La Grenouille
“La Grenouille is a very special place–authentic French gourmet in a formal, dimly-lit, gorgeous room with impeccable service.”
“A spoonful of a companion's chocolate soufflé was heaven: intense chocolate, not too sweet, superb texture.”
“I had the seared foie gras, followed by the frog legs, both were excellent, but man those frog legs are one of the most memorable things I have ever had the pleasure of eating.”
La Grenouille
Takes Reservations: Yes
Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
Good for Groups: Yes
Waiter Service: Yes
Price range.
$$$$ Price range Above $61
8 reviews
Rate and write a review Cancel reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.
Beautiful fresh flowers, outstanding service, and exceptional food. Overall, a wonderfully romantic dining experience I recommend to anybody.
They have a fantastic pre-theater pre-fixe menu. If you can't afford to spend the time (or money) on a $138 pre-fixe dinner menu, order the $16-18 pre-theater menu, served 5-6pm everyday! You get to enjoy the fantastic ambiance and food but for a fraction of the cost (and time). Everything is tasty here, even the home baked bread and pre-dinner crackers brought to your table. The wine list is not too extensive but they have some good options and have a couple of very reasonably priced solid Bordeaux options. The home-made macaroni and cheese is deliciously creamy. The NY strip steak (on the pre-theater menu) has a super delicious marinade.
Came for lunch the day the pope was in town. The restaurant was pretty empty and the staff were very patient with folks who were delayed in their reservations due to the unusual traffic situations.
Our table captain was a friendly gentleman named Jean Pierre and he was the highlight of the meal. We both had some lunch, we started with oysters, and I got the lobster salad as the main entree instead of an appetizer, and my friend got the chicken livers over a corn patty as an entree. We also both got their soufflés. Passion fruit for me, white chocolate for her.
The oysters were fresh and nicely shucked. They were a little briny for my taste, but I prefer west coast oysters.
I am disappointed by the portions since my lobster salad was still a very appetizer size. The taste was nice. Not amazing. What was surprisingly amazing though were the chicken livers my friend got. They were actually delicious and smothered in this rich gravy that had amazing layers of flavor. I loved the little bites I stole off her plate.
The soufflés were amazing! Really delicious but I'm not sure worth the price as they were an additional 35 each. Total the lunch was 200+ for two and my friend had two glasses of wine. The prix fixe was 65 each. Which is reasonable for the quality. Just don't ask for an entree sized version of an appetizer!
There is no other place in the city like La Grenouille. Service is SUPERB, decor is STUNNING, and food is fine dining at its best. Came for lunch which ended up being a great deal.
What we ordered:
Scallops with Risotto – this is a MUST GET. Probably the best flavored risotto I've had in the city with perfectly cooked scallops.
Mushroom Truffle Souffle – Airy, light texture. The first couple of bites were confusing at best, because it literally feels like you're eating air. As you take a few more bites it gets a bit more substantial, but definitely worth trying, at least as an appetizer!
Veal – oh so tender and juicy. Very generous portion as well. GET THIS.
Salmon – came on a bed of crispy potatoes. Also very flavorful and seasoned incredibly well.
Didn't need to order dessert. The little plate of sweets that came with the bill was just perfect. For the 10 minutes we were trying all the little bites, our vocabulary only consisted of "wow this is so good" "oh no this is so good".
And I have to give special attention to our captain as well. I guess this is what comes with old school dining.. it didn't feel like we were in a restaurant.. it felt like we were in his home — a home filled with beautiful fresh flowers!! Absolute perfect place for date night, any special occasion, or a girlfriend date!
I only had one dish because I have not had lunch and thought I'd grab a bite when I read they had a special duck of breast sandwich. I walked in as they just opened. Very lucky, I was seated at the end to see the entire room and watch everyone come in. Perfect seat as I went alone on a whim.
While I waited, they served me a choice of warm breads and butter. Then came some little appetizers of gougere – my favorite munchies that are like mini cream puffs made with cheese.
My sandwich was gorgeous and pretty big with lots of things in it. It's like a generous portion of a club sandwich but with duck and many more stuff in it with 3 cornichons (French tiny pickles) and a high stack of "club" style sandwich. Also served with homemade small waffled potato chiles on top. My maitre'do have me a little salad on the side.
At the end of the meal, they have me a plate of cookies comprised of mini Madeleine's, Mimi elephant ears, lace cookies and chocolate and white chocolate with aond flavor truffles.
With such service, I ordered a cup of coffee to eat with the complimentary sweets.
My snack turned out to be my early dinner.
What a beautiful day and a wonderful light dinner in an elegant setting.
I'm sure to return!!!
La Grenouille is still doing things the same way as when they were founded in 1962, and that's a good thing. I remember when the world was full of restaurants like this: posh, refined, attentive, traditional, and oh so French. Now it is the last of its kind.
The three course menu is pricey at dinner, but not absurd, and essentially the same food is available at lunch for less than half the price.
The wine list is mostly French (of course) and offers some values for those who browse carefully.
One thing you wouldn't find on the 1962 menu was the sea bass tartare we started with, which was refreshingly limey and served on an avocado base.
