2011 NYC Winter Restaurant Week Review: Le Perigord

It's restaurant week in New York from January 24th to February 6th, and this is a good time to try out different restaurants at a reasonable price - $24.07 for lunch and $35.00 for dinner. 


For our reunion of college friends, one of our friends - a local New Yorker - made reservations at a restaurant participating in the program, Le Perigord, a French restaurant located in East Midtown, Manhattan. Our date happened to have fallen on the coldest day this week, January 24, with temperatures dipping to -16°C (3.2°F).  But, the weather conditions did not deter us from arriving on time.

 Le Perigord is located at 405 East 52nd Street, New York, NY. 

According to their website, they specialize in "classic French food with contemporary accents." There was a special menu for restaurant week that was mostly written out in English, instead of in French with English translation.

There were four of us and we had ordered a variety of things. For our appetizers, we chose...

 Soupe du Jour - Butter Squash Soup

Onion Tart with Tangy Butter Sauce

Country Paté de Chef with Celery Root and Ratatouille

For our main courses, we ordered two courses from their offering of four choices, paired with white wine, Riesling...

 Bay Scallops with Tomato and Garlic and Vegetable Risotto

 Traditional Boeuf Bourguinon

For our dessert, we narrowed down our choices to two...

 Floating Island with Creme Anglaise

Fresh Fruit Tart of the Day with Grand Marnier Mousse

We talked through dinner and reminisced about our college days, laughing and enjoying each others' company. It had been some thirty plus years ago since some of us saw each other.

What did we think of the food? We never talked about it until we were about to leave. We were a bit disappointed. The food tasted good, like comfort food, but it was missing the "wow" factor. We did not feast with our eyes. The presentation of the dishes was lacking the artsy touch, typical in most French restaurants.

Their regular dinner menu looks more French and more promising at $65.00 per head. 

What is it that I look for when I dine out? In a French restaurant, I look for the creativity of the chef, which is reflected in the variety of food selections, the innovative combination of ingredients, and the artistic presentation of each dish that make dining stand out as a gastronomic experience. 

Until next time, bon appetit!