Restaurant Review: Chez Fifi

Food

Audio By Carbonatix

This last week I had the absolute pleasure of dining at a lovely little restaurant on the upper east side in Manhattan. It was my husbands birthday, and we celebrated with a night out at Chez Fifi. It was charming, intimate, and welcoming—we felt like we were tucked away in a cozy bistro in Paris. 

Upon our arrival, our table was being prepared, so we ventured upstairs to their bar space—a little jewel-box parlor with plush banquettes and small tables where they also serve their menu. I ordered a blood orange sidecar and my husband ordered the blue cheese—their version of a dirty martini. Both were balanced and not too-sweet—a perfect opener to our dining experience. 

The menu offerings all looked amazing—I want to order one of everything. It was the perfect combination of elevation and elegance paired with the comfort and simplicity of beautiful ingredients. We ordered the escargot, endive salad, filet au poivre, and boeuf bourguignon, a special that night. Also on the menu that I wish I’d tried was a tuna tartare with Osetra caviar, and an orange and pistachio salad. I must make a return trip. 

To start, they brought us a perfect French baguette, sliced, with salted butter and radishes. This is a classic French meal starter, and one of my favorites. The bread crust was gorgeously crispy and the inside was soft. The butter was creamy and salty, but not too much, and the radishes were crunchy with a touch of spice—the perfect compliment to the salty creamy butter.

We also began our meal with their saucisson and olives—sliced cured sausage with marinated olives. The saucisson was salty and savory, and the olives were slightly salty and bitter—they were a perfect palate opener to start our meal.

Next came the Escargots a la Bourguignonne—snails baked in their shells in a divine garlic and parsley butter sauce. They reminded me of being in Paris in a little bistro eating the very same thing. The snails were perfectly cooked and the garlic parsley butter was so delicious—I could have been happy eating only that. 

For our entrees, my husband had the filet au poivre and I the special of the evening, boeuf bourguignon. His filet came perfectly medium rare with an incredibly rich au poivre sauce—pepper, cream and wine. It was served with thin,  crispy fries and a house-made aioli with a dollop of osetra caviar on top. It was completely luxurious and perfect for a celebratory dinner. 

My boeuf bourguignon was slow cooked to luxurious perfection. The sauce was rich with the beef jus and wine, and the beef was meltingly tender along with carrots, mushrooms and onions. It was accompanied with a pomme puree—perfectly creamy and smooth. It was so rich there was no way I could finish it, but I’m still thinking about it. 

Alongside our entrees, we enjoyed an endive, walnut and pear salad with blue cheese crumbles. The endive was deliciously bitter while the pears were lightly sweet. The walnuts added a crunch and richness that was brought together perfectly with the tang of the blue cheese. Bitter chicory salads are always my favorite, and this one was no exception. 

This brings me to the conclusion of our meal. For dessert, we settled on a French bistro classic: chocolate mousse. This one was served with chocolate shavings over the top, and was rich and chocolatey, but still very light. 

I look forward to exploring more of the menu the next time I’m back at Chez Fifi. Our experience was lovely from start to finish—from the warm and welcoming staff, to our server, who was friendly and knowledgeable, expertly guiding us through the menu and our dining experience. 

If you are in Manhattan and looking for a cozy and intimate dinner with gorgeous French food expertly prepared, I highly recommend booking a table at Chez Fifi.