Le Jardin Bistro

Is Jardin Bistro closed? Does anyone know? I just got a notice from Unilocal.Sorry if it is. It was a wonderful place.

This place is really cute and quaint. If you’re into the restaurant ambiance, this is a good place to go.
I had the stuffed chicken breast with grilled vegetables and it was real yummy! The stuffing is really flavorful and makes up for the seemingly simple chicken. Their cocktails are also really delicious!
Overall the service was fantastic, and the place is clean, classy, with really good food. Nice place for a dinner or brunch date!

4.25 stars.
I really like this place, especially the second floor, with high ceilings, an outdoor space, and a cute working fireplace inside. We were graciously welcomed by an attentive yet relaxed staff, who made us feel comfortable right away.
Their house red wine is terrific, and I would order a carafe in a heartbeat.
Their sourdough bread comes warm and toasty.
Escargots: 6 delicious bites you won’t forget.
Hanger steak: very tender meat, drowned in a mouthwatering sauce; the fries are just ok.
Cassoulet: a gigantic «serving» of multiple meats so soft you can cut them with a fork: duck confit, pork (belly?), beef, lamb and a sausage swim all together in a sea of white beans. VERY sizable… enough for two people.
We were so full we didn’t order dessert, but I can’t wait to go back.
This place is a solid choice, and highly recommended.

We were seated upstairs in the terrace/​outdoorish area which had a very nice ambiance.
Apps
We had the pâté de campagne which was alright — it came with two slices of head-​cheese looking like pâté and one dinky marinated fig. Bread was crusty and delicious
Drinks
Good Happy Hour Special, menu cocktails were $ 5. We had the a lemon/​vodka/​mint drink which was served in a decent sized mason jar.
Entrees
I had the bouillabaisse which was a large portion. Hot and steamy and full of flavor. Plenty of mussels/​shrimp/​cod fish chunks, but were a little over cooked and chewy.
My husband had the burger which was more of a french onion soup inspired burger. Wasn’t fancy or very large, but he said it tasted amazing!
Service
Waitress was new, didn’t know the special or was very confused about them. She was very attentive and nice so with a little bit of training I’m sure she will be up to speed. Since she was new, she was confused on how to redeem the $ 20 coupon I had for this restaurant, but she asked her manager and they honored it anyway.

This place is fantastic. The food, service, and ambience are all perfect. The peppercorn sauce is out of this world, as is the rest of their top notch menu. The back patio and upstairs terrace are amazing for the nice weather, and the wood burning fireplace makes it great for cold nights as well. Great addition to the neighborhood, a must when in alphabet city.

The burger here was SO good.
Knew it was going to be excellent from the moment the waiter took our order (excellent service) and gave us bread (which was top notch).
Would definitely recommend this place. The outdoor seating is also really pretty and charming.

The three stars are for the service only. They were very accommodating and patient with the difficult grandparents.
That said, the food needs help. Burgers and french onion soup, where is the creativity and where are the fresh ingredients? The brunch menu is the most run-​of-​the-​mill you can imagine: french toast, omelettes, eggs benedict.
If you are looking for the standard staples, this place might be fine, but if you like new and exciting, skip it.

First of all, the menu online does not reflect their actual prices. Second of all, they fucking cheat you of your money in that they do not tell you that they charge certain fees such as cake fees (5 dollars /​person). Also, the waitress NANA is a sleazy bastard. Be careful of trusting her or perhaps anyone in the restaurant because they charged me TWICE for tips. I asked her specifically if the receipt contained the gratuity and she said no. However, upon recalculating the total and seeing that it didn’t add up, I revisited the place to find again that night to find out that THE TIP HAD INDEED BEEN CALCULATED ALREADY AND NANA WANTED TO TAKE TWO TIMES HER TIPS FROM THE SAME CUSTOMERS. NOW HOW CAN SOMEONE BE SO SLEAZY? GOD KNOWS.
So BE CAREFUL OF TWO THINGS:
— unnecessary and fees that they fail to tell you about but have no worries charging you for AND
— sleazy bastards who want double their tips.
Not to mention their smoked salmon alone was pretty atrocious. But that seems to be the last problem to worry about here…
POOR FOOD AND EVEN WORSE SERVICE

