Coco Retro in Tunbridge Wells

This place is a real hidden gem! We've been there twice now and both times the food was amazing. The owner knows his stuff and can tell you all about each dish. And if you're gluten-free, don't worry - their chef can make anything gluten-free. It's so nice to be able to go out to lunch and not have to worry about whether or not the food is safe for you. My husband and I love this place and we'll definitely be going back again and again. Thanks for a great experience! 🥂❤️

15 of us from the Grove Tavern, accommodated & looked after superbly, as usual. Most of the food went down exceptionally well, with top notch service. Thanks to all the Coco Retro team.

I hosted a lunch for 21 guests to celebrate my birthday. The food was amazing and the staff’s customer service was exemplary. I would highly recommend Coco Retro for their fantastic food and great service.

Delicious top-quality food and drinks, and excellent service. Such a special place and will definitely be back!

Great value, good staff, amazing food. Love this place!

Had a lovely birthday dinner here. Lovely atmosphere, incredibly attentive staff. Delicious fresh food! The beef stew was a particular highlight, and overall great value for money for the level of food. Will absolutely be returning

I booked the private dining room for a surprise birthday and it was amazing service, lovely food & great atmosphere! Highly recommend.

Great evening with delicious food and top service. We had chicken liver and pork terrine as a starter which were lush, followed by pork roulette and salmon. Tasty food accompanied by great wine choice recommended by waiter. We will definitely be back again.

Fabulous little restaurant near the old high street, excellent value set menu, great food. Highly recommended.

Good traditional French bistro style food Went midweek for lunch using their lunch time specials

Never dissapoints!! Perfect for a quiet dinner during the week and and a more vibrant atmosphere on weekends! Staff is always extremely friendly! FOOD IS OVER THE TOP! The seabass and pistachio tiramisu are my absolute favourites! Highly recommend!

Food was good. However mash potato had tuns of salt in !

Sadly I should have trusted my gut when I told the waiter I wanted my steak cooked medium rare because it was a sirloin, he said we only cook it rare, trust me it will be amazing. It was what I’d consider to be raw. I ate the whole thing because of the price but it wasn’t pleasant.

I cannot iterate enough how much we love, loved, this cafe/bistro. It was exactly like being in France - took me right back to the Rue Sufflot or Ile in the summertime. The lunch menu was fantastic - free appetizers brought by delightful staff - piping hot soup and delicious tomato salad that were themselves great and generous. The mains blew us away. Duck confit the way it’s meant to be, with port and cherry—perfection!!! My wife had a generous portion of delicious monkfish. Ambiance, atmosphere, cold food, warm delicacies, a full bar where you can design your own drink. Spectacularly comfortable - we will now be coming down here for dinner from London every month! We just love it. You won’t regret coming to this awesome place that really puts in best efforts with quality results.

Amazing!! What a fabulous party we had at Coco Retro, the restaurant looked beautiful, the Cocktails/Mocktails were all a delight, the Mise en bouche with our drinks were so pretty and scrummy, the whole menu was delicious. Finished off with a lovely coffee. The whole team were marvellous, Mauro, Fede and Reiss. Thank you all so much we had a brilliant time.

Lovely little bistro. Good cocktails and varied menu.

Absolutely fantastic service, really weeell looked after by the wonderful staff and made a great night even greater

Always love going here and my hen party in wine cellar was no different

Very busy and buzzy on a Saturday night. Had cocktails downstairs and dinner upstairs. All staff members efficient and friendly. Food uncomplicated and classic. We shared a starter of whitebait which was plenty for two, followed by lamb and duck, tiramisu and afrogato to finish,washed down with a perfectly adequate cab.sav. Noisy and friendly. You must book as there were no spare tables.

We arrived early to a warm welcome. Polite, unintrusive service and excellent food and drink. When we arrived it was just us, but it was busy when we left and the service and food was spot on throughout.

This place is simply GREAT! We had such a good night, the food was amazing, the staff were attentive, ploite and fun. I implore you to visit this restaurant otherwise you're missing out on a great dining experience.

It was ok. The food was unfortunately bland, and it's quite expensive. The manager/owner was also talking to a nearby table for about 30 mins, continually pushing into our space, annoying.

