Brasserie Boulud is the newest addition to Daniel Boulud’s collection of restaurants, including the New York based Daniel, the Michelin starred establishment famous with epicurean mavens from around the world. The location is excellent – directly across from Lincoln Center, and the rooms feel like a blend of Keith McNally’s Tribeca in Odeon and Balthazar in Soho.
Diana was able to mostly dry out our clothes and shoes after the afternoon downpour and before we headed out for the restaurant – the rain stopped and we didn’t have to make a mad dash from car to front door.
We were warmly greeted by the front desk folks who graciously offered to hang up our somewhat soggy coats. Pleasant, welcoming with some good banter – why is this so hard to find on a routine basis. Seated in a comfy corner booth in the front bar area, we were quickly greeted by Vlodymyr who turned out to be an excellent waiter. He was funny, engaging, willing to spend as much time as we needed at the table, and to make recommendations. If you are lucky enough to make it here, I recommend asking to be seated in his section.
The front bar area was lively and yet we had absolutely no trouble carrying on a conversation in our booth. There seemed to be some hidden sound dampening panels behind slotted wood in the ceiling – they worked exceptionally well.
On to the food. Not feeling overly hungry, we decided to make a meal out of appetizers and sides.
First up – “Velouté de Courge” (butternut squash soup with bacon and pumpkin seeds” and Tarte Forestiere (flatbread with mushrooms and cheese).
The butternut squash soup was absolutely delicious – 10/10. Some of the best that I’ve ever tasted.
The flatbread was mediocre – lacking something and relatively bland – 6/10. Skip it.
Next, the Escargot Persillade (snails with parsley, garlic and lots of butter). These are maybe the best I remember since Cafe D’Or in Paris. The snails themselves were perfect and the parsley sauce quite unique – 10/10. Don’t miss these.
Tartare de Boeuf a la Parisienne. If there’s steak tartare on the menu, Diana’s going to try it. This had an interesting presentation with the lettuce leaves and aioli. It wasn’t the best we’ve had and still enjoyable – 8/10.
Finally, we tried the Mousse de Foie de Volaille (chicken liver mousse). This was good and we’ve certainly had more memorable versions. Something lacking to make it truly delicious – 7/10.
I wish I had the appetite to try one of the pate dishes. They sounded very good. Next time we need to venture into the entree sections of the menu.
Overall just over an 8/10 – a very good experience. Highly recommended and we hope to return sometime in the next few years. Remember to ask for Vlodymyr.
