French restaurants in New York City
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A
Artisanal
For those who live, love and dream fromage, Artisanal is a must-eat. More than 250 varieties of cheese, from stinky to sweet, are found at this restaurant/cheese counter.
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Daniel
This chichi French palace features floral arrangements and wide-eyed foodies who gawk over plates of peekytoe crab and celery-root salad, foie gras terrine with gala apples and black truffle-crusted lobster - and that's just the first course. There's an all-veggie menu, too.
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Jo Jo
Part of the ever-thriving Jean-Georges empire, here is a place where you really can’t go wrong. French standards get the Midas touch with the addition of a little something special. Foie gras is fashioned into crème brûlée, venison cubes are tossed with pomegranate seeds, striped bass gets simply pan roasted with fennel and lemon. The warm and gooey chocolate Valrhona cake is widely praised as the best in the city – if not the world. And it’s all turned out into a dining room that, following a recent renovation, feels so hushed, lush and intimate, you feel as if you’ve been invited into an old-school, squeaky-clean bordello.
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Les Halles
Vegetarians need not apply at this packed and serious brasserie, owned by celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain. Among the elegant light-fixture balls, dark wood paneling and stiff white tablecloths you’ll find a buttoned-up, meat-lovin’ crowd who've come for rich and decadent favorites like cote de boeuf and steak au poivre.
Standards like French onion soup, moules frites, and salade Niçoise are equally sublime, while the lists of wine, single-malt scotches and other liquors are impressive. From the crème brûlée to the tarte tatin, sweet tooths won't be disappointed.
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Balthazar
Retaining its long-held status as a superstar among the city’s glut of French bistros, this bustling (OK, loud) spot still pulls in the discriminating mobs. That’s all thanks to three winning details: the location, which makes it a convenient shopping-spree rest area; the uplifting ambience, shaped by big, mounted mirrors, cozy high-backed booths, airy high ceilings and wide windows; and, of course, the stellar something-for-everyone menu, which features an outstanding raw bar, steak frites, salade Niçoise, roasted beet salad and prawn risotto with sage and butternut squash. The kitchen stays open till 2am Thursday to Saturday, and weekend brunch here is a very crowded…
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Café Luxembourg
This quintessential French bistro is generally crowded with locals – and it’s no mystery why: the setting is elegant, the staff is friendly, and there’s an outstanding menu to boot. The classics – salmon tartare, cassoulet and steak frites (fries) – are all deftly executed, and its proximity to Lincoln Center makes it a perfect pre-performance destination. There is a lighter lunch menu and there are eggy dishes at brunch.
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Cru
A big hit with the Euro crowd, Cru has more than 150,000 bottles of wine and happily helps you make a good match to dishes like cod with Castelluccio lentils, roasted broccoli ribbons and sautéed cauliflower in lingonberry–red wine jus, and roasted duck-breast braised Romanesco, duck pancetta, maitake mushroom and sweet-potato puree port wine–natural jus. A quick tip: the handsome mahogany bar out front has the same wines and better views to the street, and lets you order à la carte off the menu.
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Brasserie
This stunningly sleek temple of classics – including onion soup, wine-laden mussels, duck confit and chocolate beignets – is actually most impressive because of its ultramodern design, courtesy of NYC starchitects Diller + Scofidio, carved into the ground floor of the historic Seagram Building. To get just a taste of the high-class action, perch thyself at the elegant backlit bar, where you can enjoy a plate of mini-burger or lobster-salad sliders with a bracing cucumber gimlet.
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Saul
A veteran of French food temples like Le Bernardin and Bouley, chef Saul Bolton has been luring dedicated eaters to his Michelin-starred Boerum Hill eatery for a dozen years. The menu is compact and simple, with a focus on fresh produce and game meats (think confit of squab with roasted brussels sprouts), as well as fresh seafood. Reservations recommended.
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Town
There are just so many choices at Town! Start your day with creamy eggs benedict, balanced with wobbly perfection on lobster hash, or drop in for a midday snack of diver scallops with sausage and ginger lettuce. And then there's dinner - quail with citrus arugula and foie gras fritters, duck steak with endive and soba buckwheat pilaf, a bounty of rich risottos and beautiful chocolate beignets for dessert.
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Eleven Madison Park
An art deco wonder often overlooked in this star-studded town, Eleven Madison Park is welcoming enough to bring children into fine dining, and delicious enough to please even the most discerning diner. Dishes include muscovy duck with honey sauce, wild salmon with horseradish crust and fennel risotto, halibut mi-cuit (half-cooked) with carrots, and seasonal surprises.
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Zucco: Le French Diner
Swing by to grab a fresh, crispy sandwich pressed just right, served with white napkins and tiny wineglasses, or savor the deep, meaty flavor of the North African Merguez lamb sausage. Other French classics, along with the tin-pressed ceiling, include moules marinières, and grilled tuna à la Provençale.
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Market Café
An oldie but a goodie, Market Café is still a favorite local choice for the far west side. Its plain Formica tables and plastic booths don't exactly scream high-end, but stick around for the warm service, cool music and grilled gravlax, Atlantic cod, steak frites and pizzas and you'll see why it's a hipster hangout.
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Db Bistro Moderne
A sophisticated standout in neon-filled Times Sq, sleek and modern DB Moderne saves its flashiness for the food - chilled fennel velouté, bacon-veiled salmon, snail fricassee, coq au vin and of course, the DB Burger, stuffed with truffles, foie gras and braised short ribs.
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Café Boulud
Now steered by Gavin Kaysen, this Michelin-starred bistro – part of Daniel Boulud’s gastronomic empire – attracts a staid crowd with its globe-trotting French cuisine. Seasonal menus include classic dishes such as coq au vin, as well as more inventive fare (scallop crudo with white miso). Foodies on a budget will be interested in the two-course, $37 prix fixe lunch.
The adjacent 40-seat Bar Pleiades (open ’til midnight) serves seasonal cocktails, along with a full bar menu (think beef sliders and grilled baby octopus). Gents should consider wearing a jacket in the evenings. Reservations recommended.
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Modern
If you’re after a luxe feed, book a table at fine-dining Modern. The Michelin-starred menu offers decadent, French-American creations like ‘pralines’ of foie gras terrine with mango puree and balsamic vinegar. Fans of Sex and the City will be keen to know that it was here that scribe-about town Carrie announced her impending marriage to ‘Mr Big.’ (If you’re on a real writer’s wage, you can always opt for simpler, cheaper Alascan-inspired grub in the adjacent Bar Room.) The Modern has its own entrance on W 53rd St.
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