Le Magnifique

3.5 stars
Went for a friend’s birthday brunch and a great time was had by all. Most of our party got the Brunch Royale special, which includes unlimited Kir Royals. The drinks were amazing, like a glimpse of Paris in springtime on a cold New York Sunday, and I heard no complaints about the food. I’d eat before, so I just got the soup of the day, which was a creamed spinach and artichoke dish. It was as delicious as it was green, with a hint of olive oil on top to send it over.
The restaurant is somewhat strangely set up, with a few tables and a bar downstairs and all remaining tables upstairs. Since we’d be seated downstairs, we had to use the restroom upstairs, and only then did we realize that the whole restaurant is actually upstairs. Would have been nice to have been able to people watch, but our party of 10 fit much more comfortably downstairs (though our tables were right by the door — blustery).
A fraction of a star comes off for the service. I know it’s a French restaurant, but for the love. We waited and waited and waited for them to bring us menus, then take our orders. The food came out promptly, but we had to wait an additional eternity for the server to bring us the check.
I also found it odd that, instead of telling one member of our party that the chef was out what she’d ordered, they just replaced it with a waffle without telling her. She was rightfully confused when she got the waffle, and only then did they tell her about the shortage and asked if she’d like something else. She definitely wanted something else, so the waffle was wasted. All could have been avoided if they’d just informed her from the start that her selection was unavailable.
Also, I managed to spill my drink and break a glass and it took at least 10 minutes for them to come clean it up, so water was definitely everywhere, so I started picking up shards myself. Even after they cleaned, some glass was still on the floor, which was just plain dangerous.
Overall, we had a great time, the food was good, and the ambiance is charming (they bring you your check in a DVD box of a vintage French film). There were some missteps that were really unnecessary, but I’d come again for another brunch, not likely on my own, though.

We decided to try Le Magnifique on a whim as part of an ongoing brunch tour of NYC. The bright upstairs dining room and lack of a meat-​market Sunday crowd made this restaurant stand out a lot though. The $ 28 unlimited drink drunch special was worth getting as long as you’re committed to a lit Sunday afternoon, but the ruling is still out on whether or not salmon belongs with eggs benedict. Also, the two entrances led to a bit of confusion; we entered through the side door and stumbled into a waiter at a register who seemed surprised to see anyone using that door. Lastly, the soundtrack could have been a bit less «right off the radio». All in all, worth trying at least one more time.

Delicious honestly! I came here for brunch and really enjoyed it. Great atmosphere, good food, spot-​on service! Can’t ask for more! Will have to return for a romantic dinner here soon!

I’m a fan and have returned multiple times for dinner and once for brunch on their second floor. I would recommend having dinner at Le Magnifique rather than brunch.
The $ 20 3-​course dinner prix fix (5−6pm) is a great introduction to this restaurant.
The filet mignon (one of their daily specials) was delicious. The first floor is a very different feel, I prefer eating on the second floor because it feels like rural France.

Was there Nov 18, 2012 for brunch. Atmosphere is the only good thing.
Ordered Pancakes, smelled like burger. Coffee was cold, no refill. If it is not a premium coffee, why not refill.
Our waitress was better than average.
I wouldn’t go there again for brunch. You can take your chances and try it yourself too.

Short review: Le Magnifique is anything but.
Not-​so-​short review: Came by pure chance or rather misfortune. Went for the steak and I wished I just went home. I apparently got the chef’s shoe sole with a side of heavily diluted buttery sauce which my tastebuds have yet failed to describe. The bread should have been labeled accordingly since the closest thing that comes to mind is a desiccated sea sponge. The red wine glass I sipped on was the best vinegar I’ve ever tasted. Adding to the palate rape, the check amounted to burglary.
A name change to «Le Pathétique» is in order.

