policemen actively issuing summons at all times on Jalan Mayang.
What’s a French Bistro?
A name like Les Bouchons might conjure images of fine dining, the sounds of clinking wine glasses, and business people striking deals, but Les Bouchons is a French bistro, and by its definition is an informal dining place. It’s casual French food and it’s reflected in their signature dish, steak frites or steak and fries.
Yes, there’s actually a lot of wine pairing, cigar smoking, and business people eating there casually during lunch time, but don’t let that deter you from enjoying the fine French food here.
Ambiance at Les Bouchons
Having been to some bistros in Paris, we can say that the feeling is close. Bistros in Paris are tiny in comparison to Les Bouchons but there are European touches all around the restaurant that make you feel like you might be in Paris.
Subtle details evoke Parisian life, like the paintings, chandeliers, and statues that were imported from Paris, and the gold and red hues that reflect a traditional bistro. These touchstones are paired with ambient french music to fully immerse you in the French experience.
It successfully navigates the line between being just another atas restaurant and being a full-on themed restaurant with baguettes hanging from the ceiling. It’s a nice place for dates, meetings, and other fanciful desires.
Food at Les Bouchons
While we mention that this is not a fine dining establishment, the price isn’t exactly hawker fare. You can check out the Les Bouchons menu, but we’ll also include the prices of everything we sampled here.
For starters we got cocktails de crevettes/prawn cocktails (RM58), french onion soup (36), and pan seared foie gras (RM88). The prawn cocktails was a refreshing and delightfully green starter with avocados and crunchy prawns, while the french onion soup with emmental cheese was a warm and hearty broth.
The foie gras, a must-have on any French menu, melts in your mouth without a hint of that metallic liver taste. Paired with sweet onion chutney, salt, and a slice of toast, it’s an indulgence that anyone who is into French cuisine should have at least once.
We need to point out the slice of toast though, as it looks like regular store-bought bread sliced into triangles with the crust cut off. A more robust slice of bread would have worked better visually, like a slice of country loaf or even sourdough. At RM88, it feels impossible that it’s served with what looks to be regular white bread.
For mains we got to sample the grilled black angus rib eye with vigneron butter (RM178), roasted french duck leg confit with garlic cream sauce (RM88), and lamb chop with herbs de provence (RM128).
Les Bouchons uses agria potatoes for their fries and they are cut and kept in an ice bath overnight before being fried. This results in a crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside affair that stands out from regular premade fries. The fries are also refillable.
The steak frite was prepared medium rare with a satisfying char on top. The beef is seasoned with salt and pepper only that allows the natural flavours of the black angus beef to rise to the top. Each bite is firm on the outside and tender on the inside and the homemade vigneron butter (made of shallots, apple juice, and butter) complimented the beef perfectly to provide a sweet, salty, and sour hit with each bite.
As far as its signature dish goes, the steak is prepared well with enough of a twist of their own to make it worth a visit over your regular steak house. The lamb rack was similarly simple but rubbed with a special blend of herbs.
Like the steak, it was prepared medium rare and the skill of the chef shines through in grilling at the perfect temperature and for the perfect amount of time. While those two were great, we enjoyed the duck confit the most.
The duck skin was crispy and contrasted with the meat which was succulent. The garlic cream sauce that comes with the duck is exceptional. Made with 24-month aged parmesan, garlic, and whipped cream from France, the sauce should be bottled and sold in stores. The sauce gives the nebulous umami flavour a physical form and we would spread that on any savoury dish.
The duck is also RM88 only, and among the higher priced meats, we feel the duck provided a better overall package and suited this Asian manchild’s taste more. There are of course, plenty of other food options like seafood, burgers, and even pasta options, but we’d strongly recommend anyone try the duck confit.
Moving on to the desserts, we got the crepe suzette (RM78), creme brulee (RM26), and double chocolate lava cake (RM32). The crepe suzette is flambéed in front of you with Grand Marnier and the preparation in front of you adds drama and another element to your enjoyment of desserts.
Depending on your preference, you might like a bit of drama before you eat and if nothing else, it’s a cool Instagram moment during special occasions. In terms of taste, the orange sauce reduction was tangy with bitter overtones which when combined with vanilla ice cream that was sweet and smooth, results in a layered dessert that is more than simply french pancakes over orange sauce.
After the theatrics, we broke into the creme brulee and lava cake, literally. We enjoyed the creme brulee made with tonka beans as the silky custard’s flavour was transformed with the bean. The double Valrhona chocolate lava cake was perhaps the most pedestrian of the three desserts, but will satisfy chocolate lovers. We wished the chocolate had a more complex flavour profile with sour or bitter notes, but it tastes like regular gooey chocolate.
French dining at Les Bouchons
We really enjoyed the food at Les Bouchons and overall, would recommend it for people looking for authentic-feeling French food.
The atmosphere is relaxed, but the chefs push for the best on their menu. It’s a great introduction for most people to get into fine dining and the wait staff were very professional and knowledgeable about the food.
More than just flavour, Les Bouchons tries to deliver a great dining experience and we think it’s a fair trade to get exceptional service for higher food prices.
We asked the Head Chef Rao about his customers and he mentioned that they’re mostly return customers with half being expats and half Malaysians. It may be the geographical location, but it’s a good sign that the restaurant is attracting locals and foreigners in equal measure.
For people looking to host private parties they have 2 rooms, one is an intimate dining room with a view into the chefs cooking in the kitchen, and another is a smaller room that also doubles as a cigar lounge.
The bigger 12-occupant room has a minimum spend of RM2,500 (RM208/head) and the smaller cigar lounge has a minimum spend of RM2,000 (RM333/head) for 6 people.
We recommend coming to Les Bouchons for an intimate dinner or to celebrate a special occasion. The limited space in the restaurant may be an issue for families with young rambunctious children, so we wouldn’t recommend it.
If the restaurant takes off, we foresee it being a really good location for birthdays, anniversaries, and proposals. The balcony is practically begging for people to decorate it with a flower arch and candles.
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Les Bouchons
Lot 183, 1st Floor Jalan Mayang,
Off Jalan Yap Kwan Seng,
Kampung Baru, Kuala Lumpur
Business hours:
Lunch: 12pm-2:30pm daily
Dinner: 6pm-10pm daily
Reservations: 010-217 2828
