Bistro 1709 in Lichfield

The service left much to be desired, with a long wait just to place our food and drink orders. Unfortunately, the meal didn't improve matters—the chicken was extremely dry, and the potatoes were undercooked. For the price we paid, the quality was far below expectations. Quite disappointing overall.

Not many stars for atmosphere as 4 people on the table behind us were talking on a zoom call to someone in loud voices so we could hear everything - why does no one know how to behave these days? The food was great and very good value for money as they offer a set menu. Service very friendly but slightly off as I made a point that I was gf but even so my plate hadn’t been adapted for that. However we were given a taste of a couple of wines before choosing a bottle of the one we liked best.

Excellent. Really very good: the food and the staff. And the atmosphere. Well with a visit.

Really good, well cooked and presented lunch, served with panache.

Visited first time for awhile good food well cooked well presented nice wine good service went out of their way with the food to accommodate me and my seed allergy would recommend

I have not eaten here for a long time as we were visiting Lichfield I booked us in for lunch time.the gentleman that served us and gave us a quiet table upstairs was lovely helpful and friendly .I had two courses the belly draft course which was nice and a chocolate cheesecake with raspberries and mint compote so fresh.my hubby had steak he said the best he has ever had cooked to perfection .thankyou for making my day so special.

Amazing meal, great food, great staff and great value for money. Visited for a meal at lunch and enjoyed every bit. Surprised to see any negative reviews. Loved the place!

Visiting from the USA. Unbelievable food. A treat that i absolutely recommended.

Rustic, quirky little restaurant with a varied lunch menu. Friendly staff, food great, and good value.

I was sooooo disappointed with the meals. My so called pork belly was just a thin slice of pork belly, looked more like a rashon of bacon, over cooked, and the taste was very bland. My partners meal, he had the steak, was very small and looked like the cheap cut. They at least cooked it the way he wanted. The head waiter was rude, not to us personal but the way he spoke to his staff. Very sharp and loud so we all heard. Total lack of respect. I won’t go back there. I am so surprised it has a good reputation and has been around for so long.

Highly recommend this bistro. Always excellent food, service & atmosphere 👌

We have visited Bistro 1709 a number of times and have always enjoyed the experience. On this occasion it was quite empty and so didn't quite have the same atmosphere. The food was good as always, the only disappointment for us was that we had read the menu online and when we got there some of the items had been removed, duck being one of them which my partner was looking forward to. We spoke to one of the staff and they did explain why the duck had been removed and said if we called in future before we went, he would try and get it for us which you can't ask anymore of them.

The food was delicious, the mushroom and coconut soup was a particular stand out. Good service throughout. Would definitely recommend for good quality food, and hope to return.

Fantastic value. £8 fixed price two course lunch. Would have been a bargin at twice the price

Visited for a friend's birthday and the food was delicious and service was great

Very disappointed with my overall meal & experience. Fishcake starter was very nice apart from the 2 very large fish bones which were inside, one of which I nearly swallowed the staff couldn’t have cared less! Main of swordfish steak with £3 supplement was dry, overcooked and tasteless again staff couldn’t have cared less! My sweet was New York cheesecake with Eaton mess which was delicious when I told waiter his reaction that saved the meal - well actually no it didn’t really. Having said that my husband’s main of confit of duck was absolutely outstanding and also he enjoyed his goats cheese starter, he chose cheese & biscuits with port which was OK for his sweet. Not once did any member of staff ask how our meal was and no one bothered to apologise for the 2 large fish bones which I considered unacceptable and no one said thank you or goodbye when we left. So all in all dissatisfaction with meal we had high hopes for after 2 recommendations, had the staff not been so unfriendly & unprofessional we may have given a better rating, it was as though the 2 fish bones were my fault! There are many more places in Lichfield for us to try.

Lovely food + good selection of vegetarian dishes

Can't recommend this place enough. Great value, amazing food, service was perfect. Best steak I've had in years.

Always fabulous lovely service and food

First time here, a great experience all in. Service was exceptional, food delicious, expertly cooked and nearly fell off my chair when I got the bill. A gourmet 3 course french supper for 2, with 2 delicious bottles of wine for less than £100.

Excellent lunch last week as always. A regular haunt for many years. Menu refreshingly different from the usual predictable food. Changes every month.

Lovely place to visit. Great vegan options

We had a large table of 12 , seated on a large circular table, the staff were fantastic, friendly responsive and very meticulous, all the food from the festive menu was delicious, the drink’s complimented the food perfectly, we chose this Bistro as it always leaves us feeling that we’ve been looked after well and we look forward to our next visit! Thank you!

