Photo credit Black Book
Rating: 
Bistro Bagatelle is moving to another location! Discover now the Brasserie Beaumarchais!
If you’re single, rich and European in NYC and didn’t score on Friday or Saturday night, fear not. Brunch at Bistro Bagatelle is basically an after-after hours party; except that most of the folks dining here on an early weekend afternoon look as though they got a good night’s sleep and went to the gym that morning. Easily one of the most expensive brunches in the city, Bistro Bagatelle wants you to show up with a big appetite for cocktails and socializing – both will be indulged.
The Scene: Large tables of primarily same-sex groups better dressed than most of the people out in the Meat Packing district the night before. The wide open dining room has a tiny, easily bottlenecked entrance and plenty of comfortable banquette seating. The color palate is monochromatic white but the hint of ‘shabby chic’ makes the space warm and inviting. A perfect spot to hide from a cold winter afternoon – but not for too long: The tables have a 2 hour maximum. Throbbing (but somehow not obnoxious) Euro club music begins and noon and gets louder as the day goes on.
The Food: Surprisingly very, very good – better than it needs to be. The speed of the service was also unexpected. Farm fresh ingredients and careful presentation elevate a merry booze fest to a serious meal. The Huevos Rancheros ($15) are flavorful and elegantly plated with fresh warm tortilla– a grown-up version of a classic hangover dish. The Eggs Bagetelle ($18)– a spin on a Benedict/Norweigan, were cooked perfectly. No dry, burnt spinach here! The eggs were poached to perfection (no runniness of the whites; warm, liquid yolk) and the hollandaise tasted as though it was made to order. French fries are crispy and served Belgian-style; and every single dessert item on the menu looks appealing.
The Booze: Expensive. Champagne-based cocktails run $16-18 a piece; pitchers of cocktails (Mojitos; Margaritas) are $95 each and small in size. Bottle service is definitely encouraged and popular here, but there are no bottles of champagne under $100 and only a small handful of bottles of wine in the lower price range. Our adorable French waitress assured us that their by-the-glass wines were “really not bad”, but a Louis Latour did not stand up to the strong flavors of our dishes. We’ll be back just as soon as money is no object, and do things a little differently.
409 W. 13th St. @ Washington
New York, NY 10014
212-675-2400
[...] in the city you love, loathe and want people to think you can afford. Y’know, like Bagatelle (“If you’re single, rich and European in NYC and didn’t score on Friday or Saturday [...]