French Restaurant Week Returns for 10th Edition in NYC

French food lovers and diners can experience masterful cuisine and gastronomy, while honoring French culture and history, from July 8 to 21 as part of the Bastille Week festivities.

For two weeks select Manhattan-based restaurants will once again offer prix-fixe menus at $17.89 (bar), $25 (lunch), $42 (dinner), and $178.90 (dinner for two with a bottle of wine) to commemorate the French Revolution in 1789. Thousands of diners have reveled in this fine dining experience and over 210 restaurants have participated since French Restaurant Week first launched in 2011. Classic and modern French favorites are enjoyed, such as French onion soup au gratin, gigot d’agneau, steak tartare, moules frites and salade de tomates d’héritage.

“[French Restaurant Week] is so important and is an instrumental part of French culture,” said Anne-Claire Legendre, the Consul General of France in New York. “We support talent around the world and have an array of professionals here. It’s the pleasure of sharing a good meal with friends around the table.”

This year’s launch event took place on July 1 at the upscale Brasserie 8 ½, hosted by Chef Franck Deletrain in the restaurant’s sleek, modern setting with a grand stairway and original artwork by Matisse and Léger. There Deletrain and Executive Chef Geoffrey Bruijneel prepared and served the appetizers, main courses and desserts that’ll be a part of Brasserie 8 ½’s special lunch menu.

Deletrain, who’s participating in French Restaurant Week for the fifth time, said one of his favorite menu items is the Pâté de Campagne appetizer (country pâté, mostarda, frisée lettuce, pickled onions). He’s very excited to be a part of this year’s line-up, and noted that his restaurant’s menus will be flexible during the two-week time period.

“If we see in the first few days that one of the items is not popular, then we’ll switch the menu around and we’ll try something different,” Deletrain said during the launch. “I think it’s important that feedback from the guests tells us if we’re on the right track or if we need to change something. We are always here for the guests.”

The other participating New York restaurants are: A.O.C. L’aile ou la Cuisse, A.O.C. East, Bistrot Leo, Bistro Vendôme, Boucherie, Boucherie Union Square, Café Centro, Coco, Deux Amis, Excuse My French, Fig & Olive, Jubilee First, La Bateau Ivre, La Sirene, La Sirene Upper West Side, Lēna, Maison Harlem, Perrine Restaurant, Petite Boucherie, and St Tropez West Village.

French Restaurant Week continues to partner with OpenTable in New York where diners can book their reservations online throughout the event and still earn points. For more information, visit frenchrestaurantweek.com.