I couldn’t agree more with the other reviewer. When we first mooved to Fallbrook, we visited Le Bistro and were informed by the owner that they were ‘the only truly European restaurant in the area.’ Hailing from Europe, I was quite excited by this claim, but that visit, and two or three subsequent visits, have revealed that the place is the only fake European dump in town! From the depressing oil painting on one wall to the quality of food and very bad service – primarily from the patron himself who we now refer to as ’Flat cap; due to his unusual choice of head ware, tp the totally unwelcome for families with young kids – the place is a dump – consider yourselved warned!

It had been 9 years since I had last eaten here and I made the mistake of trying it again. The owner and waiter is a dufus and appears to not care whether your dining experience is pleasant or not. The over touted wine list is SPARSE! While it had some good wines, the selection was less than 25 wines. You either had the choice of low cost wines from nondiscript wineries or you had to pay an arm and a leg for the FEW top wines that they had. Nothing in between. Not much selection among varietals. I thought that maybe they had good food. Wrong! The tomato bisque was a ham handed rustic creation that was better left alone. I had the Cherry Duck. It contained less than a half of a breast that was sliced thin and cooked to death and then smothered in a not very complex or imaginative thick and syrupy cherry sauce better used for a bad cherry pie. The potatoes and vegetables were close to raw. I then made the mistake of having the Bananas Foster for dessert. It was apparently made the in the kitchen and was lacking any banana liqueur or rum and had practically no bananas. This is not a gourmet restaurant and you would be better off going somewhere else.

We’ve been here twice now, once for brunch and once for dinner. Both were delightful. I was very pleased with the veal. The owner is pleasant and attentive. The paintings are nice to look at, and the entry courtyard is charming. We had the house merlot which for $5 was surprisingly good. I was a little disappointed with the French Onion soup. The soup itself was delicious, really very good. The presentation was also nice but the pastry on top was, I think, a mistaken departure from the traditional baked cheese on bread.

This is a great surprise to many… hidden back in the off Main Avenue courtyard… you can easily miss it. Don’t! Always good. Always Reasonable… and they even have coupons in the newspaper to make it more attractive. Robert… chef… owner… dry sense of humor… has created a fun experience… without the need for a Re-fi…