French Dining Journal: Two cheap dining spots, 20% off at Perle

November 3, 5:04 PMNY Restaurant ExaminerHoward Portnoy

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2009 has not been a good year for New York's French restaurants. Two legendary outposts—Chanterelle, which put TriBeCa on the map, and Café des Artistes, one of the city's more romantic and enduring destinations—closed.

It has not been a good year, frankly, for anyone who was not a recipient of TARP or stimulus funding. Many of us have had to tighten our belts. If you're among that select group who enjoys spending its disposable income ingesting the foods and wines of France, take comfort. We'll weather this storm together. Here a few dining tips you can take to the bank. These are down-and-dirty places, by and large, so if it's snowy, soft table linen and haute cuisine you're looking for, shop elsewhere.

I swear to you, I've had nightmares about the hideous art on the walls at Ivo & Lulu (558 Broome Street, at Varick St, 212/226-4399). (Ordinarily, I'd provide a link, but this is one of those places that are so budget-conscious that they avoid the cost of maintaining a website.) The bilingual promise emblazoned on the restaurant's window—"Organic Food Pour Les Gastronomes"—tells much about the clientele you will find inside. They come here in their outlandish outfits to take advantage of the preinflationary prices. Les plats principaux run as high only as $16, which will buy you either duck confit, flavored curiously with jerk spices, served even more curiously with mango marinade, or magret, the fatted duck breast so prized by the French.

Meanwhile, Greenwich Village Bistro (13 Carmine Street, at 6th Ave, 212/206-9777) provides not only nourishment for the tummy but for the ears. Live showtunes and jazz are provided by a reguarly alternating cast of players. To eat: roast pork loin with mango chipolte salsa, sweet potatoes, and sauteed greens will set you back a mere $12. The same $12 will command a plate of marinated tofu with orange miso vinaigrette—hey, this is the Village, man! An outlay of $14 will buy you a big steamy bowl of moules frites that comes with real hand cut fries.

For something a little less "earthy," Perle (62 Pearl St, at Coenties Slip, 212/248-4848) in the Wall Street area, is offering all customers 20% off their entire bill for the rest of 2009. That means, for example, that the foie gras starter, priced reasonably to begin with at $15, will cost $12 with the discount, or that the tournedos with porcinis and shaved black truffle—the most expensive main course on the menu—will cost under $21.