THE French have always had a very special relationship with food. From the big family meals to their insistence on fresh ingredients and fine wine, the French take their meals very seriously.

McDonald's and French fast food restaurant Quick may have elbowed their way onto the Champs Elysees but they have not managed to erode the nation's commitment to good food.

In Paris offices the water cooler chit chat is just as likely to be about what you had for dinner last night as it is about the week's TV. The country's love of recipes and ingredients is as central to French culture as the Arc de Triomphe.

But while our continental neighbours see mealtimes as the focus of the family unit, we Brits are more likely to take a more flexitime attitude to our food with a balanced meal seen as one that stacks in the freezer properly.

Times are changing throughout the UK when it comes to food, though.

And as Liverpool gears up for its Capital of Culture year, we can only hope to adopt just a little bit of that je ne sais quoi that makes French cuisine revered the world over.

It is not surprising then that Merseyside's most up-market new shopping mall is home to a French restaurant.

Cafe Rouge in Liverpool's Met Quarter is one of a chain of French-inspired restaurants in the UK.

It offers a refuge for weary shoppers - presenting a menu that includes a light snack choice and a range of light salads as well as hot meat dishes.

However when my companion and I went to eat at the newly opened restaurant it was early evening when the mall itself had already shut up shop for the night.

And although the restaurant is part of the new complex there is not the feeling that you're sitting in a shopping centre.

The restaurant itself occupies a large downstairs room speckled with little wooden tables and lit with glowing candles.

While we looked through the menu, I chose a strawberry beer which our French waiter promised was very good while my friend had a French draught lager. Our waiter was right, the strawberry beer was the perfect aperitif for dinner - slightly tart and sweet.

From the list of starters I chose the Crevettes a l'ail (£4.95) a dish of king prawns in a garlic, tomato and basil sauce served with French bread.

The sauce was tasty and the prawns plump and juicy although I would have preferred more of them.

My friend had Soupe a l'oignon (£4.45) to start with after a waitress said it was her favourite thing on the menu. The soup is a French classic and it was a generous helping rich, tasty and served with melted Gruyere crouton. My friend wolfed it down before I could pinch a spoonful, but I was assured it tasted as good as it smelt.

For the main course I went for the Steak Frites (£11.95) a 7oz prime sirloin steak with garlic and herb butter and French fries.

I asked for it medium rare and that's exactly what I got, beautifully cooked on the outside and pink and achingly tender in the middle. Each mouthful simply melted, and although I had considered choosing one of the restaurant's steak sauces to accompany it, the garlic and herb butter was quite sufficient.

The only wrong turn was not choosing a light side salad to accompany it as it was a bit heavy.

My friend chose the Boeuf Bourguignon (£11.25), described on the Cafe Rouge menu as a classic beef casserole in a rich red wine sauce with bacon and mushrooms served with dauphinoise potatoes.

Again, I didn't get a look in as it disappeared. I was informed that the meat was perfectly cooked and the sauce was rich but not overbearing.

To accompany the main course we chose a bottle of my favourite French wine - Chablis.

Cafe Rouge carries a small but perfectly formed wine list including a petit Chablis AC Laroche (£18.95). Red wine would really be the natural choice for steak, but I can't resist a Chablis.

This dry, crisp white wine gets better the more you are prepared to pay but the reasonable ones such as this are a delight nonetheless.

My only disappointment came when I tried to order dessert.

I had my eye on the Crepe au chocolat et banane (£4.45). The menu states this is a Breton pancake filled with banana and a warm chocolate sauce served with vanilla ice cream.

It seemed like the perfect way to round off the meal but apparently they had sold out. I'm not sure exactly how

you sell out of crepes but according to our waitress the chef couldn't even rustle up a crepe with an alternative filling. Ooh la la.

That would create a lot of head shaking and tutting in any of my French friends.

But that was really the only bum note of the night.

While there is the inevitable sense that you're eating in what is, essentially, a generic chain - this restaurant avoids the one-size-fits-all approach chains can fall into.

The restaurant is calming and tranquil and the staff highly professional in a relaxed environment, probably one of the closest ways of getting a little taste of Parisian dining without leaving Merseyside.

It offers daytime shoppers and evening diners beautifully cooked food in surroundings that, if you've had a bit too much French wine, could pass for a summer veranda.

Bon appetit!

Cafe Rouge, Victoria Street, Liverpool

Tel: 0151 2581879

Address: The Metquarter, Victoria Street, Liverpool, Merseyside.

Bill: £57 including drinks.

Value for money: Yes.

Service: Slick, friendly and professional.