French Saloon

French Saloon French Saloon Wine Bar and small plates Climb the narrow flight of stairs up from the red brick lane to enter the saloon.
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A room that is at once spacious, open and rambling, one side lined by a wall of windows, the other a splendid bar of long fluted zinc; counterpoint to the perfectly proportioned, intimate beauty of its little brother downstairs. Spanning the late 1800’s and early 1900’s, French Saloon borrows from the decadence and familiarity of the Parisian bar & bistro, while finding common ground with the enjo

yment of raucous company and a sense of mischief. Start with Champagne and caviar at the bar, progress with steak tartare and bottles of Burgundy. A dining room to some, a bar for well-made cocktails and snacks for others – above all, a room for good fun and a party. Salon de Thè
Secluded from the more boisterous Saloon Bar next door, the Salon de Thè is a refined, handsome first floor private dining room. From a corner vantage overlooking Hardware Lane, long iron-framed windows flood the space with natural light. Weathered, original floorboards, elegant wall panelling and a delicate, cut glass chandelier contrast against a magnificent timber table set with bentwood chairs.

Yellow belly flounder, sauce américaine. Flounder is trimmed and skinned, then with dusted spring onion powder. Sauce am...
04/06/2026

Yellow belly flounder, sauce américaine. Flounder is trimmed and skinned, then with dusted spring onion powder. Sauce américaine is made from crayfish shells, brandy, tomato then thickened with butter and finished with lemon. Available as a whole or half fish.

Chocolate marquis. An 80% Belgian chocolate enriched with a pâte à bombe and then lightened with whipped cream served se...
02/06/2026

Chocolate marquis. An 80% Belgian chocolate enriched with a pâte à bombe and then lightened with whipped cream served severed chilled with house made honeycomb, cocoa nib brownie and chocolate sauce.
“Pure decadent …” is the cleanest quote we could get from the chef.

Sour dough crusted bass grouper, watercress velouté, snail persillade, radish. Our current market fish here at the Saloo...
20/05/2026

Sour dough crusted bass grouper, watercress velouté, snail persillade, radish. Our current market fish here at the Saloon.

Dry aged duck breast, Jerusalem artichoke, chicory, cherry jus. Sourced from Aurum Poultry, these Macedon Ranges ducks a...
14/05/2026

Dry aged duck breast, Jerusalem artichoke, chicory, cherry jus. Sourced from Aurum Poultry, these Macedon Ranges ducks are processed in-house to ensure zero waste. We confit the legs for Kirk’s, dry-age the breasts for 14 days, and craft signature stocks from the bones. We also utilise the necks for sausages at Le Pub downstairs (coming soon).

We’re loving the Autumn harvest arriving here at the Saloon lately. Here is our salt baked celeriac, soubise, mushroom a...
05/05/2026

We’re loving the Autumn harvest arriving here at the Saloon lately. Here is our salt baked celeriac, soubise, mushroom and preserved truffle. On the menu now.

23/04/2026

Autumn nights.

We will be closed this Saturday for ANZAC Day. Our neighbours and sister venues  and  will be open as normal.
20/04/2026

We will be closed this Saturday for ANZAC Day. Our neighbours and sister venues and will be open as normal.

Parisienne gnocchi, tomato jaune, pistou, mimolette. A staple here at the Saloon. Yellow cherry tomatoes are sweated wit...
15/04/2026

Parisienne gnocchi, tomato jaune, pistou, mimolette. A staple here at the Saloon. Yellow cherry tomatoes are sweated with yellow capsicum and aromatics, then simmered for hours to make the sugo. The gnocchi is choux pastry based with house made chlorophyll added to give it its vibrant green colour, it is then hand piped, and pan fried to order.

Some more food focused captures, including the hog, from The Whole Hog for  2026.
01/04/2026

Some more food focused captures, including the hog, from The Whole Hog for 2026.

Thank you to all our wonderful guests who came to experience the first 'The Whole Hog' lunch as part of MFWF 2026. It wa...
31/03/2026

Thank you to all our wonderful guests who came to experience the first 'The Whole Hog' lunch as part of MFWF 2026. It was a pleasure to host you all. Here are the first round of pictures, and the food pics are coming soon.

