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Reviews

• • Daniel S.
    August 26, 2010

  • All other complaints aside, one must admit their bread is superb.

• • jason
    August 25, 2010
  • Sorry but I have lived in Kunming for now over 6 years and sadly the French Cafe has the worst coffee makers. The service is terrible and slow, that is when the girls are not talking to each other or on their mobiles.

    I feel that the top review was correct in saying that the Chinese woman manager is so dam rude and does nothing... so I would personally say aviod this place and take a short walk to the Prauge Cafe were the service is so improved and the food really does taste excellent!!!! Their coffees are so much nicer than the french cafe also. live love and enjoy food.. cheers

• • timkunming
    August 22, 2010
  • This is a bit of an update from my previous review three years ago. I still enjoy coming here more than any other place in the area, and find it to be far quieter and much more relaxing than other places nearby.

    I'm still going to complain about the service. This is the ONE thing that they still haven't managed to do correctly or consistently. It's not so much the girls working there...most of them do a good job and even smile from time to time. My main complaint lies with the incredibly rude "manager," a rather rotund, homely looking Chinese woman.

    When I ask for an order of fries at 10:30 PM for my friends and I who've been buying drinks for the past three hours, I'd appreciate not getting a irritated smirk back. Don't feign looking towards the kitchen like it's such a chore you'd rather not bother. In fact, I had to ask her twice. The second time I said, "Can they be made?" to which I simply received a nod. No smile, no nothing.

    Get rid of this woman and the place would improve and be even better than it already is. It's not the first time she's been rude or dismissive to us and we consider ourselves to be "regulars." She's a mass of pestilence that's ruining an otherwise great place here in downtown Kunming.

• • Andorra
    October 8, 2009

• • magentalisted
    July 9, 2009
  • The food that I tried here was really delicious--nice crusty bread with a generous cupful of cream cheese, thoughtfully served with tomato and cucumber slices for a reasonable price. We didn't have any problems with the service the two times we visited, but I wasn't as impressed by the chai. The tarts are also ridiculously delicious but perhaps too pricey to eat; sidewalk seating is a nice touch.

• • invisible
    July 7, 2009
  • Still the best street cafe on Wenlinjie. Some dishes are superb, most dishes nice to average, the only dishes that break that consistency are the so la la soups. Good hot and cold drinks and some nice authentic French menu items you can't find anywhere else in town make it an outstanding place. I would give it five out of five it they wouldn't have doubled the prices in the the last years and kicked out that PC to check your mail. But the price hike is also due the increasing rent and commercialisation of the whole uni-area. Still I love to hang out outside and drink my hot chocolate everytime I'm in KMG. Keep up the good work and think about franchising in other cities further north:)

• • WeiXue
    January 6, 2008
  • Since no one has mentioned the desserts....they're awesome!

    Everyone else is correct about problems with the service, etc. but the desserts are great and can be purchased at the restaurant on WenLin Jie or from a little dessert case next to Paul's on the other side of WenHua Xiang.

    My favorite is the strawberry tart, but the lemon tart, the chocolate tart and the éclairs are all quite good.

    Update: Recently I have tried several of the French Cafe's sandwiches. They have all been pretty good and they have quite a few to choose from. Probably the best sandwiches around the Wenlin area, in my opinion. The sandwiches are a better bet than the salads.

• • prd34
    January 6, 2008
  • One of the reason I go to the French Cafe is for the Yunnan Coffee and the Cheeseburgers - the latter of which I think are the best in Kunming. The french fries are also pretty excellent! But then again, the staff and the owners are quite nice too.

    I have made it a habit to order at the bar when I enter most of the cafes on WenLinJie. Otherwise, I just take it for granted that one will have to wait.

    I really think that the French Cafe should definitely get rid of their WiFi (aka Why fry?) system though - since it can make people irritable. Recently, though, I have been getting better service there and the staff seems to be making an effort to be more friendly. Too much exposure to EMR (from cell phones and WiFi) can make people listless and irritable. Moreover, it is well-known - in some circles - that this is indeed most likely the cause of ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder) so for those who want to study in a WiFi cafe, you might actually be defeating the purpose of studying - since it can affect concentration and memory.

