Les Faux Bourgeois: Affordable French bistro in Vancouver

Les Faux Bourgeois is a French restaurant in Vancouver and was voted Vancouver’s #1 Best Bistro by The Georgia Straight. I came here with some of my girlfriends for a nice dinner back in November 2021.

Interior

We were seated in a different area from the rest of the diners. Our table was in their “cafe” area, which requires you to go through a different door from their main dining room. The 5 of us were seated in a corner table that had a semi-weird configuration of tables (L shape) and we were the only table in this area. This meant we had more privacy and could be louder, so we didn’t mind.

Seating was comfortable and we had enough space for all 5 of us. Our booth seating was right under a heater so our bums were also warm. But if you want to experience their main dining room, maybe double check when you make your reservation.

Food

We each ordered a glass of wine and also shared a bottle of red. I don’t remember the names of any of the wines lol but one thing to note is that we felt like the glasses had a generous pour vs. sharing a bottle. Their wine glasses were also on the smaller side though so not sure if it was just a visual perception, but it might be more worth it if you order by the glass.

Escargots de bourgogne ($12)

Escargot is quite a famous French appetizer. It is cooked land snails and Les Faux Bourgeois cooks it with parsley, garlic butter, and serves with crostini. I’ve ordered escargots before and they usually only give you like 5-6 snails, but here they give you quite a lot in the little bowl! It is full of rich buttery goodness and you can fit up to 2 snails on each crostini. Love that they also give you a lot of crostini and not just 3.

Soupe a l’oignon gratinee ($12)

This is the classic onion soup with caramelized onions, smoked bacon, gruyère and mozzarella. My friend ordered this and I didn’t taste it, so I can’t comment much on how it tasted but it looked really good with the melted cheese on top!

Tartare de boeuf ($27)

I order the beef tartare for my main, but you can also order it as an appetizer for $17. The difference is the portion size and also for the main, it comes with a side of salad or pommes frites (I choose french fries… of course). Their beef tartare is made with beef, capers, mustard, shallot, egg yolk and condiments.

For $27, you get a lot of tartare! And a lot of fries! I was very surprised by the portion size. Again, they give lots of crostinis (always bonus points for that) and I liked that the main itself kind of came with a salad so I kind of got the best of both worlds by choosing the french fries.

The tartare itself looked a little different from other tartares I’ve had. I am used to my tartare looking more red, but this one looked more like a mixture of colours (white, green, yellow, etc.). French fries were really good and flavoured and I liked the pickled veggies they also added on top.

Le steak frites ($27)

My friend ordered the hanger steak and fries (you can choose a side of salad instead). Again, really big portions and I love that big chunk of herb butter on top – makes it look very appetizing. If you don’t want the herb butter, you can also choose a red wine shallot jus or peppercorn sauce.

Moules marinieres ($26)

My other friend ordered the mussels with fries. The mussels are cooked in white wine, garlic and parsley. Again, really big portions for both the french fries and the big bowl of mussels.

Creme brulee ($8)

For dessert, we all shared a creme brulee and it was cooked well. The sugar topping wasn’t burn or lumpy.

Final thoughts

Loewe’s rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

I had an enjoyable dinner at Les Faux Bourgeois. Service was wonderful and we were all really full.

My friend ordered the tartare as a main as well but she didn’t like it as much, which is why she got the French onion soup instead. I liked the tartare but it wasn’t the best I’ve ever had. Again, it looked and tasted a little different from other tartares I’ve had in the past.

For everything we ordered, we were pleasantly surprised at the portion sizes. Some French restaurants serve small portions but these were huge. Prices are also very reasonable! Nothing on their dinner menu is more than $30, which makes Les Faux Bourgeois probably one of the most affordable places for French food in Vancouver if you are still looking for something fancier.

We will be sure to return again!

Sincerely, Loewe