Whole roasted market fish, bonne femme, pommes allumettes.
30/03/2026

Whole roasted market fish, bonne femme, pommes allumettes.

French Saloon will be closing this coming Easter period, trading as normal again on Tuesday 7 April.
30/03/2026

French Saloon will be closing this coming Easter period, trading as normal again on Tuesday 7 April.

We have just had a few spots become available for this years MFWF nose-to-tail extravaganza, The Whole Hog. The team has...
26/03/2026

We have just had a few spots become available for this years MFWF nose-to-tail extravaganza, The Whole Hog. The team has been busy (and having fun) getting ready for this year’s edition.. secure your spot via the link in the bio.

Roast rock flathead, bouillabaisse, vermouth pickled mussels, prawn, fennel. Our current market fish here at the Saloon,...
18/03/2026

Roast rock flathead, bouillabaisse, vermouth pickled mussels, prawn, fennel. Our current market fish here at the Saloon, and after the customer demand for our last flathead dish, a very worthy replacement.

We’ll be back on Tuesday, trading as normal.
04/03/2026

We’ll be back on Tuesday, trading as normal.

Snapper tartare, sapphire grapes, tarragon, music bread. On the summer menu, while the seasonal sapphire grapes are this...
19/02/2026

Snapper tartare, sapphire grapes, tarragon, music bread. On the summer menu, while the seasonal sapphire grapes are this good.

We are booked out on Saturday night for Valentine's Day. However, we still have some space for tonight and Friday for th...
12/02/2026

We are booked out on Saturday night for Valentine's Day. However, we still have some space for tonight and Friday for the early birds - or just because. You can secure your spot online.

Back as normal on Tuesday.
25/01/2026

Back as normal on Tuesday.

Something sweet to end the week here on Hardware Lane. The ‘gypsy tart’. A rich caramel is perfectly balanced by sea sal...
16/01/2026

Something sweet to end the week here on Hardware Lane. The ‘gypsy tart’. A rich caramel is perfectly balanced by sea salt, lime zest and crème fraîche. Bookings recommended, walk ins welcomed.

Welcoming you back for the summer from next week. Bookings for January are now open whether for a casual pre dinner aper...
08/01/2026

Welcoming you back for the summer from next week. Bookings for January are now open whether for a casual pre dinner aperitif or full meal in the dining room, we look forward to ascending the Saloon stairs with you soon.

We're taking bookings all the way through until Christmas Day, and then we will be taking a short break. Bookings are al...
17/12/2025

We're taking bookings all the way through until Christmas Day, and then we will be taking a short break. Bookings are already open for the peak Australian Open period in January.

Golden hour at the Saloon.
04/12/2025

Golden hour at the Saloon.

We’re thrilled to be a part of the Melbourne Food and Wine Festival once again in 2026. Come experience The Whole Hog wi...
27/11/2025

We’re thrilled to be a part of the Melbourne Food and Wine Festival once again in 2026. Come experience The Whole Hog with us at French Saloon, where every part counts. Co-presented by our friends at Le Pub and Kirk's Wine Bar. After last year’s sold-out St John event, we don’t expect tickets to last long. Details and tickets at the link below.

Join the gang from French Saloon, Kirks Wine Bar and Le Pub for The Whole Hog on Hardware Lane. After last year's sold-out collaboration with London's renowned St. John, the team are back presenting another unique nose-to-tail dining experience.

We will be open as normal from Wednesday.
02/11/2025

We will be open as normal from Wednesday.

We're delighted to see we've once again retained our Chef's Hat in the 2026 Good Food Guide. We couldn't get everyone to...
30/10/2025

We're delighted to see we've once again retained our Chef's Hat in the 2026 Good Food Guide. We couldn't get everyone together for a photo today, so here are just a few smiling faces of our team, of which we couldn't be more proud. A heartfelt congratulations and thanks to our industry peers and, of course, all those who ascend the stairs into our French Saloon.

Address

First Floor, 46 Hardware Lane
Melbourne, VIC
3000

Opening Hours

Tuesday 5:30pm - 11pm
Wednesday 5:30pm - 11pm
Thursday 12pm - 11pm
Friday 12pm - 11pm
Saturday 5pm - 11pm

Website

https://www.frenchsaloon.com/

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