Great meal. Extremely tasty food, sensible filling portions, super service. Perhaps some bread without requesting it as the do across La Manche? Loss of star due to loud music forcing up the volume of conversation. But would definitely come again once I’ve improved my lip reading. Thanks

Table of 8, fun, lively, great service and food. Really enjoyed myself. Thank you xx

A bit shocked with so many great reviews here. The starters were decent and the cocktails very nice; but the beef bourguignon was not nice, not sure what recipe they use but it needs to be looked at and the duck had little taste. the potatoes it came with tased a bit like sick. not impressed at all of the food was over salted. very salty. i like salt, but not overly salted. i would not go back. ever.

Disappointed with the lack of potato choice...French fries or nothing. The salad needed to be served in a separate bowl not on the plate with the main course. My beef stew was spoilt by being mixed with french dressing from the salad, which was not pleasant. Others enjoyed their escargots, but generally the meal was a bit underwhelming.

Great little place friendly staff.

Food was lovely and great service

What can I say 😕. Fast food at best. After reading the reviews I was looking forward to the meal, as a visitor to Tonbridge Wells. The whole experience was underwhelming. Food was mediocre. Food arrived very quickly and tasted average!! Would not recommend.

First things first - this is a good place and could be exceptional but let’s itself down with a misleading wine menu and a ‘sommelier’ that won’t listen! On 2 occasions we have been here, ordered a bottle of wine that states year of vintage! On both occasions the waiter has brought a wine of a different year! As lovers of wine and one party that was born and bred burgundy we know our wine and equally when it comes to wine you pay for vintage which we happily do! Tonight we were presented with a wine that was a 2020 not a 2018 as stipulated on the menu! When questioned he explained they had a new wine menu and according to him the vintage is irrelevant the wine is the same! Whilst the wine may come from the same domaine the vintage is quite different and as such derives different price points! I have absolutely no issue paying more for a more mature wine and actually want to but please don’t pass them off as the same thing as they are not! All in all a good place but please be honest with what you serve and charge accordingly and don’t talk over a customer.

Lovely little place that does amazing cocktails! Had a very Emily in Paris vibe about it. Will definitely pop in again.

I told the restaurant on 2 separate occasions it was a double birthday, one of them 50, celebration and nothing was done with the information. We sat upstairs where there were too many seats too close to each other. We were then unceremoniously asked to leave because they needed the table, no time for coffee. Good food, good service, shame about the experience.

Didn't eat, only had cocktails. Place was heaving busy. Staff were really friendly and hard working. Cocktails were great and mesmerising to watch them being made

Great evening, good food, experienced staff and nice atmosphere

Have been a few times and always leave feeling full and happy. Most recently for a friends birthday. We were in the private function room which was beautiful. The food was very tasty and the staff were attentive and professional.

Nice place situated close to the station, great attentive staff and equally good menu with a wonderful array of dishes to choose from...

We were recommended this place by some friends and we were not disappointed. It was fully booked when I tried to make a reservation, so I messaged back and said if there were any cancellations, could they let me know. I had a call the next morning and got my booking. The food was great, the drinks were fantastic, the service was amazing. They have an extensive wine list and very knowledgeable staff. I can highly recommend Coco Retro.

Very disappointed. Food poor and atmosphere was totally lacking. It was like dining in a railway station corridor.

Great cocktails and equally good food!

Good selection of dishes and wine. Friendly staff. Nice ambience

Lovely meal - great service and top quality food

Great food and you get really well looked after

Step into France and enjoy good service, the delicious dishes on offer and my favourite cocktail, Route 66! Loved this little gem.

Excellent food, cocktails, and service. The wine selection is the best I’ve seen in awhile.

Excellent French Restaurant. Very good food wine list and service.

Meal and venue was exceptional! Sommelier very knowledgeable and recommended a lovely red to accompany our food. Great portion sizes leaving you full not uncomfortable. Definitely recommend!

Very nice restaurant. For ever changing good menu which keeps things interesting. Good wine list.

The cocktails, the atmosphere, the service. There is nothing not to love about Coco retro

Great atmosphere and good food.

