Relais de Venise (L'Entrecote) New York

Le Relais De Venise

www.relaisdevenise.com

590 Lexington Avenue
New York, NY 10154-3301
(212) 758-3989
Get directions
About two years ago, a friend of mine took me to the Paris branch of this restaurant, and I loved it.  Many businesses seem to create a good business by standardizing, simplifying, and perfecting.  This seems to have worked for Southwest airlines, which flies only domestically in the United States using Boeing 737s, and for McDonald's.

Relais de Venise seems to have the same idea.  There is no menu for an appetizer or a main course.  The appetizer is a salad in a very nice dressing with walnuts.  The main course is a steak that is sliced, served in their "secret" sauce (cream, tarragon, and Dijon mustard).  So the choice is bleu, rare, medium or well-done.  (Ask for medium-rare, and they will repeat the options: bleu, rare, medium or well-done).

I chose bleu, and my wife chose medium.  Both were cooked exactly as ordered.  They arrived promptly with a generous portion of frites (french fries).  As we were finishing the dish, the server offered us more.  (The set menu of the salad and the steak frites costs $24.)  Certainly not inferior meat, but don't let me raise expectations too high.  This was a French steak frites.

For dessert, there was a selection.  We chose to share a cheese, which came with a glass of port for about $9.50.  A nice variety of cheese, including Brie, Camembert, a blue cheese, and a Comte.

We had a house wine -- a Merlot-dominated Bordeaux.  $11.50 for the half bottle.  Nothing exceptional but perfectly acceptable.

I thought it was a very nice lunch, and I'll certainly return to this restaurant.  But I did wonder how much it would suit an American clientele.  We started our meal at about noon, and the place was practically empty.  I also noticed that many of the customers were Europeans.  But within about half an hour the place filled up.  So perhaps it will appeal to New Yorkers after all.

This restaurant does not take reservations.

This is an enthusiastic recommendation.  I paid my own way and do not have any connections, sponsorship, or freebies from Le Relais de Venise.

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Cafe de Paris, Columbia, MD (Revisited)

Cafe de Paris
8088 Center Park Drive
Columbia
MD 410 997 3904

www.cafedepariscolumbia.com

Today I visited this restaurant for a quick bite for lunch. They now offer crepes in a little cafe atmosphere. They serve the crepes with a fresh salad, and they are delicious. I had a Shellfish Crepe, and my daughter had mozzarella, tomato, and pesto. Both were served promptly. They were freshly cooked and delicious.

The total bill for the two crepes, a soda water, and tax was under $18. This is a good new addition to Columbia's options at lunch.

For a (rather old) description of my last full dinner at this restaurant, click here.

This is a recommendation.  I paid my own way and do not have any connections, sponsorship, or freebies from Cafe de Paris.

This blog continues on http://www.louisandlouisa.com 

Cafe de Paris, Columbia, MD

Cafe de Paris
8088 Center Park Drive
Columbia, MD

410 997 3904

www.cafedepariscolumbia.com


This restaurant used to be in a rather dreary shopping mall in Laurel, and I have always liked it. Last night I went mostly because I had heard that the chef, Marc Dixon, at one of my favorite restaurants, The Iron Bridge, had moved here.

Three of us had dinner. Two of us started with the excellent foie gras that was accompanied by a superb salad. Tony declared that his starter, the smoked salmon, was good but not excellent.

For our main courses, Clayton and I had the lamb chops, which I like very much although they were a little over done for my taste, and we were never asked how we would like them. Tony had a "special" of grouper, which he liked very much.

The desserts were outstanding, particularly the tarte tatin and the profiteroles.

As for wine, we had the Menage a Trois from Folie a Deux. This wine is an interesting blend of Zinfandel, Cabernet Saugignon, and Merlot.

The bill was about $71 each, including tax, two bottles of the Menage a Trois ($26), and coffee, but not the tip.

An excellent meal that was well served!

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