Le Rock is one of those new hot and busy restaurants around the Rockafeller area because it comes from the team of Frenchette. The majority of the menu is in French, and it had been receiving pretty stellar reviews for the most part. We walked in at 5:45 PM, and we were very fortunate that they were able to seat us due to a prior cancellation. We were told that we would have to be done with dinner within 90 minutes. Despite my partner normally eating slower than most, I thought it was worth a gamble.
Ambiance & Service
The interior of Le Rock reminded me a bit of all those Rockafeller ground tiles. Pretty much all the stores, the indoor mall, and restaurants all have very similar feel. The bar was pretty crowded, and the dining room was loud but not overly powerful where you can’t hear your conversations.
The service was great. They kept our waters filled without asking, and it was very easy to get ahold of the wait staff. Our waitress was very helpful in planning a well balanced meal for us such that we did not leave uncomfortably full.
Food
The Pineau Colada ($22) came with pineau des charentes, plum brandy, pineapple, and coconut.
The glass of Joan Ramon Escoda Nas del Gegant 2021 ($20) came from the region of Conca de Barberà in Catalunya, Spain. It was a medium body with fruit forward flavors and had a subtle taste of acidity and pepper. It was very pleasant and compatible with everything we had tonight.
This is the wine bottle for the Joan Ramon Escoda red wine above.
The Soupe À L’Oignon Gratinée ($26) was essentially French onion soup. I was wondering why it was so pricey, and I think I know why. The broth seemed very flavorful, and there were actually bits and pieces of the meat from whatever stock they made it from. The cheese was absolutely delicious with lots of stringy textures. It had a well balanced umami flavor of salty meets onion sweetness. My partner’s favorite used to be the onion soup at Boucherie, but this has easily dethroned that. Value wise, it’s very debatable. It’s going to be memorable because it tastes great, but it is a hefty price for soup. If you haven’t had really good onion soup, we would recommend to try this out. I wouldn’t be surprised if we ordered this again on our next visit, whenever that would be.
The Escargots Bourguignons ($26) came with 5 pieces in their own little mini porcelain vats with a little lemon slice to squeeze into each vat. There was plenty of herbs, butter, and seasoning. It’s a shame they didn’t give us bread, nor were we interested in paying for it. Regardless, the escargots were tender and pretty good, albeit small. I think the little circular disks that sat on top was some toasted cheese (parmesan?). Value wise, this probably wasn’t really worth it, but it was definitely very flavorful.
The Halibut Au Vin Jaune ($56) came with a very thick cut of halibut on top of spinach and a wine sauce. It was served with little potatoes. The halibut tasted like it was sous vide because it had that flaky texture all around. It was very tasty. The wine sauce was quite delectable, and the creaminess of the potato nuggets was complementary. Value wise, this is obviously on the expensive side, but it’s a great balance with the next dish.
The Bison Au Poivre ($64) came with a bison steak, pepper sauce, and a side of fries. The bison was perfectly cooked, and it was so very soft. The au poivre sauce, basically cracked peppercorn sauce, was delicious with lots of wine and peppery flavors. It was well balanced and connected nicely with the bison meat. The fries were surprisingly very good. They were similar to “well done” fries in that the outside had that very nice crispy texture and the inner flesh was very soft and starchy. The sauce they served was some sort of aioli. You could eat the fries without it fine. Going back and forth between the halibut and bison was a great suggestion from our waitress because it kept things from becoming too intense in one particular tasting profile. Value wise and despite it being very delicious, this was kind of expensive even as a shareable item.
The Profiterole ($16) came with just 1 profiterole where they also pour the hot chocolate syrup on top after they set it on your table. This was very close to my partner’s favorite profiterole in Brazil. The puff was nice, and the chocolate was hot and balanced with the perfect balance of sweetness and bitter. Yeah, this was also a bit expensive for just 1 profiterole, but it can be shared and was really good.
Final Verdict
All the food we ordered at Le Rock, despite the price, was simply delicious. It would not be surprising if Michelin gave it some sort of acknowledgement next year. It’s fairly accessible during lunch on weekdays, and you can easily make dinner reservations a few weeks out. If you’re looking for a nice, delicious French cuisine evening without much money constraints, Le Rock won’t disappoint you.
Yelp Jabs
It was approximately 8" apart from the tables next to us on both sides and we could hear there conversations and obviously they could hear mine… I’d be surprised if this place is open next year or if they have repeat customers… Overall its a very, very over rated restaurant. If you do set your expectations super low. Extremely disappointing and extremely overpriced for what it is
This Yelper has clearly never been to France let alone dine in enough places in NYC. Eight inches is not bad at all. Yeah it’s pricey, but the food was very good. Value is very subjective, and I think if you can spend a bit more, the flavors will be a little better – if you have the palette for it. I suspect this Yelper was simply throwing a tantrum in their review because they were misled by social media influencers. Unlike this cigarette tongued Yelper, I would honestly be surprised if this restaurant closed next year. I work in Midtown, and many people after work go to the bar for drinks.
The seating was horrendously tight. I was continuously bumped throughout the meal by well meaning servers attempting to navigate tight conditions.
My partner and I were discussing that our expectation coming to this restaurant was going to be a French experience. I think that’s what was provided. If anyone is expecting otherwise here, I guess you should prepare to be disappointed. Real estate spacing is very tight in NYC, so you have to optimize your space. I had to pull the table outwards, so I can help my partner sit in. This is no different than many restaurants in France.
Revisions
- Feb 24, 2023 - Initial revision.