What a lovely little place Food was absolutely beautiful service brilliant and have already booked to go again 🤫😜😊👍

Lovely meal before heading to the theatre.

Lovely food, great value. So friendly and helpful. Thanks for a lovely evening.

Have dined here on a number of occasions. Always been impressed with both the quality of the food and the friendly staff. It’s a little far out for my friends to travel but worth it overall.

Perfect for the quick pre-theatre bite we were after. Nice atmosphere, comfortable tables with legs at each corner (so no trying to fit your legs around a center pole.) Excellent friendly service and decent food.

Always a delight to visit 1709. Food and service spot as usual and for a very good price compared with the majority of eateries in Lichfield. Our go to spot in the city. 👍👍

Can't really comment on atmosphere at lunchtime but we a group of four who all chose different things and had no complaints whatsoever. The food was delightful and the Holdens beer was lovely. The bill for 4 was £100 which was good value for money..

Love this little gem! Home cooked tasty interesting flavoured affordable food! Great job guys!

You have to rate places on price and value for money. On that basis this is excellent value. Fresh food and nicely cooked. Service tonight was a little strained. Service prompt but without a smile.

Lovely place fantastic food great service

Had a brilliant night , lovely food and great service from John and the team. Well worth a visit

Lovely little place with superb food.

Great food, and fantastic value on the mid week "two for" deal.

Lunch time menu good value, plenty of gluten free mains options. Very good food. Efficient service.

Slightly slow service but great food!

I wish I could dine here more often. Always loved our dinners here. Very friendly staff, great food👍

Delighted with our lunch here. The food was excellent and also tremendous value for money - they ought to put their prices up a bit! Will return for sure.

We booked hoping for a taste of France, but unfortunately the menu is no longer french inspired. The food was good, and the service was excellent, however it wasn't the food we were expecting from a French inspired restaurant. The wine list had no Champagne on offer, instead we had a choice of a saumur and prosecco, again not what was expected from a french inspired restaurant.

Portions are imbalanced. Very odd experience. The place filled up quickly and the staff were stressed, rushed and a bit grumpy. Food was standard for a cafe. Nothing special. Its a bit elbow to elbow in there with how many tables have been included.

Had a fantastic meal here last night great value for money. Will definitely return.

Hidden gem, really good food for the prices!

Wonderful food, great wines and attentive friendly service. Regular visits recommended.

Great food at reasonable prices

Has always, excellent food, service and atmosphere. Such a great find. Please keep up the superb standard 👏

Absolutely love it. Food is excellent, service superb and great value for money.

Went here for our anniversary dinner. Staff was friendly as always and the food was great. We got here early so we had a corner just to ourselves!

Had a lovely time here. Helpful staff. Romantic atmosphere and superb food. We were seated upstairs and found it quiet enough to talk. The great menu made it hard to choose. I ended up with the lamb and my guest with salmon. Both were excellent.

Fabulous little restaurant n such helpful n friendly staff

Great food with great service. Lovely oldy worldy feel to the place.

Exceptional food and great ambience. Lots of gluten free menu options.

Wonderful meal and excellent wine choice. Could not have been better.

This is a little Gem! Friendly service, excellent cooked to order food, and great value for money. Well worth a visit. I think the empty plate says a lot really :-)

Great place to eat and meet friends

Great food and excellent service, a most enjoyable evening.

Excellent menu and great value bistro

Lovely Christmas lunch, excellent service, rather chilly though as near to front door

We went to Lichfield on the 4 of December last minute. The bistro 1709 managed to squeeze us in at short notice great food great value will visit them again next time 👍

First time having lunch at 1709. Excellent food and service.

I went for the 1st time Friday, service was amazing food was delicious and definitely going to go back 😋

Just love 1709. Lots of nooks and crannies and candlelit in the evening. Food and service are excellent.

It was a quaint locale, and the interior has character. However, our table was very unsteady. It rocked so much, we couldn't eat on it unless we shoved our napkins beneath one edge. As for the food, I would describe it as "confused." They advertise as French inspired, but nothing on the menu felt remotely French derivative. My starter of risotto tasted ok, but calling it a risotto when it wasn't creamy and served molded into a solid, pilaf-esque shape, was odd. My main of sea bass was cooked well, but the dish was underwhelming. None of my partners dishes seemed to be made with French methods, either, as he's actually had French training himself. We were left unsatisfied, mostly because we just didn't get the experience that was advertised.

