An apprehensive Erin McDonald takes her toddler for a ‘fine dining’ experience and is pleasantly suprised

The thought of eating out with a toddler can be enough to send shivers up the spine of the most practiced of parents.

Unless your little cherub is the type to sit quietly munching on a breadstick, only interrupting the conversation to say ‘pass the water, Mummy’ (mine isn’t), then it can be a hair-raising experience for everyone, not least your fellow diners.

There are numerous places that cater well for the family experience of course, from popular chains like Pizza Express and Giraffe to bespoke children’s cafes like Barefoot Books, but if you’re after a special occasion restaurant or simply a meal where the gastro-experience is high but children are genuinely catered for, then your options are far fewer.

It’s unsurprising then that Raymond Blanc has attempted to fill the gap in the market with a dedicated children’s menu and dining experience in his classy but affordable Brasserie Blanc chain of restaurants.

Called Henri Le Worm, a character created by Blanc’s son, Olivier, who was inspired by Blanc himself, chef Henri’s menu is an impressive spot-on mix of what your child probably wants to eat (macaroni cheese, French fries) and what you wish they’d eat (steamed seasonal vegetables) alongside clever mini grown-up meals including a charcuterie plate and moules mariniere. With the bargain price-tag of £5.95 for main, sides and dessert so far this mummy is won over.

It’s clear on arriving (with the two year-old in tow plus daddy as back-up, just in case) that Henri Le Worm is more than just a token menu. A crisp white ‘Grub Club’ apron awaits the youngest diner, prompting squeals of delight along with a giant activity sheet, crayons and a booklet of characters, recipes and fun food facts for older children. There’s also an accompanying app for all smart-phone savvy kids.

We chose Henri’s big fish finger for our son, which arrived promptly with the adult starters. Sadly the fish fingers (think giant gourmet goujons) looked great but were far too salty – even for an adult palette and went largely uneaten. The sides of a tomato and cucumber salad and fries were generously portioned and delicious, however. The adult starters were a melt-in-the-mouth cheese soufflé (£5.90) which I couldn’t fault and an asparagus special (£6.50); griddled on a salad of diced cauliflower, boiled egg and a pesto-style dressing.

The child portion was so generous that my toddler was still munching his side dishes as our mains approached.

I wasn’t convinced by the crab apples which accompanied our pork belly (£14.50), served with Chateau potatoes, cabbage, apple puree and crackling, but the rest was excellent.

As we finished our mains, the little one’s dessert turned up – vanilla ice-cream in a cute mini sundae dish (cue more excitement) with an individually-wrapped grown-up wafer – all demolished within seconds.

Adult desserts were a chocolate soufflé (£6.50) served with pistachio ice-cream and a chocolate pudding (£4.50) to die for.

Overall, alongside excellent service throughout, I’d say worm Henri, and his inspiration, Blanc himself, have got a lot of things right in their balance of kid-friendly vs adult- friendly dining. There’s room for improvement, not least less salty fish fingers, and I’d have appreciated a plastic beaker rather than the heavy glass tumbler and some more child-size cutlery for this particularly mini diner.

But not so our angelic toddler who sat happily for nearly two hours – success indeed, and no back-up needed.

Brasserie Blanc, 71-72 Walton Street, Oxford
brasserieblanc.com
oxford@brasserie blanc.com 
01865 510999