Zinc

Went there with a friend a few month ago. Food was good but not the best french restaurant in Philadelphia. Ambiance was nice, not too loud compared to other bistro. Service was quickly and good too. I would definitely go back. The only negative part was that the tables were really close to one another.

I heard a lot of good reviews about this place so I was very excited to try it. I want to give this place at least 4 stars, but I wouldn’t be very honest.
The Pressed Duck requires at least a two day notice, however I tried calling on Monday to come in Wednesday evening not knowing they were closed, but they returned my call and the person I spoke to said the chef was okay, and had a duck available. Thumbs up for that accommodated one day notice.
As I read some reviews before I dined, & before writing this, this place is really small. I did and did not expect it. I enjoyed the nice small French Bistro ambience, I do feel sorry for those who could not enjoy it due to their improper scheduling, for this is a restaurant you really wanna sit and enjoy everything from their food, wine, and ambience, and just relax. About 2 or hours, depending on how many guests.
It was a Wednesday evening, there were two tables of a 5 and 6 top, and two other couples dining before I arrived, and only one waiter. My dinner date had arrived before me, so our table was set with the chilled wine, glasses of water, with some bread and butter. I guess I can’t complain the waiter didn’t attend to my table at all until the appetizers came out.
We had the Pâté and the escargot, both very delicious! The best pâté and the escargot soup was flavorful and the snails cooked very well. As we were eating that, the Chef had came out to let us know the duck was going to be ready to be prepared for us soon.
The process of the pressed duck was entertaining, and the chef was very informative of what we were about to eat and how he exactly he was preparing it in front of our table. As seen in other photos on Unilocal,I did not take a photo of pressing process. The chef, Sal, is Irish, spoke very well for his passion of work.
The first part of the duck, with the sauce he makes from pressing the duck, was good, but not really what I expected. Maybe it was because we requested a day late, we were served a poor quality duck? The chef and waiter seem to really love the secret duck sauce, but I thought it was a bit salty and overpowering. He poured it all over the duck, so I didn’t get that «crispy» skin he explained to us we would have from the breast. Nor could I taste just the duck.
The next part of it was supposed to be the remaining of the legs, thighs, and wings over a salad, as seen in some photos here on Unilocal,so I did not take a photo, but I did not like this part at all! I couldn’t chew the duck off from the bone, and the meat was very dry! The pork sauce was more like a candy flavor, so I was not a fan of it. But their salad dressing was good. I felt like I paid $ 80 for the art of making the duck, instead of the duck itself.
Finally, we also got some scallops and salmon. The scallops tasted fresh, and the Salmon was cooked perfectly! I wish I just stuck with ordering that, as I was unimpressed with the duck. Nice presentation and experience, but will not be ordering the duck again.
My dinner date had to leave me early, the chef served me a complimentary chocolate mousse expresso dessert that was a wonderful compliment to everything I had just eaten.
Overall, it was a good experience, but not the best. I really did not like the waiter. He didn’t wait on me that often, and as it is a small restaurant, and I observed how he was waiting the other tables and it wasn’t top notch. The photo of my duck looks better than it tastes.

Good décor, atmosphere, and service. However, there was a lot left to be desired with the food. The duck did not taste very good because it was very poor quality (very fatty in parts) and the seasoning was weak. The pork lasagne was incredibly greasy as it was doused in oil. In sum, a French restaurant that can’t get its duck entrée right isn’t worth your time (and money).

Hard to review a restaurant that really didn’t get a chance to perform. We arrived at 7:40 for our 7:45 reservation and saw a chaotic atmosphere. Small restaurant with very little organization.
Pushed us to a table for two while trying to manage a group of 5 and an incoming reservation for 7.
When we got to our table there was nothing on it and no one even came to give us menus. After about ten minutes the hostess sat the table for five and then proceeded to give them menus. Still no waiter no setups or menus at our table. Decided to leave because it was obvious the we weren’t valued to them — felt unimportant.
Restaurants need to realize that I have many, many options and it’s all about the experience. This restaurant intrigued us because of their menu and we were excited to try it but Our first impression led us to believe that even if the food was good We would not have best experience here so we moved on.
Btw — we ended up at Caribou where the experience and the food was great.

