Le Rivage

French Food as it should be, New York dining as it must. Le Rivage ("The Shore") is one of the best restaurants in Manhattan - period. I almost hate it to disclose on line because I am almost greedy to share this information. This is a jewel found by chance and held dear. Why do I write review? Because I was surprised to read 1 star reviews and what people write in there. Come on, it is just about folks too rustic to understand what good cuisine and great service is all about. If one judges about restaurant by the size of portions or by how much the tip should be, then don't waste your time - this place is not for you. On the contrary, if you know and love food, especially French food, and if you want it to be served in pleasant atmosphere with sufficient, but not annoying amount of attention, if you like your Coffee Fran…

Won't go there again. Went to celebrate my mom's bday. We set there for almost 2 hours, were done with food and paid the bill. But the conversation was flowing and we didn't leave right away. We paid cash and included good tip. Waitress decided that tip was too much and brought the change. We left it and didn't take. The other waitress came along and asked why we left such a small tip... That was embarrassing for my dad as she asked in-front of our guests. He explained how much he left and this was just a change.... She went and confirmed this with our waitress, then came back and apologized...But the mood was already ruined and we were unhappy with such service. Ridiculous. Tip is always voluntary and should never be questioned!!! And sad part is we left such a good tip that our waitress decided to give some back!!!!…

Theater District restaurant serves ‘60s-style French food.. Nobody looks to Restaurant Row for culinary innovation, and Le Rivage may have the distinction of being the most outdated place even in that gastronomic backwater. In fact, the place is a time machine--a glance backward at what French restaurants were like in the ‘60s and ‘70s, before the first whiff of nouvelle cuisine made its way to New York. The food, like the decor, is heavy--but also delicious. All the old warhorses are here--frog legs, escargot, coq au vin--back like hall of famers at an old timer's game, and still packing a wallop. Just don't come counting calories: There's enough cream and butter in each dish to supply a dairy.…

Maybe I missed something. Maybe we experienced this place on an off night, but I did not have 4 1/2 star food or service at Le Rivage on my recent visit. I had the "Artichoke and tomato salad" which consisted of a few lettuce leaves, 2 slim slices of tomato and 4 pieces of artichoke that looked and tasted like they had come out of a can. It looked like a plate you would get at a roadside (and I mean highway) cafeteria in Europe- minus the cellophane wrap. The main course, Coq au Vin was terribly dry and accompanied by very bland and also dry, not to mention uninteresting red potatoes and a birds nest of some unidentifiable vegetable, perhaps parsnip. It came off as a meal that had either been long prepared (a la a hotel banquet meal that sat in the hot box too long) or it had been microwaved. My husband's salmon tasted as though it had been pulled out of the Hudson- last week. Yuck. Dessert held little hope for us and we weren't surprised by the quality of the creme brulee which again smacked of something pre-prepared/frozen/purchased through a vendor like Sysco and definitely not made on premises , nor made recently. It was the worst creme brulee I have had; and I have liked creme brulee ever since the first time I had it in Paris when I was 12. It seemed to me by the staff on hand that the proprietors are not French, nor are the cooks (and I mean cook and not chef), which could be part of the issue. I regretted choosing this restaurant as the location where I had my last meal in New York before I left the next day. Talk about leaving a bad taste in your mouth.…