As a wise person once said, ‘if you’ve seen a pissed UCL student straddling a Trafalgar Square lion at 2am, then you’ve seen it all’. Okay, yes, we said that, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t true. Like all Londoners, we see a lot. Joy. Tragedy. Far too much public urination. It’s almost impossible to surprise us. Which is exactly why it’s so impressive that Brasserie Zedel in Soho does exactly that.

This place is huge. But most of it’s underground. You enter through their small, boulevard style cafe area just off of Piccadilly Circus and you’ll either think ‘oh look, someone raided the set of Moulin Rouge, how exciting’ or, if you’re a proper Londoner, ‘good god, not another faux French restaurant’. It doesn’t matter, just keep walking. Once you’ve gone down the red carpeted steps, and under the chandelier that probably belonged to Mariah Carey in a former life, you’ll get to the brasserie. Stop. Give yourself a second to take it all in. High ceilings, countless tables, marble pillars, pink tablecloths, and the buzz of two hundred people talking over their boeuf bourguignon. It’s the kind of room where you half expect to see Zelda Fitzgerald tucking into a tarte au citron in the back corner and tapping her toe when the live band gets started. But the fact that all of this happening beneath Piccadilly Circus isn’t the biggest surprise. It’s the prices.

The set menu at Brasserie Zedel is the stuff of London legend. Beyond telling people who are new to this city that ‘cosy basement flat’ is code for mould dungeon, getting involved in the set menu here is the best advice we can give. For just over a tenner you can get a two course meal of steak haché and chips, and a chocolate délice. You’ll see fearful Londoners initially reacting to the prices the same way they’d hide from someone shouting “FREE HUGS” on Oxford Street. It’s madness. Affordable, unheard-of-in-zone-one madness.

The thing is, even if the filet de daurade or the escargots catch your eye and you go à la carte you can still get three course and wine here and leave less than £50 lighter. Then, after the bill, the fun isn’t over. You can walk across the shiny tiled lobby to either their slick cocktail spot, Bar Americain, or their live music cabaret venue, Crazy Coqs. Or, fuck it, both. Think of it as a trip to the circus for grown ups who enjoy watching Jean-Luc Godard films on the weekend, like the nostalgia of a proper vestiaire, and appreciate a well made old fashioned after their magret de canard.

You should know that the French food here isn’t the best you’ll find in London, and don’t be surprised if the longer you listen to your French waiter’s accent the more convinced you are they’re Italian. Of course you’re not really in 1930s Paris. You’re pretending. The central location, set menu options, and that big, beautiful space make it a restaurant you’ll use and enjoy time and time again. For high romance, low price date nights. For before the theatre. Or after. For impressing out of towners. For quick fire business lunches in, deep breath, Soho. Or even for feel good birthdays where you know everyone can afford a three course meal.

What’s the catch? Surprise, there isn’t one.