There was no missing that we were in New Orleans in the middle of summer, not in this beautiful new downtown bistro where only a few other people were dining on a slow weeknight.
But as our table filled, first with crusty bread and rich, cultured butter, then a progression of appetizers, from textbook charcuterie to a summer garden-fresh special, we had that pleasing feeling of temporary transport that the right restaurant meal can deliver.
Le Moyne Bistro serves French cuisine in downtown New Orleans. (Staff photo by Ian McNulty, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune)
There, between the soft brick walls and under the slow ceiling fans, we were in France, at least for as long as this meal would last. We did our best to extend it, from a dapper cocktail to start and through the very-French wine list.
We were at Le Moyne Bistro (746 Tchoupitoulas St., 504-350-1750) in the Warehouse District, in the address that many people knew for two decades as Tommy’s Cuisine.
Le Moyne Bistro serves French cuisine in downtown New Orleans. (Staff photo by Ian McNulty, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune)
It opened in April, and through the month of August it is one of about 150 restaurants taking part in Coolinary, offering a special set price menu. This one has appealing choices across the selections, with three course for $55.
House bread is served with cultured butter at Le Moyne Bistro in downtown New Orleans. (Staff photo by Ian McNulty, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune)
But there was so much more on the menu that enticed, and we quickly decided to make this a bigger meal.
Traditional French, modern accent
Le Moyne Bistro is related to the nearby small plates restaurant Plates (1051 Annunciation St.), and it’s literally connected to Maria’s Oyster & Wine Bar (752 Tchoupitoulas St.) just next door (which was formerly the lounge NOSH, and Tommy’s Wine Bar before that). The chefs Farrell Harrison and Christian Hurst run the restaurants with co-partner Brian Weisnicht. The manager, Tim Armstead, is well known from his years with at Emeril Lagasse restaurants.
Le Moyne Bistro chef Christian Hurst (left) and general manager Tim Armstead
Photo by Cheryl Gerber / Gambit
Le Moyne is the most upscale of this new group’s spots, and also the hub for a network of private dining rooms discreetly embedded, or perhaps hidden, around this property.
Le Moyne Bistro serves French cuisine in downtown New Orleans. (Staff photo by Ian McNulty, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune)
What really had me talking about Le Moyne after this meal, and in the days since, is how it feels traditionally French but also has its own personality. The restaurant is named for the founder of colonial New Orleans, but this is not a French Creole menu. It is French-French, and a most welcome addition to the dining scene for that reason.
Black eyed peas and Toulouse sausage go into the cassoulet at Le Moyne Bistro in downtown New Orleans. (Staff photo by Ian McNulty, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune)
Dishes are familiar from the bistro standards, but they are not just ticking boxes. Distinctive touches show a gently modern house style.
On the menu
Pate de campagne is a rustic taste of France at Le Moyne Bistro in downtown New Orleans. (Staff photo by Ian McNulty, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune)
The pate de campagne, a rustic, chilled terrine that’s worth a visit over a glass of wine at the bar all on its own, is dense and shot through with pistachio. I found myself pressing thick slices of it into the crust of the house bread with some sharp mustard.
Steak tartare is topped with horseradish and served with sunchoke chips at Le Moyne Bistro in downtown New Orleans. (Staff photo by Ian McNulty, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune)
The steak tartare has a clean cut and a trickle of heat between a crown of horseradish and a streak of chile oil.
Jimmy Nardello peppers, fruity and lightly spicy, make a summer special at Le Moyne Bistro in downtown New Orleans. (Staff photo by Ian McNulty, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune)
There was a special of Jimmy Nardello peppers (this is the name of the pepper, I learned, not the grower; sometimes they’re called Jimmies, or, endearingly, “Nards”). This brought fruity, mildly spicy, tasty red peppers singing of summer, just crinkled on the grill, finished with a tomato vinaigrette.
Tuna Nicoise is served with a spread of fresh vegetables and a farm egg at Le Moyne Bistro in downtown New Orleans. (Staff photo by Ian McNulty, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune)
Apple Photos Clean Up
The tuna Niçoise is more a fish entree with salad accoutrements than a salad per se. The tuna was thankfully left rare with just a spice-crusted surface sear, arching over the fresh crunch and squeak of oiled vegetables and an added underlayer of broiled potatoes.
Beef short rib carbonnade is a hearty dish on the menu at Le Moyne Bistro in downtown New Orleans. (Staff photo by Ian McNulty, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune)
The beef short rib carbonnade is a sweater weather dish, but also one that is irresistible for me with its sauce, somewhere between stew and gravy. In summer it worked well passed around the table to share, and drew more of the bread to dredge.
Black tea caramel and roasted pineapple ice cream finish a dessert at Le Moyne Bistro in downtown New Orleans. (Staff photo by Ian McNulty, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune)
For dessert, it was a pineapple cake with black tea caramel and roasted pineapple ice cream.
Yellow is a cocktail built with gin and Suze at Le Moyne Bistro in downtown New Orleans. (Staff photo by Ian McNulty, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune)
This meal started with cocktails, for me a ray of liquid sunshine called “Yellow” built around gin and the aperitif Suze. It ended with admiration for a newcomer adding refined depth and more easy elegance to the downtown dining scene.
Le Moyne Bistro
746 Tchoupitoulas St., 504-350-1750
Dinner from 5 p.m. Tue.-Sat.
Dining and Cooking