Outstanding food and value for money Went for the first time today and we both absolutely loved the choice and quality of food we eat Having eaten at many high end expensive restaurants this little Bistro is a no brainer and we will be going back again before Christmas if we lived in Lichfield it would be a regular choice

Service wasn't good. A long wait to order the food and drinks. The chicken was very dry and the potatoes were under cooked. Very expensive for sub standard food.

Lovely food. Lovely, friendly staff. My husband is gluten intolerant and nearly everything on the nenue is either gluten free or can be adapted. Geared up for food intolerancies. Will be back again soon

Staying with friends in Lichfield we went on Saturday night. The meal and service were excellent. 3 courses with drinks and voluntary tip we were very happy with £75 per couple. Would thoroughly recommend this Bistro.

Delicious food at very reasonable prices. Staff always very friendly & super efficient.

Table of 5 Saturday 28th May. Unfortunately this meal was lacking in several areas for all of our party. I hope this review shows that it is quite a simple fix. We were hoping for a Bistro style meal but it was not to be. Expensive meal and we expected better. Starters 1.5/5 Pea Soup delicious - but 1 slice of bread. Chicken Pate Delicious - 1 slice of bread. Mackerel Mousse - Delicious but 1 breadstick broken between the two servings. Basically the 'Bread' served was insufficient for these starters or any restaurant meal. What is worse is that this was probably Warburtons or Sainsburys. Not even a Baguette or Bloomer which was surprising and dissapointing for a Bistro. Mains 2/5 Cod Fillet - Delicious. Duck - Dry - Overdone. Belly Pork - 1 piece of pork belly. It's supposed to be quite well done because it's very fatty. It wasn't and was mostly left. Sirloin Steak - Correctly cooked but massively over salted. I couldn't actually taste the steak. Deserts 2/5 Sticky Toffee Pudding - Very nice. Cheesecake - Crushed meringue and white chocolate random, oversweet and unnecessary - really needed cream... Summer Berry Crumble - Nice. Service 4/5 Waited a while to order but fine after that.

Poor value for money, slow service.

Beautiful food. Everyone at table was happy. Staff were lovely, welcoming and helpful. They even gave me a taste of the custard before I ordered my pudding because I mentioned that I don't like vanilla! Not joking! They're that lovely❣😂

Staff lovely but meal disappointing the mashed potatoes were so salty they were inedible.

Wonderful food and service need to pre book

Great value, interesting menu. Edit - Still good 11 years on!!

Food and service top notch.Best value for money in Lichfield in my opinion.Absolutely 10 out of 10 keep up the good work.

A good selection on the menu. Prompt and pleasant service. Loved it!

Nice food at great prices. Lovely little place.

A beautiful place very quirky, friendly staff and Very tasty food. It's definitely worth a visit.

Lovely food, good prices and portions

Great food extremely reasonable prices. Lovely atmosphere abd staff

Delicious food, great ambience, lovely staff. Thank you!

food amazing lovely place . owner such a great guy . going back soon .

Best Christmas lunch we had. Thank You

Superb meals with friendly, efficient service. An interesting menu including veggie options. Will be going again soon

We had a lovely family Christmas meal together 🎅👍😀food was fantastic staff were lovely and welcoming 🙏 but only had bottle beers, so we had to have two at a time 🤣🤣lovely time 10 /10

Excellent service and food. Reasonably priced which makes an excellent evening all round. Could not fault it. 10 out of 10.

Food is amazing. Lovely place and staff are great.

We had the £15.00 3 course meal and it was really nice and well worth the money l would certainly go again

Great service with a polite and friendly style, but not in your face. Food was great with plenty decent veggie and vegan options. Value for money was excellent! Looking forward to our next visit!

Had a long wait to eat here again used to go often before lockdown yet again fantastic food friendly staff prompt service can't fault anything superb thanks again for a lovely evening

Food good and staff were very helpful. Very reasonably priced too.

fantastic place lovely food very reasonably priced...would highly recommend

Excellent service and delicious food.

Terrific lunch, food, service and atmosphere all great. Best value for money anywhere locally. Booked again for a birthday. Thank you John and team

Excellent service and meal exceptional value

Excellent, good food, good value, excellent menu, amazing attentive staff, 10/10

Birthday treat. Really nice food for reasonable prices. Need to book very popular.

John is always very hospitable. There is always a good selection of wine. Food very good and reasonably priced.

Staff were friendly, food was ok, not too bad. First floor dining was very hot, need to add A/C or fans.