Manu Feildel’s new restaurant has been critically mauled but how are the punters enjoying it?

MANU Feildel surely expected close scrutiny for his Melbourne restaurant. But perhaps not the gloves-off, thumbs-down drubbing it has received.

Le Grand Cirque opening. Manu Feildel. Picture By Julie Kiriacoudis

THE dawn of any new restaurant is always fraught.

Especially when the owner has form. Manu Feildel has plenty. As the gregarious French-accented co-host and judge on Seven’s My Kitchen Rules, he’s renowned for summarily dismissing contestants when they fail to meet his exacting standards regarding sauces, crispy fish skin and well-rested meat.

So when Feildel — a Sydneysider — decided to open a place of his own in Melbourne promising “French flavours with a modern twist”, he surely expected close scrutiny. But perhaps not the gloves-off, thumbs-down drubbing that Le Grand Cirque has received.

“LGC is not a fun place,” John Lethlean wrote in a withering review for The Weekend Australian.

“The staff are not really up to scratch. The space looks unfinished. And the food is patchy.”

Going Manu e mano, Lethlean thought Feildel’s circus-themed bistro existed “purely to leverage the celebrity of the man whose books decorate its foyer ... it is all, ’ow, you say, tres ordinaire”.

The Herald Sun’s Dan Stock was underwhelmed by Le Grand Cirque as well.

“I didn’t leave, wanting to rush back,” he wrote. “It is more Silvers (circus) than Cirque du Soleil.”

Is this a classic case of tall-poppy felling?

Fans of MKR might think so. These are the people Feildel is banking on to sustain his big-tent venture in deepest South Yarra. They, in turn, would be hoping to see this celebrity chef in the flesh when they dine at his restaurant.

Feildel was on the floor — briefly — when Stock dined at Le Grand Cirque. Not so when Lethlean called in.

“Live to eat ... don’t eat to live,” Feildel likes to say. The critics would no doubt agree but let’s not take their word for it. Let’s hear from the punters.

Sarah Melouka and Freddy McGregor at Le Grand Cirque.

We sent two Sunday Herald Sun readers, Freddy McGregor, 25, and Sarah Melouka, 24, to Le Grand Cirque on Friday night and asked them to critique Feildel’s new restaurant. This is what they had to say:

■ “The croquettes tasted good but they could have been crunchier on the outside. The ends were crunchy but the middle was a bit soft. The inside was gooey and ­delicious though.”

■ “The beef cheeks were our favourite dish. The flavour was great, the meat melted in your mouth, and there was lots of sauce. It was meant to serve two though and if we hadn’t had lots of sides we would have still been hungry.”

■ “The cucumber ribbons were really yum and we could have had it as a main.”

■ “We also had the fries in duck fat, which were tasty, and the green salad, which was also nice.”

■ “It wasn’t too expensive,

we didn’t have any wine and only had one main meal but it only came to about $90 for both of us.”

■ “I’d give them a 15/20 for food, an 18/20 for service and a 17/20 overall. But Sarah wants to give them an 18/20 overall. We’d definitely go back.”

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WHAT THE CRITICS SAY

JOHN LETHLEAN (Weekend Australian): “The food is patchy — at best solid; at worst, a disgrace.” One star

DAN STOCK (Herald Sun Taste): “The whole package is lacking a certain joie de vivre ... I didn’t leave, wanting to rush back.” 13/20