New York City is a vibrant city with a variety of restaurants. There are lots of restaurants, from every culture and country. New York has an impressive number of French cuisine restaurants, which may be difficult to find in non-major cities. It’s necessary to take advantage of this beautiful city, and its cuisine while you’re in the big apple!
In this article, you will find some of the best French restaurants for you to visit, along with some of their best dishes. Some of the restaurants on this list include Michelin-starred restaurants!
Per Se
10 Columbus Cir, New York City, NY 10019-1158
Per Se is an upscale restaurant in New York City, between Manhattan and Lincoln square. Per Se is Michelin star awarded and is in the top 50 restaurants in the whole of New York City. It is a memorable restaurant and is rated as being one of the best restaurants in the city.
It’s charming, with stunning cityscape views and a vibrant and exciting menu. The restaurant has been awarded three Michelin stars, with Thomas Keller being the main chef and proprietor of the restaurant. He is the author of five cookbooks, and owns six restaurants in total.
The menu at Per Se has some awesome dishes, with suitable prices for fine dining in the city. The menu is separated by vegetable tasting dishes, chef’s tasting dishes and the salon menu. France and French cuisine heavily influence the cuisine. Some notable dishes are the ‘terrine of Hudson valley moulard duck foie gras, peach, walnut coulis, and cherry peppercorn.
Another mention is the ‘green market bean cassoulet’, a french casserole-like dish consisting of Genovese basil dumplings, vine tomatoes, and crispy parmesan cheese.
Per Se is highly rated for its foie gras, oysters and wagyu beef. It is a french-inspired restaurant, but it is not a restaurant where you will be eating the most authentic French cooking dishes. Customers have rated it high for service and food quality, but four out of five stars for value for money. However, it is fine dining, so dishes are bound to be slightly pricier.
Le Bernardin
155 W. 51st St., New York, 10019
Le Bernardin is another upscale and highly-rated French restaurant in New York. Similar to Per Se, Le Bernardin has been awarded three Michelin stars over the course of its successful years. It has also received more James Beard awards than any other restaurant in the whole of the city. The restaurant was founded in Paris in 1972 by sibling pair Maguy and Gilbert Le Coze. When they first opened, they only served fresh fish.
They opened in New York in 1896, with the help of Chef Eric Ripert in 1994 after the death of Gilbert. The restaurant is classy yet cozy, with awards for its restaurant design. The restaurant menu consists of a chef’s tasting menu as well as four-course menus. Their regular menus are categorized by ‘almost raw’ as the first course followed by ‘barely touched’, ‘main course’ and ‘dessert.’
The menu is extensive and polished, consisting of sautéed langoustine with sea urchin sauce, or striped bass with an artichoke medley and black truffle barigoule. The dishes sound absolutely delicious and well-balanced, which is why Le Bernardin is a top choice for food lovers in the city.
Amelie
22 W 8th St Upper West Side, New York City, NY 10011-9002
Amelie is a friendly French bistro in the Greenwich area of New York. It is known as a wine bar as well as a French bistro restaurant. The restaurant is affordable, and has a wide range of food to choose from. It is the perfect place for a relaxed bite to eat or a chilled dinner with friends and family. It brings a flair of Parisian inspired culture to Greenwich village, and is lively and friendly. It is rated highly for its exquisite food, cheese boards, and wine.
The menu includes crab or salmon tartine with avocado and chives, duck leg confit with frisée and jus, and mussels in white wine. Amelie is known for its classic French dishes that are simple, yet delightful. This includes their pistachio goat’s cheese, or escargots gratinés with parsley butter. Amelie was founded in 2016 in San Francisco and became one of the most popular wine bars in the city.
Amelia brightens up the upper west side, with international flair and Euro-chic decor. Visitors rate the value, food, and service exceptionally high, with appreciation for the simple french dishes, done right.
Raoul’s
180 Prince St, New York City, NY 10012-2924
Raoul’s is a romantic French restaurant situated near the Soho area of downtown manhattan. Raoul’s was founded in the 1970’s by two brothers from Alsace, France. They found a restaurant for sale in Soho and turned their Alsatian cooking skills to steak and seafood for low prices. Raoul’s has a small menu, with authentic french dishes.
Although it is no longer as inexpensive as it once was, the food quality is unbeatable. Raoul’s has been awarded a Michelin star for its nostalgic and bohemian cooking and style. Dishes from the menu include steak tartare with cornichons, foie gras, ratatouille and moules frites with saffron.
Batard
239 West Broadway, New York, NY, 10013
Batard is a high-end restaurant in the Broadway area of lower manhattan. It is ranked as number 18 out of 325 french restaurants in the whole of new york city. Batard specializes in French and Austrian cuisine, and is ranked the 200th best restaurant in the whole of New York City, out of 9,000.
The restaurant has a lot to live up to, and it stays true to its reviews. It has been awarded a Michelin star, and is known for its classy decor and simple, complementary dishes and wines. Batard is a little bit more affordable than other Michelin star restaurants and has several course menus available depending on how much you’d like to try!
Batard is known for its foie gras mousse, paired with almond streusel, apple and cranberry, along with its duck ragu with tagliatelle and mascarpone. The restaurant has wonderful and unique dishes, paired with unique wines you may not have heard of. The restaurant is highly rated for its food and service by trying customers.
