Website menus need to be updated to reflect what is currently being offered. “All day menu “ not available for ordering but our server did his best to see if chef could accommodate a member at our table. Found wine to be pricey for what was offered. Overall I do really like this neighborhood restaurants. & will probably continue to patronize it
CynthiaS
Not sure what is going on but disappointed for the first time in 25 yrs. Sauteed spinach side for $9 was the equivalent of two bites and $29 for the mussels was too much for the amount given plus the toast that accompanied it was so hard you could break a tooth. Hopefully a one off and not a downhill slide.
Carol
As always, the Left Bank was a wonderful dining experience. The escargot were perfect, with the Acme bread, however, my only complaint was the lettuce in the Salad Nicoise. Instead of the usual butter lettuce, there was instead a mixture of arugula and other red lettuce which were not trimmed and had to be cut into bite sized pieces to eat. It was also a bit over dressed; otherwise very good, but a small disappointment. Otherwise, it was a lovely lunch, and we shall return.
This is a great destination with delicious food : a welcoming professional staff and ambience . Happy Hour is fun ., Sunday brunch is a special treat and lunch delicious .. you can enjoy every meal here anytime of the day !! My fav is dinner with cocktails ., it is an upscale treat !!'
Sonia
I took my mom to lunch, and it was a beautiful day on the Larkspur Leftbank patio! We took advantage of Loire oyster week, and started our meal with incredible grilled and raw oysters. The Special Crab Salad with mango and Ahi Tuna Tar Tar were both delicious and refreshing for the hot day. We had to have the Chicken Brie and Arugula sandwich as well- so satisfying! Ambience was great and service was amazing. Our server, Taylor, took great care of us- being very well attentive and knowledgeable of the menu. I love this place!
Roland Passot's The Left Bank in Larkspur is perhaps my favorite restaurant in Marin. Even after the past two years of combined 17+% inflation, the Left Bank delivers reasonable value for consistently well-prepared French bistro cuisine. Their steak frites with Bordelaise sauce is one of the best anywhere. My only small beef (pun intended) is that now, in addition to the $36 price, the restaurant has decided to charge $3 extra for the bordelaise, whereas before it was part of the deal. It's a growing trend in the restaurant business (just as it has been in the airline business with extra seat, bag, and food charges)- which turns me off- to charge separately for anything on the table- the bread and butter, the sparkling water, the small side vegetable. Like many places, The Left Bank also charges for bread and butter. Or $8 for a bottle of sparkling water. Granted, the steak frites is $36 and not $40 or $50, but a *half* pound of high quality skirt steak wholesale is about $5-7, so a 4x markup should cover the dish along with the pomme frites, arugula, and the bordelaise! Also, the bordelaise was thinner this time. When they make it to perfection it's the most sublime sauce you'll ever eat with a steak. So like I said- a small matter overall- Mr. Passot has contributed to the quality of life in Marin, and the Bay Area with other L.B. locations along with the famed "La Folie" in SF, for decades! P.S. Best Moules and pomme frites this side of France!
carol cunningham
Always perfect!Thank You!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Farb49
Lovely dinner at Left Bank. We were in the back, so it was nice and quiet. Our server was exceptional, and so sweet. We loved her. Staff was so courteous and polite. Food was outstanding as always. I've been thinking about the Sole all day! We stayed talking late, nearly the last to leave. A bit of Paris in Marin! Can't wait to come back, it's always great at The Left Bank!
JoAnn
Fabulous food & service. Expensive—especially beverages. Could use sound reduction ceiling & wall panels. Quite loud but staff gave us great location near fireplace & every other aspect outstanding.
Left bank was truly amazing dinner for my bestie and I. We tried a lot of food. Our top faves: steak tartare, prawns, the crab special salad, French onion soup and the truffle fries. Their version of the affogato was delicious and we spied some profiteroles-we have to get that next time! But above all, Sammi our server was truly the highlight of the meal. Her smile and service were top notch. She guided us through our decadent meal. Truly amazing!
NancyS
Delicious French cuisine.....service is marginal. Our waiter was so busy...he started friendly, then he got slammed serving the entire front section that by the end of our meal was very rushed, absent and then surly. Too bad...almost ruined a very nice dining experience.
Mikfro
I love the Left Bank. It has a good, welcoming feel, though tables are too close, making it loud and a little hard to maneuver around the dining room. Generally, the food is excellent. I loved the spring vegetables, the mashed potatoes, the bread was good. The beef bourguignon, delicious, the salad verde, excellent-- fresh, crisp lettuce, well dressed. However, it was served at the same time as the entre, which made for a very crowded table, and, we'd expected and preferred the salad to be served before the meal. The reason for the three star food rating instead of four is because my roasted chicken was way beyond overcooked. It was dry to the point of being hard to swallow (the flavor was excellent). I ended up taking it home to use to make broth-- that's about all it was good for.
LauraS
Went for lunch. The niçoise salad was great as was the charcuterie plate. We liked the fact that the wines by the glass could be ordered by 1/2 or full carafe. Changed our seating to sit by the window because the back of the restaurant is a bit dark. Service was attentive even when the place was full at lunch. We haven't been to this place for awhile so it was a good time to go and remember how much we like it.
LTMN
Food was decent, service was lacking even though the restaurant was not busy. The prix fixe menu posted on the website was not available and no apologies were made when questioned. We were overcharged for several items and the manager's attitude was dismissive at best. Won't be back any time soon. Want to give them time to remember they're in the hospitality business.