    I like the French Cafe, but I am annoyed by people who lack consideration of those around them by frying the brains of those nearby them with their microwaves transceivers (i.e. cell phones) or by smoking. :(

    The first cafe to make their establishment non-smoking on Wen Lin Jie will definitely attrack a nich-market of non-smoking customers. Many foreigners (and some Chinese) are extremely annoyed by this habit and often will get up and leave when someone near them starts smoking.

    Often too, are people who come into one of these cafes to only order a cheap drink so that they can surf the Internet for hours. I don't see it really being profitable for the businesses to offer this "service" to attract customers - who in actuality are not there to eat, but rather to use the WiFi.

• • Howie
    January 3, 2008
  • I heard that Lan Bai Hong had some crap staff, but they must have gotten rid of them, because I have had only good service. True, they're just plain old Yunnan nongmin and not college girls trolling for expat boyfriends, and they don't speak English or French, but they get the job done!

    I must agree with previous reviewers that burgers and fries are excellent, as is coffee, WiFi connection and overall fengshui. Surprisingly good books in their library. A few too many French poseurs for my taste, but that's a hazard of life in Kunming!

• • Heinz
    November 6, 2007
  • Yes, service isn't good, but it's probably the only place in Kunming to get a (usually) decent (meat!) burger and great fries. Also good are the strawberry tarts (in season) with a milk coffee. Interesting to notice the division of clientele between FC and Salvador with very little crossover.

• • rob69
    November 6, 2007
  • i don't know what those guys are on about. i came to kunming and a lot of people suggested that i go to french cafe, so i went. i thought it has a nice atmosphere- like a real cafe. the music was good and i felt that i could relax there for a while. the food is like proper western food, the cakes are great and i like the fact that you don't have the fussyness of a restaraunt. it's also the only place in China where i've found proper long island ice teas. i'd certainly go back.

• • Jared
    October 8, 2007
  • While it has a certain chic, French Cafe is dragged down by its painfully inattentive staff and uneven food offerings.

    Service.

    It can't be overstated just how genuinely poor the service is at French Cafe.

    I stopped by this afternoon hoping to be proven wrong on this point.

    I found a table outside (in view of the bar) at 3:08pm.

    Sure enough, nearly a half-hour passed (at 3:34) before I saw a menu.

    It was another ten minutes before the server took my order.

    If you go, be prepared to have to get up and ask if you want something.

    And be forewarned: your food may or may not arrive in a timely fashion, and may be totally different from what you expect.

    Food & Drinks.

    The french fries, naturally enough, are excellent.

    Everything else I've tried has been, at best, average.

    If you happen to be craving a Quiche Lorraine, they offer a good approximation.

    However, for the best experience, avoid ordering a full meal and just go for drinks.

    My friends from Montpellier recommend their Pastis.

    Ambiance.

    French Cafe is at its most charming on a Friday or Saturday night with its dim lighting, ambient beats, and a lively but uncrowded international clientèle.

    Midweek afternoons are less enjoyable, especially upstairs where it reeks of stale cigarette smoke.

    The wall opposite the bar has some interesting posters, particularly the old map of Kunming from a bygone era when the French sought to extend their Southeast Asian empire northward to Yunnan.

    Unique Feature.

    Its Frenchness.

• • Kevin
    October 8, 2007
  • I agree with last reviewer.

    Food is below standard if you ever get it.

    The yunnan coffee is pretty good.

    This restaurant needs to put all their emphasis on customer service.

    Again, if you don't order at the front, good luck.

• • knoife
    October 4, 2007
  • Only good thing about this place is the coffee, oh yes, and the internet connection.

    The food is below average if you can get any service. Seems they forget your order the moment you give it- even if you're the only customer there.

• • Bernie
    October 3, 2007
  • As reported elsewhere, my experience was to order the 'Exotique' salad that was otherwise described as a chicken salad.

    I had eaten most of it before I realised that it was sans chicken (actually, I did discover a couple of minute scraps of meat).

    When I complained, I was told that they would remember next time.

    Next time!

    I wanted to tell them that I would pay . . . next time.

• • oyarsa
    October 2, 2007
  • I have had two extremely bad experiences with the French Cafe. The food has always been subpar and it seems they just don't try to maintain any kind of quality in the food they serve or the way they train there staff. Their coffee is decent which is about the only good thing I can say. After my last experience there I won't be going back again.