Just one month in, Bonne Vie Café & Bistro already feels right at home in its two-story space previously occupied by Baby Shank. A new sibling to downtown stalwart Le DeSales, the casual French bistro centers around a concise, three-course menu with one big D.C. differentiator: unlimited fries. (Take that, Le Diplomate.)
Its French culinary director, Raphael Francois, who was also part of the incumbent Baby Shank group, built out the dressed-down brasserie of his dreams, complete with prices that won’t break the bank and a tightened focus on the classics (tarte flambee, pate de campagne, skirt steak, white wine moules, and a “hamburger double,” to name a few).
Enjoy dinner with a side of live jazz on Thursday nights, when a singer adds ambiance to the upstairs room – just like the Parisians would do (sans smoking).
Dining and Cooking