Talk about a hidden gem! Took the route that walks one through some rather shady looking areas of the city (I recommend approaching from E 8^th street or above…)…nearly walked past the door… then tried the wrong door… but finally made it in… and it was well worth the journey!
The lovely bartender doubles as the maitre d. So friendly, and all smiles and charming cheer. Looked like a nice bar area. The ascent to the restaurant area is steep, but it is so lovely to pop up in this loft space, complete with working fireplace (stoked table side by your server!). The environment couldn’t be more romantic if it tried. But the fact that it doesn’t feel like they’re «trying» is what makes for the perfection.
The Balthazer breaf and fresh cream butter. Perfect start.
Le Boulevard, once stirred, was a lovely beverage. They were out of the Cotes de Bordeaux, but were able to accommodate with their house Bordeaux, which was acceptable. I did notice the next day that they overcharged for the house Bordeaux (charged $ 30 when menu lists $ 20). I’m sure they would have made the correction, had I caught the error. And it is something for me to be at such ease and fulfillment that I didn’t scrutinize the bill before laying down my card. Still, eyes open next time.
The Epoisse and Roquefort were both lovely. Plating a bit lacking… though we loved the accents of fruits and nuts. They also were beyond accommodating to my dining companion’s gluten allergy (giving a plethora of gorgeous gherkins — spiced quite sharply, in a good way! — to compensate for no bread with the foie gras — and were immediately forthcoming to avoid the frites, as they’re made in the same fried as gluten items), so much as to not add gluten to my entrée, as they noticed we were sharing.
The Cassoulet is one of the best I’ve ever had. The Bouillabaisse was divine! very generous portions of both. Good balance of ingredients and sauce. Lovely serving ware and utensils. Intriguing that they served the Bouillabaisse with cheese and a spicy aioli (perhaps influence of the latin-​run kitchen). But it worked!
We passed on dessert, though were pleased to see a flourless chocolate mousse and sorbet options.
We will most definitely be back to experience this gem during more clement weather, and to experience their outdoor/​deck space (hopefully the seating is a little less cramped out there…). And I’m even considering a group dining experience, as they handled the large group who came in just as well as our two top!

OMG, this place is HELLA FAR!
Now that I got that off my chest… we can go ahead with the food review.
After a long walk on a cold winter day to get to this restaurant, I was quite relieved to see that it’s a cute little place. Service was warm and welcoming and drinks were decently priced out for $ 10/​cocktail.
Friend had the French Onion Soup and featured fish — - the fish was on the dot PERFECT. I, unfortunately did not remember the name of the fish since it was a special of the day but the texture was just right. Fish can sometimes be overly done making them pretty dry but I really enjoyed this dish at Le Jardin Bistro. As for the French Onion Soup my friend’s only complain was that it tasted a bit acidic.
I had the stuffed chicken breast but I wasn’t too crazy about it. I felt like the chicken meat was a bit too well done. However the side mash potato was the-​bomb. It was SOO good (yet a bit too greasy).
We did decide to get desert despite the fact that our stomachs probably cannot take another bite of anything (not even air). And I definitely did not regret splitting that Tarte Tatin! The crust of the tart was crispy yet also doughy at the same time. While my company complained the dessert was too sweet, I personally thought it wasn’t that bad (and I don’t even really eat sweets!)
So pretty much almost everything’s good but it is bloody cold at their first floor seating. They didn’t really seat anyone there for that reason and I kind of felt bad for the bartenders working there. All in all, I will consider coming back even though it’s.really.FAR. On top of that, they have a balcony and back yard seating that’d be great when spring comes!
PS the fries from the next table smelt SO good. I am def. having that in my next visit.

Great service and excellent bread :-) It goes downhill from there… maybe I am holding them to higher standards.
This place used to be Apartment 13 and they knew how to make perfect Old English, steak was cooked just right and seafood was always wild caught.
Not anymore :-(

I ve enjoyed the dinning experience, service was great, wine and food amazing. First i ordered escargots (amazing) and mussels (really good) and than we shared steak au poivre and it was great too.
After that we ordered chocolate mousse also really good. You should try it.

This restaurant has been on my radar for a little while — French food at or around $ 20 an entrée? That sounds like a great deal to me. The décor is certainly French, with black and white mosaic tiles. There’s a lovely wood-​burning fireplace in the upstairs dining area and a glasshouse outdoor dining patio which I’ll bet is lovely in the daylight. As much as I love the décor, the food left me wanting. The liver pâté was grainy and could have been more buttery, while the coq au vin was kind of dry and just not that rich tasting. Service was also not quite attentive.

I never write Unilocal reviews, but I had to give this quaint little place a big heaping of praise. I’ve been living in the East Village for 12 years and have seen places come and go. This place needs to stay. You need to definitely go! First, the place is enchanting. You absolutely cannot appreciate the upstairs from street level. They have a working fireplace. A working fireplace! What better way to cozy up a room in the dead of winter. They also have a beautiful enclosed outdoor space, which is probably awesome in summer. So décor? A 10.
My friend and I had brunch and the food was excellent. I had eggs benedict — the eggs were cooked perfectly and the sauce was amazing. My friend had the french toast which was also delicious. Portions were generous — after eating half of my eggs, I helped my friend with her French toast and then took the rest home. They included extra Hollandaise sauce with my to go eggs benedict. It was my friend’s bday. The extremely polite, attentive, and totally awesome waiter brought us two glasses of champagne — on the house.
The service — perfect. I worked for 16 years as a waitress. This place gets stars all around.
Seriously, don’t walk by at street level and glance inside and walk away. Upstairs is where it’s happening. And the food is fantastic. I’ll definitely be back.
Go. Just go.