Wonderful food . Even better service . We will be back . Highly recommend

Lunched with friends and had the lunchtime menu. Good choice, reasonable priced, lovely food and friendly staff.

Nice atmosphere, rather on the pricy side considering the average standard of food served. Cod dish and a Skate dish ordered, in both cases, fish was over cooked. Presentation of all the dishes served, there were four of us, average.

Excellent food, cocktails and staff! Highly recommended

Will be returning to this little gem. The food was delicious, the atmosphere and decor really pleasant with very attentive and friendly staff. A TW winner 🏆

Really great service and the food was just as good.

The service was excellent but sadly the very overpriced côte de boeuf from the special menu was very fatty and chewy and at £65 for two, we were a bit disappointed.

Slightly on the expensive side however the food was very enjoyable and the service was exceptional so you definitely get what you pay for. Highly recommend getting a cocktail before your meal here, one of the best espresso martinis I've had. Made for a very relaxing meal out with my family.

A fantastic lunch at Coco Retro, confident food, flavoursome, modern bistro with attentive friendly service, smooth jazz on the sound system and impeccable presentation. Escargot, poussin croquettes, poulet schnitzel, excellent pinot noir from Languedoc-Roussillon. All round goodness.

Fantastic food, great wine selection. Conveniently located near Tunbridge Wells train station. Well worth a visit.

Delicious food Excellent service

Excellent food and service. Very helpful staff.

So disappointed on what promised to be a good menu. Whilst the drinks were good although the wine list was overall expensive, there seemed no passion and love within the kitchen and the food they produce. Absolutely terrible crispy duck salad consisting of tiny bits of dry chewy duck (when you could find them), drizzled with a thick balsamic goo, not nice. Mains werent any better, dry meats and flavourless dauphinois. It felt like the kitchen just really doesn't care anymore and just goes through the motions. Such a shame when sister restaurant Soprano is so good.

Fantastic food, service and ambience.

Great Restaurant with cool cocktails.

Good buzz excellent service and great food

Lovely place. You could spend hours here with friends ploughing through cocktails and wine. It's relaxed and yet professional. Food is high quality but not fussy. We liked it very much.

Great atmosphere, great food and fabulous service. A lovely evening all round

Our first restaurant visit for an inside meal following the easing of lockdown restrictions and a wonderful experience.We chose this restaurant as we wanted something special to make up for lost birthday meals over the last year and we were not disappointed.Started with Kir Royales and went for the lunchtime menu which was fantastic value (£15.95 each for 3 courses). Glasses of red and white house wines (£5.75 for 175ml) were good.Starters of Gravlax and Courgette fritters.Mains we had were the Salmon and the Carbonade both with fries and both lovely.Followed up with the excellent Millefueille with dessert wine (Sauterne).Finally excellent coffees.Service was excellent, attentive, friendly and efficient.A fabulous experience. We will be back soon.HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

French is a nice change of pace from the usual restaurants locally. I have been passed here many times and used the pretence of my birthday to visit. Small but cosy inside, which gives a very intimate feel. Decor is lovely. Had three courses and a cocktail each, with still came to less than £100 so very good as I was expecting it to be higher. I had the Coco retro, which was very dangerous as you can't even taste the alcohol. I had the pork belly for mains, and it's probably the best I've had. Very rich, lots of flavour, and very generous serving of crackling. My partner had the lamb shank which was also delicious and fell off the bone.

Delicious food, locally sourced, beautifully cooked and presented with a great wine list and very friendly service. I'll be going back!

I was just Reminiscing, my last Visit was in October with 5 friends. We started at the bar with a couple of cocktails then moved up to the Restaurant for a beautiful 3 course meal. My Lamb was cooked perfectly. But the true star is the wine list and the knowledge the staff have. It is a wonderful thing to go to a Restaurant that has career staff and not just a couple of teenagers doing it for a summer job. Can't wait to book the Cellar when we are allowed to open up.

Lovely French restaurant. Great food and service. Recommend the cocktail menu! We were sat downstairs which felt a bit random as only 3 tables and bit of a disappointment when you walk through the upstairs first which is buzzing. Next time I will ask to sit upstairs.. but if you prefer quieter/more relaxed, perhaps downstairs is a better option!