I ate here twice. The first was on a Friday at lunch. The food was good and fast on a weekday. The second time was an utter disaster! We waited for 1 hr 20+ minutes for our food. Two people in our party had to miss appointments b/​c the food took so long to prep, and then Le Magnifique wouldn’t even refill our coffees or bread basket until we begged multiple times. The poor table next to us was waiting too for over an hour… and the mom next to us took our fries when we offered to feed her toddler b/​c her poor kid was so hungry. When we asked what was going on, the manager said they had a big party that had to get served first, but he was not very responsive; our waitress was a little impolite. Honestly, I’d say do not ever go here for brunch on a weekend… b/​c it will waste away your entire day. And since we’re busy New Yorkers… who needs that?!

I don’t know how to describe this place. It’s a mix between a casual bistro and a very sexy, sultry lounge. Downstairs is more boutique-​ey — upstairs more French café-​like, but the entire establishment bleeds lucious reds with a sensual, cabaret-​like atmo.
I just swung in for a drink after a concert at Central Park, and was impressed by my cucumber cocktail. Decent wine list and prices on par with their offerings and the neighborhood. I considerd coming back for brunch the next day, but wasn’t too impressed with the menu. Lunch, however, I noticed offered a great prix fix deal.
Love the French music — rap, hip hop … very posh, without being pretentious.

I had brunch here recently with some friends and it was great. We each had the «Brunch Royale,» the waiter was awesome and let us get mimosas and bloody marys instead of the included kir royales. I had the eggs benedict (the only acceptable brunch choice, IMO) and they were the bomb dot com. $ 28 for unlimited boozin’ plus food and dessert? We got no sass to split the check on 4 credit cards. Can’t wait to go back.

I dined here last night with my husband and another couple. We were seated quickly upon arrival and were given 2 options for seating — a table immediately next to a group of 20 or so girls (loudly) celebrating a 30^th birthday, or a booth. They were nice enough to accommodate our request to sit a bit further away from the large table although overall the noise level was unexpected for a small-​ish french restaurant on the UES.
The waiter asked us to place our order right away so that it would go in ahead of the large table, which was considerate. He indicated we would be waiting a long time to eat if we didn’t get a jump on ordering, yet I didn’t feel as though we were being rushed through dining in general which was appreciated.
My husband and I split an appetizer of baked camembert, which was served with toasted bread and greens, which was delicious. For dinner, I ordered the thai mussels and fries, which were okay, if a bit bland.
Overall, a pleasant dining experience, but I’m not sure if I’d return since it didn’t stand out in my mind as anything «special» and it was quite expensive.

First things first…
Why were all the waiters wearing the same belts? Not the typical belt you wear– but the kind that says…“this does more than hold up my pants.“
Sitting outside on a nice Saturday afternoon– among the flash of silver belt buckles– were several French accents, a group of women talking about «how they used have a house out in the Hamptons before the divorce,» and several dogs tied to the outdoor iron chairs sniffing your legs.
After our waiter adjusted the wobbling table on the sidewalk with a packet of sugar… we were presented with house cocktails (not bad… The menu even shows a silhouette of the glass shape to make sure one can pick a «non– girly» drink”… Followed by a stack of yummy blueberry pancakes.
Can you picture the scene? It’s worth being in it…

Worst. Service. Ever.
We (3 girls) walk in at 12:30pm and are asked if we have reservations. We say no and are told the upstairs is booked and we have to sit downstairs or outside. Perfectly understandle. We sit downstairs in the corner table right when you walk in.
Ordering was fine, waiter was actually being friendly, the coffee is good, the bread is good… everything’s going fine.
Then my french toast comes out with no pistachios (as described) and my friend’s egg dish comes out with no homefries (as described). Then we’re waiting forever for our 2^nd Kir Royal. Then we’re done and no one is taking our plates. We’re at the table by the door, there’s no missing us. But the waiter was running inside and outside and accomodating everyone else.
In the 45 minutes it took for not one waiter to take our dirty dishes, replenish our drinks, ask us if we wanted the dessert we are apparently offered with the prix fix meal, people are pouring in. The waiter asks everyone“do you have reservations?” and when they say «no,» he replies with «ok, follow me upstairs.» Wait, don’t you not have tables available upstairs with no reservations?
The whole experience was weird. It wasn’t that they were snooty, they were just straight up ignoring us. Having an attitude with us would have been better than not being helped at all. I love that when I asked for the check, the waiter didn’t say «can I get you (the complimentary) dessert… would you like another coffee… anything else… etc»
Half the time I’m too busy chilling with my friends to care/​notice bad service, but these people were just straight up classless. Learn how to respect your customers (who, by the way, enjoy wasting money on food and drinks and would have come back). Hope you enjoyed that 90 cent tip, assholes.