The ambience was fantastic as a date spot. Loved the French bistro inspired theme!
The food was fantastic, although it was a restaurant week menu, I think the food did the restaurant justice in showcasing and teasing what they are able to do for all courses of a meal.
The service was great! The place is small so it was nice to get the attention from the servers quite frequently.
I would love to try their whole duck one of these days but will have to remember to give them that 2 day heads up!

A good restaurant, but overpriced for what it is. With two glasses of wine each, soup, cheese plate, dinner and one dessert, dinner was $ 180. That’s certainly not unreasonable for Philly. However, at that price point, I expect to be WOWed a bit more than I was. Ultimately the food was good, but not special or notable in any way.

Unilocal has a few mistakes on this listing, so lets start there:
1. Zinc is not open until 11pm. Week days, until 9:30 pm. Friday & Saturday until 10:30pm.
2. Not BYOB every day of the week. Only BYOB on Sundays
3. They now have the Fall menu and Unilocal only lists the Summer menu.
I walked in tonight at 9:20pm, thinking they closed at 11:00pm. The chef and server were super accommodating and let us dine, and did not rush us one bit. We didn’t walk out of the restaurant until after 11pm. I really appreciated that. I’ve worked in restaurants before and having people walk in 10 minutes before you close, with a full bottle of wine they intend to drink, means you are staying late… on a Wednesday night. I cannot be more grateful for their warm welcome considering the situation.
Food:
Potato and leek soup is a must. Its simply incredible.
Steak Frites: get the steak medium rare. I made the mistake of doing medium. A little bloodier would have been better. Comes with very yummy french friends and salad.
Scallops and sea bass — delicious. Cauliflower purée is a nice side dish, matches well with the surf and surf.
Asparagus — great! They change up the vegetable so this may not be available when you go.
Dessert: we had the apple tart. I LOVED it. Apple tart with almond crust. yum yum yum.
Overall, great spot. I suggest going during odd hours because the place is tiny, and if people are slowly drinking a bottle of wine, you will be waiting a long time for a table.

Very disappointed … I mean if you want French food there are other choices and with far less moody staff.
Table booked for 730… By 815, no table, «sorry we are a small place «when asked about why the double booking we are told, we are a small place and they do this all the time in NYC
WRONG WRONG
Zinc I’m never ever going back, I’ll tell everyone to go see Charlotte and Pierre in bibou and Le chieri and get to feel like your money and your time is valuable…

Dined during restaurant week and had nice indoor at window seating. Very small space, nicely French bistro style. Delicious pâté appetizer, perfectly cooked medium rare steak (hangar?) with crispy frites. Dessert an exprsso cake that packed a punch) no after dinner coffee needed!)
Three of us shared a bottle of champagne and individual wine — didn’t feel bad splurging as the meal was a deal.
My only complaint is the serious gnat problem. They seemed everywhere.
The food and atmosphere are a delight. Off beaten path and steps above similar nearby bistros

We made a last minute reservation here for dinner and we were pleasantly surprised. The restaurant reminded me of a typical french restaurant you’d see in Paris. Staff was friendly food was great. We got salmon carpaccio, potato leek soup, escargot, steak and frites, and sea bass for the table. Everything was excellent and exceeded our expectation. Unfortunately they don’t serve pressed duck on Friday and Saturday but we’ll be coming back for it in the near future.

This is a very nice, small and quite place for a date or just simply to have dinner. The food is delicious and the server is very nice. I have been coming here for a while and I have always had a very good experience. I recommend this place.

Cramped quarters, noisy and the slowest service I’ve had in some time. Had to ask if there were any specials (there were) and a chef who thought rare, medium rare and medium were all the same thing. The potato leek soup was delicious, so there was that. Might have liked dessert but nobody in our party wanted to invest the time.