Excellent restaurant. Holds more people than you'd think. The food was delicious, and the service was good despite being busy/under Covid restrictions.

Probably the best atmosphere in T Wells...very French bistro....food is extremely good....staff are very friendly. I really don’t understand the criticism of the prices, it is pretty good value....and the extensive wine list is well priced, cheapest bottle...house white...is rather good.

Fabulous food, staff and atmosphere. Great value lunch and we weren't hurried out - wonderful meal and fabulous cocktails. The snails were amazing as was the schnizel and the panna cottage. My favourite place to eat out in Tunbridge Wells and I am looking forward to returning again soon.

Excellent meal. Attentive service. Good COVID precautions. Recommended.

We had two tables of five persons in the special room downstairs and the restaurant opened specially for us on this occasion. The ambience, food service, distancing and general treatment of my guests was outstanding. Everyone said the food and wine were excellent and the starters and puddings/cheese were 'yummy. Overall, a great lunch in excellent surroundings, professional staff, and service that was efficient and unobtrusive.

Food and cocktails are Great....

Disappointing. The food was not any better than we would cook at home. It was fine but not memorable. The wine selection was over priced with the cheapest bottle around £35. Despite noting two vegans on our booking, they accommodated us but it was not good enough. Tasteless and uninspiring. Such a shame. I think they felt that as a French restaurant they didn't need to bother too much.We enjoyed the evening because we were in good company but we wouldn't go again unfortunately.

Lovely staff, yummy food, great drinks list. A nice cosy atmosphere.

We came here for dinner as my partner loves French style food. On arrival the staff were lovely, when seated the menu was a decent size with a nice selection of drinks. You don't get anything on the house for the table, no bread or water, you pay for everything which is a pity. But the quality of the food was beautiful.

A friend booked here for a birthday meal, there were 3 of us. I've only ever eaten upstairs before (quite some time ago), which has been good when I have. This time we were downstairs,placed at a table for 4 where literally we were back-to-back with the next table of 4. Were told "the tables are one metre apart" which completely misses the point - it's the people that are supposed to be 1 metre apart...We asked to move to another, empty table for 4 , which was sufficiently separate from any other, and were told that 3 couldn't sit at that table. No check-in QR code for the NHS app. Overall a bizarre and somewhat haphazard CV19 policy. Service was really friendly, though difficult to hear as it was so noisy (another sign they were packing too many people in.) Food was OK in parts - lamb apparently good, as were the aubergines, but the gravadlax and schnitzel average and a herring starter contained very little herring. Aesthetically this is a lovely restaurant, Art Nouveau style decor suits the building really well (the only oddity being a leering chef figure on the pavement!) and I would come back for drinks on a quiet evening, but until Covid is over I wouldn't risk eating downstairs again,sadly.

All good, enjoyable (EOTHO) meal. Packed upstairs and tables were sufficiently spaced.It's busy, so people running around. Staff attentive - especially once the waiter told not to top up wine to get the table back earlier - that was the only gripe.Recommend? Yes, with caveatsReturn? Possibly, lots of other local TW restaurants to try/go to/return to also

Beautiful food. Highly recommend. Lovely staff who make you feel welcome.

Amazing food will definitely return. Also good value for money

Very high quality food at a reasonable price. The restaurant was quiet and had a laid back classy vibe.

Great place for leisurely, boozy lunch. Friendly and helpful staff, great wine and cocktail list (including good non-alcoholic cocktails). Excellent traditional French food, I especially recommend the slow-cooked roulade of pork belly, if you like that kind of thing! Too busy eating and drinking to take any photos, though...