This place was so horrible and such a waste of money and time that upon realizing we left a jacket at the restaurant, we decided just to leave it there. That’s how much we hated this place. We weren’t even prepared to go back to pick up something we had left. it doesn’t get much lower than that.
The quality of meat used for the burger was disgraceful, the blueberries in the pancakes were frozen still, and our coffee came 45 minutes after we ordered it. The service and food here is dire. Defnitely feel like I lost precious hours of my life and space in my stomach from being here.

I went for brunch on a Sunday around 12:30pm in May, we had outside seating. Here are my complaints:
1) When walking up to the restaurant it was not clear which door was the entrance. We walked into the first door but no one was there to greet us so we went to the other door. We were told at the 2^nd door to go to the first door.
2) We sat down and it took awhile for someone to come take our order.
3) The first time I was given my order, it was the wrong plate of food. I had ordered pancakes but I was brought waffles. I didn’t eat them as I wanted to tell the runner that I thought he had given me the wrong food. 5 minutes went by and he came back with my correct plate, at which time he took the wrong plate.
4) When bringing me my pancakes, there was no syrup on the side or on the dish. I then asked one of the runners for syrup. 5 – 10 min went by. I got up out of my seat and went and asked one of the managers for syrup. He said, «okay». Another 5 minutes went by and we then asked ANOTHER runner for syrup. Still 5 minutes went by and there was no syrup. After 20 – 25 min of having my food which was now cold, a totally different person (granted this is now the FOURTH person) asked me if I needed something. I said, «Yes, I have asked for syrup multiple times and have yet to receive it.» At that point, I got the syrup.
5) A few minutes later, the manger whom I had asked initially for the syrup came to our table and apologized and gave us my friends cup of coffee for free. He also offered us a glass of alcohol. I did not accept.
6) During my time of waiting for syrup, one couple got up and left their table because they were tired of waiting to be waited on. Another family was complaining about how long it took to get bread and for someone to take their order and the table behind me was complaining about how long it was taking to get coffee and milk.
Needless to say, although the food was decent/​average (not worth the $ I paid for it), the service made the entire experience negatively remarkable. I would discourage anyone from going.

Womp Womp Womp.
Sorry, Le Magnifique but, your charm ain’t working on this mademoiselle.
Set in a lovely little nook on the UES, Le Magnifique called to my friends and I after a trip to the Hopper exhibit at the Whitney. This place looked a bit over our usual diner fare but we figuered, pourquoi pas?!
The waiters were very on attentive and seated us quickly without a reservation. While nothing as a whole was wrong with Le Magnifique, there was simply something missing from the equation.
Though my buckwheat crêpe with ham, ghouda and mushroom was well worth the price (though I have now learned that I am not a buckwheat fan :/​), my friends yogurt and (handful of) fruit seemed pitiful in comparison especially with the mere two dollar difference. As well, for a brunch menu to come without a mimosa and with only $ 14 beverages, is simply not up to NYC brunch norm.
Everything seeming slightly off about our experience, all I could hear as we left were the notes ‘womp, womp, womp’ reverberating around the posh exterior solidifying Le Magnifique as, sadly, no contender for the magnificent brunch spots in town. Sorry guys but, definitely A for Effort.

This is my regular brunch place on Sat from now on. I have been coming here for a few Saturdays now and am surprised every time at the high quality of food, amazing services and unlimited supply of Kir Royal.
Everything about this place is appealing, decorum, food, staff, etc.
Absolutely recommend this place to anyone.
Their dinner is also very very good. I took a few of my friends out, and we had dinner here and it was the same quality of services and amazing dishes with exquisite foods.
No doubt one of the best places in the neighborhood.