We had the most amazaing dining experience at Zinc last night.
Love it:
1. Pressed duck — the chef de cuisine was incredible: very personable, very entertaining and very passionate about his work. The dinner is prepared tableside and is a show and dinner at the same time. Must be tried at least once in your life. Be prepared though — only available Sunday through Thursday, requires 2 days notification and a deposit must be made. The duck breast was one of the best meals of my life.
2. Ambience and customer service — EVERYONE was incredible, service was knowledgeable and so helpful. They are honest and made excellent recommendations with wine and dessert.
3. Dessert — all so good. we had the deconstructed tiramisu and the espresso cup of wonderful chocolate/​coconut pudding. Sorry, I didn’t get the correct names of the desserts. We went based on the recommendations of the chef and the wait staff. We were so pleasantly surprised that I even forgot to take my photos.
Leave it:
1. Escargot — it wasn’t the best I’ve had and a bit gritty. It would have been the only thing I would not re-​order.
Overall:
We cannot wait to become regulars at this restaurant. What a wonderful hidden gem. We will definitely return and probably really soon.

Great food and friendly service. BYO in the summer.
The escargots are wonderful. A tad salty, but smothered in a delicious tomato based sauce.
Tried a blood sausage appetizer and it was great! I was so surprised how flavorful and delicious it was.
Steak and fries was excellent. Steak was well cooked and tender. Lovely, crisp fries.
Scallops were well cooked and a good portion. Lovely balanced flavors.
For dessert we had some sort of chocolate mouse with an espresso cream. Quite heavy, but very rich and delicious.
Great little french restaurant that I will definitely visit again.

I went to Zinc a few months ago & found it solid but forgettable. It was fine but unexceptional.
For an appetizer, I tried the pig’s feet which were tender, heavy, and not super flavourful. They were okay.
For the main course: Scallops were cooked right with a good texture, but were too salty.
For dessert, I had a somewhat disappointing fruit tart (apple) — the pastry was coarse rather than flaky. I also tried a bite of the marquise mousse chocolate cake, which was better — it was light, silky & rich.
The food is somewhere around 3 or 3.5 stars. Nothing was so good or tasty that it made me want to eat it again.
Service was good. Nice ambience.

One word: incroyable (unbelievable).
The décor reminds you of a Parisian bistro– quaint, quiet, secluded and complete with a full service bar that features everything from signature cocktails to exquisite French wines.
The menu features both traditional and non traditional French dishes– everything we had was executed with perfection. We started with the wild mushroom ragout that was stuffed in a pastry puff. The parsley mixed with the sherry made an unforgettable typical French dish. We also ordered the escargots and goat cheese tart– the tart came with roasted golden and red beets as well as a salad garnish which were very refreshing. The escargots was a heavy heavy portion of food– one of the biggest appetizers we had. The taste was unbelievable.
My dinner entrée far exceeded my expectations. I ordered the special for the evening: a roasted rack of lamb nestled on top of polenta, snow peas, lima beans and green beans and finished with a balsamic reduction. This meal hands down was the best one at the table. My mom ordered the moules frites.- mussels and fries (fries are amazing, topped with parsley), my sister ordered the scallops that topped cauliflower purée and Brussels finished with a blood orange gastrique (so unique and tasty), and her boyfriend ordered the cassoulet (nice presentation, unfortunately didn’t taste).
This restaurant was moderately priced, what else is nice is they have a smaller portion option as well which will give you a few extra bucks in your pocket.
The staff is equally as wonderful: attentive, friendly and knowledgeable. They did everything to make our experience memorable. Even giving us a comp’ed glass of wine when my sister knocked hers onto the ground.
We will be back again.