We keep going back to this place. Simply: a wonderful ambience (the fireplace is lovely), great food and excellent, amiable service – it’s a great value. The house wine (@$ 12 a carafe! I think it poured 4 glasses) is very drinkable.
Eggplant tart is excellent as is the coq au vin.

Amazing ! Loved it to death the food the service
Everything !

I remember when I was a kid, my father used to take me to a nice little bistro in Côte d’Azur while we were there on vacation.
Well, that place was very different from Le Jardin, but they have one big thing in common: the food. Back in France, it was so amazing that I still remember it after 20 years and here on Avenue C, it’s so good I’ve to go back every time I can.
I tried most of the menu, which is amazing, but I’ll give you my top 3:
— escargots, of course, properly made, flavorful and just perfect. They were also serving one night a special escargot ravioli. Lord, that was good.
— pâté: if you like it, you just cannot stop eating it.
— tuna tartare: here’s the fact: I like tuna even though I’m not a great fan. But the seasoning here goes just perfectly together.
And those, my friends, are only the appetizers.
I have been very impressed by the steak frites: for $ 20 I wasn’t expecting that much. But not only it was a great portion, the quality of the meat was… double thumbs up! Didn’t even need the steak knife (medium rare or rare, they have some serious cooks there, so do yourself a favor: stop eating well done steaks, thank you)
I also remember one night I had a special filet mignon that I’m still dreaming.
Wine selection: complete and not pretentious at all. If you want to spend money on wine they’ll let you do it, but they have great wine for less than $ 30/​bottle.
The décor is cozy, nice and warm. And they’ve a terrace that is open on summer.
Attentive staff and friendly service, without forced smiles and/​or attitude.
In conclusion: move your butt and go get some weight there. You won’t feel guilty because the food is ABSOLUTELY good. Just good.

Super cute little French place in the East Village.
I came here with another lady for an impromptu dinner. We started off with wine, which I was hoping for a beaujolais but nothing by the glass. As an appetizer, we shared 3 cheeses with their lovely bread. She ended up ordering the mussels while I went for the heavier cassoulet since it was a chilly night. What a really lovely dish! It was hearty, the duck was cooked perfectly, the sausage was meaty, and the beans were not mushy.
I was surprised at how inexpensive the bill came out to be since the quality is superb. When I am in the area next, I shall certainly come back!

This new restaurant located in Alphabet City is a perfectly French-​inspired little restaurant that my boyfriend and I visited for a spontaneous dinner date. Before arriving, I read that this was a «New and Hot» spot so I was excited to see what the hype was.
The atmosphere is very romantic, but relaxed at the same time. And this may be odd to note, but the soundtrack was on point. The staff was always on top of keeping our water glasses full and assisting with anything we needed. Granted, the night we came it was not that busy, but the people were still super nice.
My boyfriend ordered the steak frites which was great and I ordered the Cassoulet which was a large stew-​like casserole with sausage and duck confit which the waitress recommended. The portion was way too large for me, so my helpful boyf helped me to finish it.
Definitely worth a visit for dinner and looking forward to visiting for brunch!

Oh Jardin Bistro, how you’ve been missed!
The original Jardin Bistro in Soho held a very special place in my heart as it was the first date spot for me and my soon to be wife. When it closed we were extremely disappointed because not only was it nostalgic for us but the food was really good!
Fast forward 5 years later; the fiancé and I are living together in the East Village and to our great pleasure, the Bistro re-​opens just a few blocks from our apartment! It must be fate. We knew we had to go immediately and found that the food is just as good and the space, even more delightful.
The vibe is just what you’d expect from a French bistro. Warm and inviting with that old school charm. We asked to be sat outside and were directed to the veranda upstairs. There’s also a small patio on the ground level. I would have liked to have a drink at the bar but we were hungry so we’ll have to save that for next time. The room upstairs is open and has plenty of seating. Even if you can’t score a seat on the deck, the windows and doors are large enough and the ceilings are tall so you should still be able to enjoy some fresh air and a view.
We started with a glass of the house sparkling wine which I thought was awesome for $ 7. I ended up having another glass, it was that good. For an entrée (French for starter, not like how us dumb Americans use it. Makes sense, right?), we got the tuna tartare which we both really enjoyed. It was served in a light mustard sauce which was delicious. I’ve never had tuna tartare served like that before so it was a welcome change from the norm. For the main course, I got the steak tartatre and my lady got the gnocchi with mushrooms. I really enjoyed the steak tartare, ordering it spicy on the suggestion of our server. It was different than I remember it from the oldJardin Bistro, the original being more mustardy and traditional. Very good. The gnocchi was soft and melted in your mouth but it was a very small portion for $ 18. That was kind of disappointing.
To finish the meal we got a selection of ice creams and sorbets. Very interesting flavor options were offered. We went with the crème fraîche and fig ice creams and a peach sorbet. The fig ice cream was marvelous. Grainy and sweet, just how I pictured it. The other flavors were delicious and refreshing as well. A nice way to end a light meal.
Service was extremely friendly and helpful. Definitely memorable. I really hope this place does well so that we can come back for years to come.