Soufflés are the specialty here, and the cheese shuffle was superb as a main course. The Dover sole was extremely traditional, but perhaps not worth the upcharge, as cooking styles for fish have changed, and left this old standard seeming overdone and bland.
A half dozen or more soufflés are also on offer for dessert, and are a great choice. Alternatively, the cheese plate offered a great variety. A basket of madeleines and other pastries, and some truffles finish things off.
Service was very French and very professional, yet managed to also be welcoming and conversational. Let's hope that La Grenouille can continue to carry on its tradition for another fifty years.
We came here since they had great reviews on Yelp and also the restaurant looked cozy just like in their pictures. We arrived about 10 minutes late (blame the sudden rain and NYC subway system). They were kind enough to keep our reservations available and not move us out of their list.
The moment we got to the restaurant I felt welcomed and well attended. But I didn't know they were a little pretentious since they asked me to wear a suit/blazer. I kindly agreed to wear one and that is when they decided to guide us to our table. Once inside the dining area you feel like you are supposed to act a certain way, a little proper, a little too much. The walls were nicely decorated with flowers, the tables were big enough for two but at the same time they seemed so close to each other.
Now the part I was a little disappointed. First they brought out complimentary small bites, bread and cheese balls. Everything looked great but they forgot to explain what each piece was and some of their main ingredients. My friend is allergic to goat cheese and of course one of the small bites was a tomato filled with goat cheese. The moment she bit into it She knew what it was and had to "get it back out" of her mouth. I'm glad she didn't swallow it or the night would of ended ugly. I really wish they would of asked if anyone on the dining party was allergic to certain items on their menu before bringing anything out. We asked our waiter if that was goat cheese and he said he didn't know. So points off on that. How can you not know what you are serving?
After that little speed bump, we started to relax a bit and started on the cheese balls and bread. Those little cheese balls were amazing "until" without even asking if we were done they took them away!
Next, we got our main dishes: Foie Gras and Ox tail. They were both great dishes but not the best I've had. My friend found her Ox tail dish a little too salty for her taste buds. We quickly moved on to our dessert, and enjoyed one out of the two.
I think this place was nice but my overall impression was not the best. As my friend said about this restaurant: there is no lasting impression from beginning to end, you come, experience, leave and forget"
recently had the privilege of frequenting this establishment on my company's dime. we were escorted to our private room by a swanky dude who took our coats and spoke to us in a french accent. the private dining room was incredible. aesthetically, i'd liken it to a fancy tomb designed for a pharaoh of egypt that was trying to get to a fancy afterlife. once we began the treat parade (eating dinner), my enthusiasm died down. i'm really becoming a total jerk about things, but my filet was medium not medium rare and for the amount of moolah my job was paying, the booze should have been a-flowin'. i don't do well with limits per se, but come on! i ain't drivin'! this place would be an awesome venue for something celebratory.
This was my surprise birthday dinner to celebrate the first quarter century. Compared to Le Bernardin, Jean-Georges, Bouley, Daniel and the like, La Grenouille is the one that is not like the other. I love all the other restaurants but this one had a particularly haute cuisine feel in the Old French style. The decor isn't modern like the others but that's the charm of La Grenouille. It's romantic and classic with flowers upon flowers upon flowers and mirrors all along the wall. Each table is adorned with a full bouquet. The servers are dressed in white tuxedos and have thick French accents. Masson makes his rounds and checks up on you periodically.
Now onto the food… here's what was ordered:
Appetizer:
– Foie Gras Terrine: Best terrine that I've had! All the components of a good terrine, smooth and rich, with a little spice mixture and grape chutney to add two more layers and elements to the overall terrine.
– Soft Shell crab (special of the day): Lightly crispy and a very flavorful sauce that fuses both an Asian ponzu/yuzu and French creamier hollandaise sauce
Entree:
– Duck Tournedo: Cooked perfectly medium, red wine reduction and soaked bread bits. There were also these delicately puffed pomme frites but I didn't think they added much value.
– Dover Sole: The Dover sole was first presented whole and then brought back to be fileted. The dish is garnished with over steamed green beans but the star of the dish is definitely all worth it. The fish is cooked perfectly and just slightly sweet. Just a dab of the mustard hollandaise is enough to highlight the fish. It probably was not necessary to provide a side pot of extra sauce or the amount they put on the dish as the mustard has an overpowering bite when used in excess. A squeeze of lemon was all that was really needed.
Dessert:
– Irish Coffee Souffle: OH MY GOD, THIS WAS THE BEST SOUFFLE I HAVE EVER HAD. Light and fluffy on the outside, steaming hot and moist on the inside, drizzle in irish coffee cream and a dab of fresh cold whipped cream… PERFECT, AMAZING, DELICIOUS, still thinking about it, still craving for it… waiting for the day to just sit at the bar and have a souffle on a whim.
– Cheese Plate: 5 cheeses ranging mild goat to strong, pungent blue, garnished with dried figs and apricots, grapes, and very very delicious bread with raisins. The cheeses were each very very delicious. I am always a big fan of pungent, moldy blue so that was my favorite. The goat was mild and creamy and went very well with the slightly sweet bread.
Overall, a delicious meal, attentive service, romantic ambiance. A wonderful night spent with the best of company. Couldn't have asked for more. (Recommend the tables where you sit side by side!)