Le Central

Came here for our anniversary lunch and will definitely be back for again, next time for dinner. We had mussels,lobster bisque, croque madame and hangar steak

Exceptionally delicious food and wonderfully attentive and friendly service. This is the most “under the radar” restaurant on the east bay! Been there for brunch and dinner… loved the omelette, salmon nicoise, burgers, onion soup and terrific drink selection. Highly recommend.

My wife works here and has a great deal of respect for the owner/chef. We are a military family and have moved around a lot. Hearing the praise of the chef and trying the leftovers that she brings home after the end of her shift--his dishes are incredible.

My wife has been telling me to come in, and we were finally able to do it. I asked her if this is his form of artwork, and she replied, "yes."

The combination of flavors is perfect. My wife praises this place because everything except the dinner rolls is farm-to-table. He makes everything, even the ice cream desserts. I've never seen that and I've been all over the world!

This place is well deserving of a 5 star rating, just knowing the quality of product and the care given to his artistic creations. Amazing!!

Bottom line: a delightful French bistro with absolutely delicious food, a casual, cozy vibe, and an excellent value. Something different in the East Bay. An underappreciated gem.

We’ve been going to Le Central for a few years and recently rediscovered just how good it is. The vibe is French bistro, complete with black and white checkerboard floors. It’s casual, relaxed, and cozy. It feels like French comfort food.

The menu is thoughtful and amazing for how truly delicious the offerings are. It’s a ‘who’s who’ of some of the best French dishes, without pretense or weirdness (no snails or frogs legs). Starting with the table bread, half of a baguette, perfectly toasted and partly sliced, with soft butter and some olives on the side.

The onion soup is full of melted Guryere cheese, caramelized onions, rich beef stock, and toasted baguette slices, served in a ramekin. It’s perfect and utterly irresistible. Pair it with a salad and it’s a meal.

The Salad Nicoise has perfectly cooked green beans, roasted fingerling potatoes with butter and parsley, roasted red peppers, a bed of arugula, a nice filet of perfectly poached salmon, and a mouth-watering lemon-caper compote. It’s hearty enough as a main course for lunch or dinner, and is deliciously satisfying (and I’m not usually a salad person).

The hamburger might be one of the best you’ll have. A hand formed patty of organic beef on a toasted Brioche bun, served simply with tomato and lettuce, cheese (cheddar, Guryere, or Roquefort) and applewood smoked bacon optional, and a side of ultra-thin and super-crisp potato frites (too good to be called mere ‘French fries’). We love burgers, and both think this is hands-down the best we’ve had in the area (it’s the spiritual opposite of Chomp burgers which are excellent in their own right but very different with many heavy, spicy additives that make for a ‘wet’ burger). Le Central’s hamburger stands on its own simply with the highest quality ingredients prepared perfectly (like the rest of the food).

Coq au Vin (chicken with wine) was a revelation. A half of a Cornish game hen (breast, leg, and thigh), braised in burgundy wine, served in a crock brimming with mushrooms, sauteed onions, and bacon, in a rich, thick, velvety stock, and a side of roasted fingerling potatoes. Just the smell made my mouth water before even taking the first bite! It was heavenly, deeply satisfying, and very hearty and filling.

There are always some specials, often including an omelet. Recently we’ve had asparagus and brie, and mushroom and Guryere, variations. They were spectacular, served with a side of potato frites. They turn brunch into a special experience and feel decadent despite the modest price. They offer a full brunch menu that looks yummy, though we haven’t (yet!) tried it.

Desserts are homemade. Our favorite are the Rochers (“rocks”), chocolates like turtles. Dark chocolate filled with the specialty of the day, various nuts and fruits. Order at least one if you’re stuffed and don’t think you can fit in anything else, but a plate of 4 goes down easily with tea.

The drink list is massive. In the spirit of a French bar there are dozens and dozens of liquors of every kind. A nice offering of about 20 wines (French of course), every one we’ve ever had has been a winner. Some beers, and even several ciders, apple and pear varieties, from Normandy!

This area has tons of typical bars/pubs/taverns, seemingly one on every block, along with Portuguese (Portuguese-ish) and Italian restaurants. Le Central stands out, both for being unique in offering a great selection of the best of the best of French foods, and for the amazingly high quality and reasonable prices. It’s one of the great, underappreciated secret gems of the East Bay area. If it was in Boston the prices would be more than twice as high and people would be raving about it.

We’ve been finding it hard to go more than a week between visits.

The restaurant was small,quaint and inviting. Our waiter was friendly and attentive. The food was amazing from start to finish. The Salad of Endive and Roasted Beets then The Moroccan Chicken followed by the creme brulee was the perfect choices for the evening. The Coq Au Vin was also amazing. Will definitely be back with friends soon.

I love love love this restaurant. I'm from out of town but whenever we are in the Newport area to visit family we make sure to come to Le Central at least once or more during our visit. Restaurant is charming, the wine is delicious, the service is great and the food is great.

I happen to be gluten free and they will allow me to bring in a gluten-free baguette and will prepare the French onion soup with my gluten-free bread. Which is pretty awesome because,.. well --you need the bread in Fr. Onion soup!

Of course I'll be back!

A very unique French restaurant. The food is so delicious. The server is so kind and attentive. Definitely worth trying.

