A little over a year ago François Latapie (below) opened Little Frog on the Upper East Side at a time when the way overdue Second Avenue Subway construction was disrupting every business in the area. Noise, dust, steam, barriers and trenches made it impossible to put tables outside or draw traffic. Still, Little Frog succeeded largely by appealing to neighborhood regulars, many of whom knew Latapie as the suave, effusive fellow who had once been maître d’ at Le Cirque and owner/operator La Goulue.
Now that the subway is done, the Yorkville neighborhood is back to being fairly quiet, a good place for a stroll along broad East 86th Street, and I was so happy to see that the German meat store Schaller & Weber, the Hungarian restaurant red Tulip and Heidelberg German restaurant are still open up here on a block in Yorkville that once teemed with Eastern European groceries, cafes and restaurants.
Little Frog is a handsome, long slip of a white brick-walled room, seating 75, with a cheery bar up front, green tufted banquettes, bentwood chairs and the requisite tilted mirrors. The sound level in the room is pretty good, but the piped in music is wholly unnecessary: No one goes to a French bistro for the canned music unless it’s Piaf or Aznavour.
Latapie is the consummate host, a gentlemanly mix of French gentility and American affability, and Chef Xavier Monge proves that consistency in every dish is really the key to this kind of cuisine. He works hard too obtain first-rate ingredients, evident in yellowfin tuna tartare with seaweed salad, wasabi dressing and sesame tuile ($22). Frogs’ legs (above)—once a staple of French restaurants—make a welcome re-appearance at Little Frog, nicely garlicky and sprinkled with parsley and served with tatsoi greens ($16). Asparagus out of season are risky, but Monge somehow sources very good ones, which he nestles in a buttery pastry shell with a lustrous Hollandaise mousseline ($16).
There is also a small section of tapas (all $10), which include hot shishito peppers given a delightful sweet glaze ($10), and thinly sliced pink Iberico ham comes on a crunchy garlic-swabbed baguette. Fat tiger shrimp get a shot of sea salt to perk them up ($10), and best of all was a plump fritter enclosing oozing Comté cheese (above).
Among “Butcher’s Choices” are a deliciously juicy pork t-bone scented with herbes de Provence and served with green beans, garlic and shallots ($25). It’s good to see Monge does not hold back on the garlic as too many French bistro cooks do.
Rack of lamb ($42) is available for one person (below), given some hardy ballast with merguez sausage and couscous. As it should be, hanger steak is nicely chewy and full of flavor, which we ordered au poivre, with hand-cut French fries ($36). I’m always hesitant to order the ubiquitous branzino on a menu, but Little Frog’s is one of the best in the city, grilled whole and boned, served with arugula and a beurre blanc tinged with lemon and tobiko roe ($29). As a side dish, have the macaroni gratin in a béchamel sauce ($10) or the sautéed wild mushrooms, with more garlic persillade ($13).
All the cherished classics of French bistro desserts are here: île flottante (above) ethereally light, a good crème caramel and terrific chocolate croustillant. Only an apple tart was disappointing for its lack of caramelization and its soggy crust.
In addition to the food menu, Little Frog’s wine list has changed for the better, now more gently priced than before, and, among its fifty bottlings an applaudable number under $60 and only a handful priced over $10.
So, Little Frog survived all the bureaucratic red tape and deep-down subway construction put in its way. Latapie’s faith in his neighborhood and his well-known hospitality have made Little Frog the true French bistro this stretch of Yorkville really needed.
Open for dinner nightly, for brunch Sat. & Sun. There is a three-course with wine $29 fixed price dinner from 5 PM to 6:15 PM nightly.