Superb tartare and frites.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 3
Website menus need to be updated to reflect what is currently being offered. “All day menu “ not available for ordering but our server did his best to see if chef could accommodate a member at our table. Found wine to be pricey for what was offered. Overall I do really like this neighborhood restaurants. & will probably continue to patronize it
Not sure what is going on but disappointed for the first time in 25 yrs. Sauteed spinach side for $9 was the equivalent of two bites and $29 for the mussels was too much for the amount given plus the toast that accompanied it was so hard you could break a tooth. Hopefully a one off and not a downhill slide.
As always, the Left Bank was a wonderful dining experience. The escargot were perfect, with the Acme bread, however, my only complaint was the lettuce in the Salad Nicoise. Instead of the usual butter lettuce, there was instead a mixture of arugula and other red lettuce which were not trimmed and had to be cut into bite sized pieces to eat. It was also a bit over dressed; otherwise very good, but a small disappointment. Otherwise, it was a lovely lunch, and we shall return.
This is a great destination with delicious food : a welcoming professional staff and ambience . Happy Hour is fun ., Sunday brunch is a special treat and lunch delicious .. you can enjoy every meal here anytime of the day !! My fav is dinner with cocktails ., it is an upscale treat !!'
I took my mom to lunch, and it was a beautiful day on the Larkspur Leftbank patio! We took advantage of Loire oyster week, and started our meal with incredible grilled and raw oysters. The Special Crab Salad with mango and Ahi Tuna Tar Tar were both delicious and refreshing for the hot day. We had to have the Chicken Brie and Arugula sandwich as well- so satisfying! Ambience was great and service was amazing. Our server, Taylor, took great care of us- being very well attentive and knowledgeable of the menu. I love this place!
Roland Passot's The Left Bank in Larkspur is perhaps my favorite restaurant in Marin. Even after the past two years of combined 17+% inflation, the Left Bank delivers reasonable value for consistently well-prepared French bistro cuisine. Their steak frites with Bordelaise sauce is one of the best anywhere. My only small beef (pun intended) is that now, in addition to the $36 price, the restaurant has decided to charge $3 extra for the bordelaise, whereas before it was part of the deal. It's a growing trend in the restaurant business (just as it has been in the airline business with extra seat, bag, and food charges)- which turns me off- to charge separately for anything on the table- the bread and butter, the sparkling water, the small side vegetable. Like many places, The Left Bank also charges for bread and butter. Or $8 for a bottle of sparkling water. Granted, the steak frites is $36 and not $40 or $50, but a *half* pound of high quality skirt steak wholesale is about $5-7, so a 4x markup should cover the dish along with the pomme frites, arugula, and the bordelaise! Also, the bordelaise was thinner this time. When they make it to perfection it's the most sublime sauce you'll ever eat with a steak. So like I said- a small matter overall- Mr. Passot has contributed to the quality of life in Marin, and the Bay Area with other L.B. locations along with the famed "La Folie" in SF, for decades! P.S. Best Moules and pomme frites this side of France!
Always perfect!Thank You!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Lovely dinner at Left Bank. We were in the back, so it was nice and quiet. Our server was exceptional, and so sweet. We loved her. Staff was so courteous and polite. Food was outstanding as always. I've been thinking about the Sole all day! We stayed talking late, nearly the last to leave. A bit of Paris in Marin! Can't wait to come back, it's always great at The Left Bank!
Fabulous food & service. Expensive—especially beverages. Could use sound reduction ceiling & wall panels. Quite loud but staff gave us great location near fireplace & every other aspect outstanding.
Restaurantji Recommends
Left bank was truly amazing dinner for my bestie and I. We tried a lot of food. Our top faves: steak tartare, prawns, the crab special salad, French onion soup and the truffle fries. Their version of the affogato was delicious and we spied some profiteroles-we have to get that next time! But above all, Sammi our server was truly the highlight of the meal. Her smile and service were top notch. She guided us through our decadent meal. Truly amazing!
Delicious French cuisine.....service is marginal. Our waiter was so busy...he started friendly, then he got slammed serving the entire front section that by the end of our meal was very rushed, absent and then surly. Too bad...almost ruined a very nice dining experience.
I love the Left Bank. It has a good, welcoming feel, though tables are too close, making it loud and a little hard to maneuver around the dining room. Generally, the food is excellent. I loved the spring vegetables, the mashed potatoes, the bread was good. The beef bourguignon, delicious, the salad verde, excellent-- fresh, crisp lettuce, well dressed. However, it was served at the same time as the entre, which made for a very crowded table, and, we'd expected and preferred the salad to be served before the meal. The reason for the three star food rating instead of four is because my roasted chicken was way beyond overcooked. It was dry to the point of being hard to swallow (the flavor was excellent). I ended up taking it home to use to make broth-- that's about all it was good for.
Went for lunch. The niçoise salad was great as was the charcuterie plate. We liked the fact that the wines by the glass could be ordered by 1/2 or full carafe. Changed our seating to sit by the window because the back of the restaurant is a bit dark. Service was attentive even when the place was full at lunch. We haven't been to this place for awhile so it was a good time to go and remember how much we like it.
Food was decent, service was lacking even though the restaurant was not busy. The prix fixe menu posted on the website was not available and no apologies were made when questioned. We were overcharged for several items and the manager's attitude was dismissive at best. Won't be back any time soon. Want to give them time to remember they're in the hospitality business.