If you're looking for a nice, classy dinner with good food this is a great place to go. I've been here multiple times both for brunch and for dinner and it has always been lovely. The staff is great, and the food is delicious and well portioned. It's a little pricey but that's to be expected. If you go for brunch, I almost always get their lemon ricotta crepes (pictured below) highly recommended.

Last time I was at Le Central was 2 years ago and I enjoyed the salad, croque monsieur, and crème brûlée I had. I had some time this summer to go back to Le Central and I left with a filled stomach and a smile.

I ordered salmon on rye bread which was delicious and the cucumbers were very crunchy. The salad was excellent and complimented the flavors of the salmon. My family member had the soup and sandwich which she enjoyed, plus the soup that she had was fish soup. After enjoying our entrees, we decided that we had to try some desserts.

I ordered a cappuccino which was foamy, and not too creamy nor too sweet. It was the perfect noon time pick me up. As a table, we ordered crepes and creme brulee. The crêpes paired with fruit were savory and very filling. The crème brûlée made the perfect crunching sound as soon as we dug our spoons in. Also, it was very savory and reminded me of what I enjoyed in France.

I hope to go back to Le Central soon, and I have told some of my international friends in the area to try Le Central before they go back to their respective countries. Merci pour la bonne nourriture!

We had my daughters bridal shower at Le Central this past weekend and it was perfect in every way. They created a special brunch/lunch menu for the event, starting with the most delicious popovers, a choice of five different entrees and pavlovas for dessert. The food was amazing. The atmosphere was
classy, creative and comfortable and service was top notch. Sam was great to deal with in planning. I would highly recommend Le Central!

I've been to this quaint little Bistro first during the summer; July of 2023. Ever since then, I've managed to go back on a multiple basis and have never been disappointed. The food was/is always amazing; possibly the best French food in the area, and cooked and presented with a modern flair. (I'm sorry to say but Le Moulin Rouge is just TERRIBLE in comparison and no competition hands down - Ritz crackers and cheese-whiz, the nerve!)
Although the restaurant is not of a particularly large size it is accommodating and has a good enough ambiance to the atmosphere; dim lighting, tiled black and white floors and clean.
The coq au vin is my general go to for this place as is the duck con fit; with the weather turning cold, these are the best soul and comfort foods to have during the upcoming winters!
The coq au vin is reasonably portioned, well cooked, perfectly seasoned, with delicious sliced mushrooms, onions and bits of bacon in this gorgeous wine-based broth! I'm not sure how they make their rich red wine sauce that it is is cooked in, but it is wonderful, creamy and just packs a punch of flavor!
Not overtly priced and with a good portion of food, one could not really go wrong with this as a choice for supper - the lunch menu is mainly sandwiches, which is unfortunate as I'm not one for a sandwich, but the options are varied and pleasant.
The crème Brule is perfection as is a many of their desserts.
But what makes this place so great is the staff. Always accommodating, thoughtful, respectful and kind and very attentive! They make this the experience that it is! We both appreciate all the hard work and kindness shown to us and we simply can't wait to go back!
P.S If one ever wants to try modern French cuisine, I highly recommend this place! And, no offense to Le Moulin Rouge - - but I'd spare the trouble of NOT going there; make your reservations for Le Central now!

Had a wonderful meal here today with my mom! The food was absolutely delicious! Kristen was our server, and she truly went above and beyond in making sure we had a great time. Will definitely be back!

Went with my wife for a Non crowded romatic Pre-Valentines day luncheon.There is not many restaurants we can go to due to my wife's food allergy to Pine nuts, Le Central is now on our list of acceptable restaurants. The music was relaxing, menu selection very good, loved the table set up, simple but elegant. Our server was excellent! We will be back - Thanks for a Nice Lunch!!

This place has been on my radar since I moved here last year so, after driving through Bristol on my way home, I decided to stop in. It was after the normal lunch hour, so there were only two tables occupied, which was fine with me. I don't like really crowded restaurants. My waitress, Kristen, was very friendly and attentive. I ordered the Croque Madame with fries. I rarely order/eat fries, but there was not one left on my plate when I was finished. The sandwich was grilled to a golden brown without being overdone. I wanted a dessert so I took half of the sandwich home with me and after reheating it in my toaster oven it was just as crispy and tasty as it was at the restaurant. The chocolate bread pudding was very good. I will definitely be back... I want to try the lemon ricotta crepes!

We eat in Bristol often and we weren’t sure what to expect when we reserved a table at Le Central, but we’re so glad we did. The restaurant was empty on a Friday night except for 2 other patrons, which made us nervous at first. The server was great and made us feel right at home. The appetizers, drinks, and food were great! One member of our party is vegan and the waitress was able to piece together a meal for him that he absolutely loved. Everyone in our party was extremely happy with their food and we’re happy to have found a new restaurant to add to our rotation!

My family loves this restaurant. We come everytime we visit Bristol, which is several times a year. The staff is wonderful, the food delicious and a quaint atmosphere. We will be there tomorrow! Can't wait.

We had an excellent Friday night meal here. We had specials and regular menu items and they were all great. It wasn't too loud, and the service was great too.

Has a very nice French bistro feel. The staff was wonderful.

Incredible food. Wonderful atmosphere and the staff were incredibly cordial.

Sunday brunch was wonderful , Eggs Benedict is prepared just right. My wife enjoyed her omelet with asparagus.