Glenn C.
Yelp
I've been to this spot twice both a while back the first time splitting a lot of dishes and the second time a couple weeks later for Restaurant Week where I avoided said restaurant week to get their outstanding tagine again which is a few bucks less than the RW menu and honestly more worth it. As I went here a while ago, a dish is not on the menu now and I don't have the prices from back then either. The restaurant lists itself as a coastal French bistro with a strong Provençal influence which lends itself to the Mediterranean/Northern African influence to a good amount of the dishes. They are related to a few other restaurants such as Rosemary's and all of them are also very popular among the brunch crowd. The service was friendly and I liked the atmosphere being fancy but casual. I had a glass of rosé one time and I don't think I remember having a drink the other time.
The Lamb Tagine with couscous, chermoula, and apricot & almond chutney is currently listed at $52. I would highly recommend getting it even at that price. There is a massive super tender and very well spiced lamb shank inside. The couscous happened to be larger being more the pearl variety found in Israel rather than the smaller version found in Morocco and I much prefer the former as it has a nice bouncy texture and I find it absorbs the flavor of the tagine better. The chermoula which is a spice mix added a good tang to the dish and the chutney was sweet but not overly so and there wasn't too much of it being just a good way of interrupting the lamb in case it gets a bit too rich. I'd honestly go back to order this again and it might be my favorite tagine in the city.
The rest of the menu is fine. Also from the Moroccan influence is the Spiced Lamb Brochettes with shabazi yogurt, pickled red onion, and arugula. It is well spiced but a bit pricey but it's partially expected for the area. The Roasted Beet Salad with chicories, horseradish yogurt, toasted almonds, and parmesan is also pretty tasty with a nice mix of flavors to complement the beets and I would recommend it. My least favorite of the current menu offerings we tried is the Crispy Artichokes with green garlic pistou and caper aioli. They come with five pieces and while the spice mixture is nice, it's a bit too lightly seasoned for my liking.
The Tiradito of Salmon with basil and lime vinaigrette, watermelon radish, and cilantro was tasty. It came with seven pieces of salmon and the vinaigrette added some nice sourness and it was a fun spin on the traditional tiradito although I don't currently see it on the menu. Possibly it's just a summer thing or something. A person also had a gazpacho which is humorously served in a Ricard pastis bottle and they liked it.
This place has been around for a while and is a staple for the area. Outside of the noticeably good albeit expensive tagine, the rest of the menu is pricey but it is a French spot in the Village so it's partially expected and the flavors are unique enough outside of the artichokes that they are pretty much worth it. The service and atmosphere help as well. Low 4/upper 3 outside of the tagine which is an upper 4 and would be a 5 if it wasn't over 50 bucks.