A lovely pre uni lunch with one of our granddaughters. Service excellent and friendly as usual.This is a delightful french style bistro and good menus including a very good priced lunch menu.Granddaughter had courgette Frits to start with followed by baked Camembert.We had shared mussels starter (excellent good size) with lovely cooking juiceMy wife had chicken schnitzel and I had prawns in a chilli and lemon sauce.Great value and highly recommended

Where here with friends and are very CV19 Aware I was taken to our table which was Spread out to give distance between each table Service was first class and the food is excellent with a great range on the menu and the food was served well and the wine list was extensive. I will be going back A hidden treasure in Tunbridge Wells

Very knowledgeable staff and great fresh food

My heavily pregnant partner and I took her mum for a birthday meal. It was everything we hoped it would be. The service, it was impeccable. My partners main wasn’t to her liking but wasn’t going to say anything. However it was noticed by Mauro who after a quick but considerate conversation had it changed to her liking. The atmosphere hits you the second you walk through the doors. The (Cuban?) music playing in the background is the perfect accompaniment for the heady list of cocktails they have available. The combination of french and Italian offerings on the menu had us stumped for some time before we finally decided what we wanted. And finally, baby brain meant that my partner left her phone on the seat. Which she didn’t realise till we had got home ‍♂️Fortunately, Mauro opened up on Sunday for me to collect her phone. (Crisis averted!)Perfect night out. We will be back!

We had a fantastic meal for my friend’s birthday in the private room downstairs. We have eaten at Coco Retro many times before in all sections of the restaurant but I have to say this time was the absolute best. The ambience of the private room, the personal menu and attentiveness of the staff was fantastic. The canapés, the sharing board, the mains (the sea bream was delicious) the mini desserts and cheese boards were delicious and extremely memorable. The price for the amount of food and drink we had represented incredible value for money. After so many months of home cooked food the whole meal happily reminded me how good hospitality can be so thank you Coco Retro!

Birthday lunch was perfect....food excellent......service excellent. We shall return.

With Monday 31st August being the last day of our holiday before going back to work, and the last day of the 'Eat out to help out' scheme, we decided to book a meal at a local restaurant we'd never visited before. What a revelation it was!I'm normally much more interested in the food than the interior decor or the ambiance. However, this place oozes style while remaining warm and friendly - no hint of stuffiness. We (me, husband, 12-year old son) arrived hungry and soon ordered bread - with soft garlic butter - and olives. I also had a Negroni cocktail - well, it was still holiday.For main course I chose the duck confit with cherry sauce; husband had the friture (mixed friend fish) and the boy went for the pork rouleaux. Everything was stunning: meat and fish cooked to perfection, tasty sauces, and quantities that were just right. Moving on to dessert we had the mille feuille (husband v. impressed), the chocolate brownie, and a cheese platter for me. Even the coffees at the end were amazing - everything was just so perfect.We'll definitely be back (soon) and I might even be able to fit in a starter too next time. The staff were lovely and the service had just the right balance between being there when you needed it but not in your face.

I have just returned from a wonderful lunch with my eight-year-old son. We ordered a variety of starters to share. He demolished a plate of frogs' legs, and declared that that the baked Camembert was his new favourite food. Staff were great too.

Delicious meal, good value especially with the eat out to help out scheme! Really lovely, friendly, attentive staff. Music a tad too loud and feel conversation became a little hard as the evening went on. Also if sat under the aircon it felt a bit chilly at times but didn't distract from the really tasty fresh food.

Lovely restaurant with amazing food! Good-natured staff, I want to single out waiter Nico in particular! Polite, always with a smile on his face, gave excellent recommendations on the wine map. Kitchen workers also want to thank for a tasty dinner. I will definitely recommend your restaurant and will return more than once. Thank you!

My nephew and his wife were over from Dubai and we needed somewhere special to take them. Coco Retro certainly didn't let us down. Delicious food and attentive service in a safe surrounding! We'll be back!

We went to eat because when we had before lockdown popped into the place before opening hours to see if we could have a quick cocktail before moving in, the two guys at front of house were incredibly good to us. So we had it see what the food was really like. And we were not disappointed. The same incredible attention service, after a cocktail starter of course and the the food was simply as good as we could possibly have expected it to be.Stars of the show were the rouleaux of pork and the crevette Provence. The cheese selection was superb as well, like the Chinon organic wine we had to wash it all down. A great place. Thank you guys.

Nasty staff. As soon as we paid for the bill they pushed us out the door literally (pushing me). I don't appreciate being treated like that after spending the amount I did in there. They also didn't put the 50% offer on untill I told them too. They also put dairy in the food I asked for to be vegan and thought it was funny to make me ill and having to go to A&E. The place needs to be shut down it is a complete disgrace!!!! Also is cramped and dirty.