Every week, I document another dish that impressed and satiated me during my food adventures around New York City
A few summers ago, I had a few days in Paris. One of the places I decided on for lunch was a place in the trendy Montmartre neighborhood for a classic Coq au Vin.
It was a nice place and felt very Parisian. Shortly after I ate there, I found out that the same restaurant was about to open a second location. In New York City.
I came all the way to Paris to eat at a restaurant that would slowly be in my own backyard??
Well, Le Coq Rico did open in the Flatiron District and received plenty of acclaim. Supposedly it transports you to Paris. I could have saved myself a plane ticket.
The New York location has been open since 2016 and since I visited the original, it took me a long time to try the NYC one. There are too many restaurants here to try that I have not visited in Paris.
I did recently visit them for lunch (they have a pretty nice $26 prix-fixe) and was just as pleased as I was in France (except for that whole vacation thing).
The rotisserie Cornish hen is quartered at lunch but still lets the plump juicy meat shine, with a side of crisp bitter greens and rich au jus.
But the dessert here has gotten just as much attention as the fowl and it is a classic French dessert that we somehow overlooked in Paris.
L’ile Flottante translates to “the floating island” and you can see that it refers to the stark presentation. A cloudy meringue sits in an ocean of cold creamy vanilla-kissed crème anglaise (think melted ice cream). Also bobbing around are a few bites of sugary red pralines that sort of emulate the sweet crunch of an ice cream cone.
Still it is that soft meringue that is otherworldly. The texture lies somewhere between whipped cream and a melting marshmallow.
The entire thing is refined, delicate, and somewhat romantic. Just like you’d expect to find in Paris. Oh, I almost forgot. This is in New York. Price: $13 or part of lunch prix-fixe
| LE COQ RICO |
| 30 East 20th Street (between Broadway and Park Avenue South), Flatiron District (212) 267-7426 |
| lecoqriconyc.com |
