La Grenouille Reborn: Beijing Duck Takes Over Iconic French Restaurant

The jewel-box, 80-seat dining room looks practically precisely as it did when its precursor drew luminaries from Frank Sinatra and Elizabeth Taylor to Blake Lively and Adrien Brody. A wealth of fresh blossoms in the L-shaped eating space additionally keep the La Grenouille spirit alive.

The food is as developed as the vibe, which mercifully recovers etiquette to the space after La Grenouille’s zany last years. Owner Philippe Masson turned the area right into a part-time cabaret that chased away its boldface buzz. Masson himself lulled “in a voice that combined the boom of a commentator with the swagger of an Elvis imitator … also roaring like a feline,” the New York Times snarked in 2021.

From French Classic to Beijing Duck Destination

The food, nevertheless, is a various pet totally. Rather than Dover sole in Dijon and Hollandaise sauces, Quanjude’s menu is developed around crispy-skin Beijing duck, which is carved tableside for guests to roll into slim Chinese pancakes with scallions and Hoisin sauce. The bird from Pennsylvania’s Jurgielewicz ranch was flavor-rich and winningly damp under its brownish-yellow skin.

On my very early go to, nervous waiters strangely kneeled while taking orders and initial brought us an effervescent mystery beverage when we bought Sauvignon Blanc– the only white-by-the-glass available from a red wine list yet to be created. They’re taking an extremely minimal number of reservations “while we’re training the staff,” Pan stated.

Training the Staff: Early Experiences

The new restaurant’s proprietor, Andy Zhang, also has the Canadian area, and he bought the chateau-like 1871 former carriage house in Midtown New York City last year for $14.2 million. He and his spouse split their time between New York City and Vancouver and had actually enjoyed dining at La Grenouille.

Basic supervisor Wayne Frying pan clarified, “We had lots of ideas about revamping it like our dining establishment in Vancouver”– the Quanjude brand name’s just various other North American area that’s elegant in a cool, contemporary style. (There have to do with fifty in China.).

Vancouver Influence and Menu Highlights

The menu is currently worth a shot. Along with the $128 “signature” duck that three of us could not end up, cook Allen Ren, who’s additionally the toque at the Michelin-starred Quanjude in Vancouver, is ending up various other fine recipes such as appetizing, Shanghai-styled smoked fish and plum sauce and beef Zha Jiang noodles.

The former home of traditional French food has actually surprisingly been reborn as a location of iDen & Quanjude Beijing Duck Residence– an empire of fowl-focused restaurants that come from 1864 in the Chinese resources. Extremely, the brand-new proprietors have actually lovingly maintained the classic look of La Grenouille.

Classic Look, New Flavors

The jewel-box, 80-seat eating room looks practically specifically as it did when its precursor drew stars from Frank Sinatra and Elizabeth Taylor to Blake Lively and Adrien Brody. A wealth of fresh blossoms in the L-shaped eating room further keep the La Grenouille spirit to life. Rather of Dover sole in Dijon and Hollandaise sauces, Quanjude’s menu is built around crispy-skin Beijing duck, which is sculpted tableside for visitors to roll into thin Chinese pancakes with scallions and Hoisin sauce. The food is as developed as the ambiance, which mercifully recovers etiquette to the space after La Grenouille’s wacky last decade.

La Grenouille, commonly recognized as the city’s prettiest dining establishment for more than a half-century, closed last loss. Its lovely ghost is back at 3 E. 52nd Road, where frogs’ legs have given method to Beijing-style duck.