Reviews for Papillon Restaurant in Fremont, CA
Treated myself to a five star dining experience at my favorite French restaurant on July 19th 2022. Their food is always fresh... hot and perfect. Their service is always second to none. This is exactly why they are still in business after all these years.Enjoyed many perfect meals in Edwin’s room. I was friends with the owner before he passed away many years ago. Now both of hissons run this very special place and continue to make their father very proud. Give them a try. You will never be disappointed.Stay awesome my friends. ???? Read more
The last time I was in Papillon Restaurant in the Niles District of Fremont, California was 13 years ago for my 39th birthday... dinner, with my Dad, Mom, sister, etc. I remember it as a posh place, if a bit frayed at the edges even then. But I did rememberthat the food was good, the ambience classy, the charm old-world. Now that I have my husband as main partner-in-crime in foodforays, we decided to splurge on a no-special-occasion-just-trippin' dinner date. Although we were about 10 minutes late for ourreservation (reservations are REQUIRED), we were still graciously & quickly ushered to our table by the covered patio side. Forstarters, hubby simply loved the house salad & I cherished my French onion soup with the crunchy pastry overlay! Our steaks weredone to perfection & the roasted vegetables were crisp & flavorful. Of course we were heathens in that we didn't order fromtheir extensive wine selection (a thick menu of it) but we had our plain iced sodas & our water was thoughtfully replenishedfrom time to time without our having to ask. Little touches like these make Papillon still a great family-owned fine-diningplace all these years. The overall decor sure could use an upgrade, but in terms of superb food, attentive service, & intimateambience, Papillon Restaurant still has it! Thank you. Read more
The Bay Area is full of dining choices but if you are looking for old school Continental cuisine, consider Papillon in Fremont. ... We dined there yesterday and went classic from start to finish: escargot, French onion soup topped with puff pastry, BeefWellington and strawberries flambee! Note: the strawberries flambee are not on the dessert menu but can be requested (cherry isalso available). The price is $35 but it is dessert and a show! You can also advance request banana flambee but you have to dothat before coming to the restaurant. For wine, we had a Bordeaux that went very well. Everything was exactly as I had hoped itwould be. Read more
So I just got done drafting a long message on our experience but this form won't let me post it it's too long. So I'm going to... say my experience was very poor because the server made us wait 30 minutes before she introduced herself and another 45 minutesbefore she took our appetizer order. And then almost an hour before she took our entree order. Our entree took 35 minutes tobring it out and then she completely ignored us for another 45 minutes even though we had problems with her meal. My wife's pork tenderloin with smothered in gravy for some reason even though we're supposed to be a glaze and the meat was extremely drylike a Saltine cracker. It was unedible and she didn't eat it. My steak was undercooked and my shrimp was still translucent. Ireally wish I could post this long message to give you all the details but it won't let me. Overall if they can get theirserver to be more attentive and the chef can get his temperatures right the experience would be decent. Hope you get the stuffworked out my friends. Read more
We went with my husband on May 7, 2022 to celebrate his birthday since he likes French cuisine. The place has nice parking and... beautiful flowers outside the restaurant, we really liked it. The interior seems like a French house interior from the lastcentury. Nice details and decorations, a bit not in my taste since I prefer more modern designs, but definitely underliningFrench personality of the place. We were seated at a very nice spot with red chairs, by the door to the outside part of therestaurant. Our table also had a fresh orchid flower and a candle, which is super nice and creates romantic atmosphere. Now ontothe food. I decided to order 4 appetizers, while my husband had 1 appetizer and a main dish with French Onion soup on the side.We both ordered baked brie with jam - it was really amazing, tender, flavorful, served at just the right temperature. I highlyrecommend it. French Onion soup had extremely rich and dense flavour, was nicely served and I am ready to order it again andagain. I ordered salmon carpaccio, and I was a bit disappointed since it was just a plate with smoked salmon, an egg, capers,and onions. I was expecting to have raw salmon meat which carpaccio typically is. However, I may have not paid attention to thedish description - maybe it said that salmon is smoked, so that is on me. After appetizers were served we unfortunately had towait for about an hour to get the main dish and the remaining two appetizers. That's why I gave 4 stars. It seemed like therewere some issues with making the main dish which was short ribs and timing everything to come together. We made that conclusionbecause when the dishes finally came, short rib was juicy and hot, while my appetizers were pretty cold and no longer asenjoyable. So the short rib was on the Special's menu and was tender, juicy, a bit crispy on the outside and had nice flavor toit. We shared the short rib since my appetizers - mushroom ravioli and mussels - were cold and pretty much i Read more
Me and my partner definitely loved our dining experience here. The food was absolutely delicious, and the service was above and... beyond. We will definitely be eating here again! Read more
They have a nice Nice wine list and strong cocktails. The appetizers are yummy. We tried crab cakes, ahi tuna, baked brie and... brussel sprouts. For our mains we tried the ribs but the mashed potatoes were cold. We asked for a hot serving but it nevercame. The filets were perfectly cooked medium rare and the veggies were crisp and fresh tasting. The beef wellington was greatonly it got a little soggy. Probably sat in the gravy too long or had been frozen. The gravy was delightful and the breadsoaked it up so you could savor the flavors. The tiramisu was what we believe homemade with love. The creme brule fell flatwith a good custard consistency but no flavor and sugar on top too thick to bite. We will come back as the food was good, evenwith a few minor let downs. Servers were happy and friendly. Perfect for a romantic evening or a birthday celebration or justa night out with you significant other. I'm trying the fish next time! Read more
I loved the place! The food is really good and the prices are good too. I liked baked brie and Beef Wellington. We particularly... enjoyed a very friendly atmosphere where the owner comes and greets you and the staff makes you feel at home. Feels like Europe. Read more