Fantastic! I have been wanting to join Unilocal for a while, but felt like I never really had anything to say.
This was the meal I was waiting for… I need to express my love for this place!
I live in the LES and it is very hard for me to leave my bubble, let along make the trek up to the Upper East Side. But I can say it was completely worth it.
I went there last night for dinner with a friend and l can’t get it out of my head…
The Strawberry Lichy Martini was a wonderful blend of freshness and fruity, but not overly like most drinks of this variety. I can imagine sipping this on a beautiful summer day.
The pinnacle of the evening… Le Jardin Secret Du Magnifique! It’s a «fettuccini» that is made from fresh hearts of palm. For this dish alone I would happily make this journey again. The consistency was amazing, it was beyond al dente. It was eating a big bowl of pasta with none of the guilt. Not going to lie, I couldn’t eat it all because I had to bring some to work today to have my boss try it.
Her 1^st reaction: «Wow that’s good»
2 minutes later: «Wow, that was reallllly good»
Consensus = May be better than pasta.
Finished it off with the chocolate molten cake. I can’t lie I was very disappointed to see that the cake had been punctured for presentation… But the first bite made me eat my words.
Warm, rich flowing chocolate in the middle. Perfection.
Of course all this goodness comes with a price, but I have to say it was far worth it. It makes me want to venture out of my bubble more often!
C’est Magnifique!

Excellent bistro food in a comfortable, frenchified setting. Love the French & jazz music and the very French menu. Each time I’ve been there I’ve heard French being spoken at other tables, probably a good sign, and atmospheric in any case.
The caesar’s salad is great because it includes pieces of terrific chicken paillard, which is thin and nicely spiced. The vegetable soups are excellent – I’ve had the red pepper & celery and the beet & carrot and loved both. The duck pâté was spectacular.
Definitely not cheap but this is a place where you feel like you get your money’s worth.

This place is nice and good for breakfast/​lunch. I wish I’d had both there, but I just had the breakfast. The toasted bread crusts were a bit pretentious (sometimes a woman just wants some damn bread) but tasty all the same.

Mediocre food, snooty staff, and ridiculous seating policies is what this place is about. I was with 3 friends after seeing the Picasso exhibit at the Met, when we decided to go somewhere for drinks and dessert. It was Sunday night, and the other (better) dessert places were closed. We passed by this place, and decided to try it out. Bad choice.
First, they did not let us sit outside unless we ordered entrees. Then we finally got a place upstairs. They had a sign for buy-​one-​get-​one-​free drinks on Sunday, but when we asked the waiter, he said it did not apply to people sitting at tables, only at the bar. Who else has heard of location dependent drink specials before?!?
Then the food came. It was disappointingly mediocre. The chocolate soufflé was dry and bland. The crepes were plain and flavorless. I don’t understand how you can call yourself a French restaurant and not make typical French desserts halfway decent!
The worst part was that the staff was extra snooty, and service was super slow. At least have good food if you are going to act stuck up.
Overall a bad experience. If I am going to waste money at a restaurant, please at least have something going for you.

Nice spot with cute outdoor seating is kind of what you’d expect in this hood, French staff, thick accents, some pretensions but beneath the surface lies some really tasty food elegantly cooked and delivered.
Duck pâté — exquisite, much more meat than fat served with garlic crisp bread slices and home made pickles, well priced at $ 9.
Classic French onion soup ($ 10) — again perfect rich beefy broth with a melted cheesy topping, my Wife said it was better than Balthazar’s.
Moules & frites — ($ 19) Portion is medium (I love mussels and so I like a huge bucket) but nicely cooked with plenty of broth for dipping, french fries were excellent too, hand cut.
Bread — served warm, again excellent quality.
Wine — Pinot Noir — good size glass for $ 9 — good value.
So if you are looking for a classy (nice white linen) spot for some elegant tasty and authentic french fare you could do a lot worse. Now on a Thursday night this place could be full of sleezy euro trash and B&T’ers…but on this Wednesday evening it was an excellent meal with excellent service.