Sutton isn’t overburdened with high-end restaurants, so a collective sigh of relief must surely have greeted the arrival of this informal temple to classic French food in late 2009. It comes from Malcolm John, chef patron behind Chiswick’s Le Vacherin and Croydon’s Le Cassoulet, which certainly bodes well.

The Venue
Brasserie Vacherin stands out like a very attractive sore thumb amidst an uninspiring array of chain restaurants and undistinguished bars on a short parade leading to Sutton’s railway station. Once inside, anyone who’s dined at Chef John’s other establishments will recognise the look, so expect line-drawn murals of a typical French town snaking around the walls, smart, dark wood and leather chairs, oxblood banquets and paper menus doubling as place mats. Vintage French popular music plays, and to show that this is a 21st-century London take on a French brasserie, large skylights and even larger ceiling lamp shades also feature. There are seventy covers plus five stools at the bar, and a further thirty can dine al fresco on the patio, so it's certainly a sizeable restaurant.

The Atmosphere
This place deserves to buzz every night but on a midweek evening, diners (mainly middle-aged and all civilised) are relatively thin on the ground. Smart, charming, chatty and utterly competent waiters create a pleasant ambience.

The Food
As with the décor, Malcolm John followers will find the menu comfortingly familiar, albeit slightly pared-down from what’s on offer at Le Vacherin and Le Cassoulet. Thankfully the prices are similarly smaller, so things are on a par.

The bread basket (first one free, £1.50 thereafter) gets things off to a impressive start. The pain rustique slices arrive warm and very fresh with perfectly soft anchovy and pink peppercorn-flavoured butter which is just sensational.

From an octet of starters including classics like escargots and chilled vichyssoise, the chicken liver parfait (£5.50) is a hit. The little pot of pâté is silky smooth and deeply meaty, and sealed with soft duck fat instead of the usual butter. The only negative is that it could do with two slices of brioche rather than one. Atlantic prawns with aioli (£6.50) is a surprise to anyone expecting three or four giant specimens. Instead, a big bowl of unshelled, diminutive crustaceans arrives, so there’s lots of dismantling to do. They taste good, though, as do the accompanying, subtly garlic-flavoured mayo and dressed leaves.

The mains are heavy on red meats (as befits a French operation), although there are two options each for fish fans and vegetarians. A generously proportioned rib-eye steak (£15.50) is cooked perfectly to order, with delicious charring and a creamy pepper sauce (an extra £1.50) that proves the perfect foil. Frites (£3) are equally good, arriving salted and piping hot, and cut a little more thickly than usual, with some skin left on. Their container is a paper-lined, metal pot which some might consider a bit gimmicky and dated.

Barbary duck confit (£13.50) is suitably tender, and with crisp skin. Its cherry sauce could be a bit sourer and contain more pieces of fruit, but the addition of bitter braised endive is inspired.

Onto desserts. Cherry clafouti (£6) with its light batter and tart fruit is good, but the apple tart (£6.50) is even more impressive, featuring the thinnest, crispest puff pastry imaginable, and the most finely sliced fruit, which still manages to retain some bite. Deeply flavoured caramel ice cream is a perfect partner.

A prix fixe menu of three starters, three mains and three puddings featuring delights like English asparagus, grey mullet and gooseberry compote, is a steal at £14 for two courses, £16.95 for three.

The Drink
The French-heavy but global wine list features ten champagnes and other sparklers, twenty four whites, two rosés, twenty five reds and a trio of dessert wines. A good selection is available by the 175 glass and 500ml carafe, and prices range from £15.50 to £89.

All the wines sampled display real quality. A 2010 South African Chenin Blanc (£5.50/£14.50/£19.50) is complex, smooth and satisfying. A 2009 French Sauvignon (£5.85/£16/95/£23) is more floral and quaffable. As for reds, a 2008 Merlot, also from France (£5.85/£15.95/£21.50) is smoky, spicy and deeply fruity, and a 2007 Muscat (£6.75 for 75ml, £28 a bottle) isn’t over-sweet and partners the apple tart to perfection.

The Last Word
Brasserie Vacherin shines like a beacon amid its pizza and family-friendly restaurant chain neighbours. It might not quite have the wow factor of its stablemates, Le Vacherin and Le Cassoulet, but prices (£40-£50 for three courses plus half a bottle of modest wine) reflect this. And it’s still a great, Gallic night out.

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