The New French

In continuation with the French theme, BB suggested a dinner at The New French last night. I wasn’t enamored with any of the selections on the menu but the rave reviews on NYMag and Menupages swayed me.

The Good

• It’s a nice and clean place in the West Village to have a glass of wine and a meal with friends.
• The concept is similar to FR.OG. The menu shows a diverse mix of French food from around the world.
• The prices are reasonable. I don’t know why anyone would pay $16 for Pho but the brisket sandwich I got was $12.75. It came with an inch of meat piled between ciabatta bread. Even a deli sandwich of that size would go for around $9-$10.
• The salad that came with the sandwich was flavorful. If you like beets, then you should be happy. The restaurant seems to like them as well.
• Our waiter was attentive and we got a free entrée due to a miscommunication.

The Bad

• While my brisket sandwich was big and meaty, it lacked flavor. The ciabatta was slathered with horseradish mustard and roasted red peppers adorned the meat. That was fine. My issue is with the meat. They used lean brisket. Without the fat, the meat lacked the natural goodness of beef. A friend found it to be dry. It also lacked flavor from additional spices or ingredients. Overall, it was very bland, especially compared to the flavorful complementary salad.

I didn’t like my dish and my companions only felt their dishes were ok at best. If this is the new French, I think I prefer the old.

522 Hudson St
(North of 10th)