Came on a Sunday night with my unofficial Phildaelphia Dining Party; we wanted to find good French cuisine for a friend’s birthday. Zinc is hidden on a quiet street; each one of us have passed by at some point, not knowing what was inside.
It’s a cozy, small restaurant with a French bistro feel to it. At first, I was a little worried about our choice since the restaurant was mostly unoccupied. Service was pleasant, friendly, and very helpful. We started off with the Peasant Board (cheeses, liver, pâté). Coupled with unlimited bread, this kept the four of us not just easily entertained but also 70% full.
Steak Frites drew raves for the tenderness of the steak. The chicken was crispy and tender, arriving on a huge mound of potatoes and crispy aliums, and the scallops were (purportedly) also very tasty. To end, we had the chocolate mousse (?) and the apple tart. The latter was really good– thick crust, not too sweet, good sweet/​tart top. The chocolate dessert was like a deconstructed tiramisu with ladyfingers and espresso cream. Needless to say, we were incredibly stuffed by the end.
Pleasantly surprised by this unassuming restaurant and its quiet storefront. Definitely on the pricier side of eating out, but well worth it.
Other notes
— the Scallops and Poulet Fermier were ‘half-​size’ portions and still were substantial portions. Not going to complain about that!
— we kept asking for bread, which is why the Peasant Board was so filling. It was nice to dine at a restaurant so generous. At least, the server was really kind about it.

I’m always happy with the decision to make a reservation at Zinc– not that you need to. This was my second visit to Zinc and on Both occasions there has only been one other table occupied. Some may be turned off by an empty dining room, however I really enjoy the personal service it affords you. Why the place is always so empty, I don’t know. The food is certainly of high quality. Last night I ordered diver sea scallops– because I always order scallops. They were great, and the small portion came with 4 scallops. Also, they were happy to make a substitution for me since I didn’t care for the accompaniments of my entrée. My peach apéritif cocktail was great as well. I will continue to go to this quiet, neighborhood gem when I have a hankering for snooty– free French!

The food here is good. I came here with my boo and we had the pâté, the French Onion soup, moules frites, and the Cassoulet. I especially liked their French Onion soup. Its a small restaurant, which seems like it would be a BYOB, but they have a full bar and even their own label of brut sparkling wine. Nothing really wowed me though, which is a shame because I was really hoping to find that perfect little French bistro nearby to be my regular go-​to place.

I was pleasantly surprised to find a French bistro in Philly and excited to try this place out but sadly, it was mediocre. My companions actually thought the place was decent, but I did not have the heart to ruin a perfectly good night with my sidebars of what I really thought about the food. So, I will share with my Unilocalers instead…
The place itself is «cozy»…goodness, I am getting sick of that word. Ok, the place is small and the tables are placed closely together, but the restaurant itself is small, so they have to be. I get it.
They do serve complimentary warm bread in the beginning, and they do skimp out on how much they give you. I definitely wanted more later with my actual meal because the food was so «rich» (and I don’t mean that in a good way — read on).
We started off with a beet salad with goat cheese. The beets were so thinly sliced, that they were almost non-​existent. But it was a starter and opened up our palate to…
Salmon — Overfried, but I actually didn’t mind that
Chicken on the bone (They have since changed the menu to chicken breast — which might save some of you folks from the awful chicken we had) — some pieces were slightly undercooked, which left probably a ¹⁄₃ of the dish untouched.
Steak Frites — butter, butter, oily, butter
And the common denominator with all the entrees was salt. They could also stand to ease up on the butter and oil. Sometimes restaurants go overboard with the fat that they use to try to make the dish taste more rich or gourmet, but why ruin what could have been an extraordinary rustic French dish and trying to make it something that it is not and shouldn’t be and more complicated by drowning the dish with oil and butter.
A glass of wine here will run you at least $ 10. I was annoyed that the red wine we ordered came out cold. I actually didn’t mind it, but I found it odd that they had refridgerated the red wine. It is not like we ordered a cheap house wine from Olive Garden (which by the way, Zinc doesn’t have a house wine anyway.)
Also, for a Friday night, the place was only half packed (again, this place is small so it has the potential to fill up very quickly). I would recommend this place for couples or friends who want to take their time and not be rushed. This place is also REALLY dark and chilly. So girls, bring me a cardigan or wrap or drink up.
Although the food was underwhelming, I cannot complain about the service. Our server was attentive, courteous, and had a good attitude.
Maybe it was an off night with the food, but I still probably won’t go back.
Pics to come.
Parking — Street, metered if you can find any
Location — easy to miss but is in the middle of the block of the street that it’s on