Boucherie Union Square
225 Park Avenue South, New York City, NY 10003-1604
Boucherie Union square is rated the number one French restaurant in New York City. The restaurant has exceptional ratings, and the most exquisite decor. It is regarded as a traditional French restaurant and steakhouse and has four locations in the city. This includes West Village, Union Square, Midtown and their French Bistro in Manhattan.
The decor is unique and eye-catching and can be defined as ornamental art nouveau, which is beautiful to dine in. The restaurant has cozy booths, handmade wooden furnishings and belle epoque posters, and an ultimately nostalgic, European feel. The food is affordable yet memorable. Hors d’oeuvres include french onion soup topped with gruyère, escargots with shallot and lemon, or frog legs with garlic butter.
Main courses include beautiful cuts of steak and jumbo crab, bœuf bourguignon, and confit duck leg. Boucherie is a timeless French restaurant, creating truly authentic French food: after all, the restaurant was founded in Paris in 1870!
La Grenouille
3 E 52nd St, New York City, NY, 10022-5301
La Grenouille is yet another Michelin star awarded French restaurant in the city of New York. This restaurant is situated in the heart of the city, two blocks away from the Rockefeller Center. The restaurant is a historic and award-winning restaurant founded in 1962 by Charles Masson. It became popular for its authentic french dishes as well as location.
For this reason, it has remained a popular and classy restaurant, visited by fashion designers and celebrities. The restaurant also has outside seating, surrounded by warm colors and occasionally live music. The restaurant’s atmosphere is romantic and inviting and has prolific and beautiful flower arrangements filling each room.
The restaurant is known for dishes such as the three-cheese french onion soup gratinéed, the baked clams in white wine, and the lobster ravioli with beurre blanc sauce. This restaurant is highly awarded and established, with top-notch service and serious quality food.
15 EAST @ Tocqueville
1 E 15th St. NY, 10003
15 East @ Tocqueville is a unique restaurant specializing in French-Japanese fusion. The restaurant is Michelin star awarded and is owned by chef Marco Moreira. Marco has been said to have created a truly innovative experience by merging his previous experience. He owns two restaurants, Tocqueville and 15 East.
He decided to merge the American-French Restaurant with the Japanese-style restaurant, creating 15 East @ Tocqueville. The restaurant is memorable and distinctly charming, with creative decor and statement art. Some of the best dishes from the restaurant include the Hudson Valley foie gras custard served with burgundy black truffle, the duck breast with celery root mousseline, and confit rhubarb as well as the wagyu beef cheeks with truffle mousseline and bordelaise sauce.
A mouthful, quite literally! The restaurant offers some unique dishes and pairings in the city and has been rated exceptionally for its food, service, and atmosphere. This restaurant is pricey, but it is elegant and serves excellent, unforgettable fusion dishes.
Jean Georges
1 Central Park W, New York City, NY 10023-7702
Jean Georges is placed arguably in the most popular and well-trodden location in New York City; Central Park. The restaurant is rated as one of the top 200 restaurants in the whole city, out of 9,000 to choose from. The restaurant is undeniably French and offers outdoor dining, overseeing central park from its optimal location.
If you are looking for a restaurant that is a stone’s throw from some of the best attractions and shops, Jean Georges may get it just right. Jean Georges takes into account experience when eating out, not just food quality. This is something appreciated within French culture and transpires through Jean Georges’ menu and atmosphere.
The restaurant has been awarded two Michelin stars and offers the best fine dining French, American, and Asian fusion dishes. The restaurant is visually beautiful, with bright white complementing the colorful and unique dishes flying out of the kitchen. Some excellent dishes include the steamed black sea bass with mushrooms and finger limes, the langoustines with crêpes and herbal broth, along with the warm baked oysters and creamed basil.
Daniel
60 East 65th Street, New York City, NY 10065-7056
Daniel, maybe one of the highest rated restaurants in the whole of the United States. According to the 2019 Travelers’ Choice, it was rated one of the top 10 in the country for its exquisite dishes and immaculate service. Daniel has been awarded two Michelin stars and was founded in 1993.
It has slowly become one of the pillars of the eclectic dining scene in New York and is located in the former Mayfair Hotel on Park Avenue, an excellent location just a few yards away from Central Park.
Surprisingly, the restaurant is named after extraordinary French chef Daniel Boulud, who owns this restaurant, and seven others! Executive chef Eddy LeRoux joined Chef de Cuisine Joshua Capone and Pastry Chef Shaun Velez to create a remarkable and noteworthy menu with top-notch ingredients and impeccable service.
The restaurant has over 150 staff members and is grand, representing the accurate idea of fine dining. Some notable dishes from Daniel include Dover sole and farcie with lobster, saffron potato fennel and barley, and limousin veal tenderloin with calf’s liver, stuffed pasta, and sauce Perigueux. Daniel is authentic fine dining, and the service does not go amiss here, either.
Final Thoughts
New York City is full of treasures, with these french restaurants being some of them. The city is packed with cuisines from every culture, and it is difficult to know which ones are the highest-rated and serve the best food.
There are some unique dishes in French cuisine that you will not know until you try, and these fine restaurants accommodate even the most inexperienced. After all, you are eating French cuisine in New York City; how much better could it get?
