Good News/Bad News: Bar Breton

Cyril Renaud’s international house of batter, Bar Breton, has been open about six weeks now and reviews have begun to pile in from all sources. While opinions about the food are mixed, many are confused by the concept, décor, and baffled by the service. Its odd location in Murray Hill/Koreatown no-man’s-land may not be helping either. Here’s the news as it stands today: good, bad, and everywhere in between.

The Good News: Gourmet’s Francis Lam posts a mostly positive review: “I feel almost like an ingrate for being confused by Bar Breton’s concept, when this is a restaurant where you can have a delicious meal of a couple $7 plates, in a room that manages to be really pretty despite its weirdnesses. I’m coming back, and when I do, to paraphrase Eddie Murphy, I’m going to have a crêpe and a smile and shut the f—— up.” [Gourmet]

The Bad News: A Yelper is not so impressed by the food or the service: “My friends and I all got galettes, and none of us were terribly impressed. Buckwheat is kind of an acquired taste. We, too, shared a nutella crepe for dessert. I've definitely had better. Our waiter was also one of the most awkward individuals I have ever encountered in my life. Though he tried to be helpful by moving my coat from the back of my chair to the empty seat next to my friend. He also awkwardly decided to move my other friend's coat even though hers wasn't touching the floor. Then, he came back about five minutes later to move her scarf." [Yelp]

The Mostly Good News: Another Yelper has a rave about the $16 burger, not really the point of the place but we’ll take it: “Love the burger! Great meat and yummy gruyere on top is the way to go. It's not a small burger so I felt that it was worth it. If you go that is what you should get. I guess the only reason to go would be because it might be close to your work or a meeting place of some kind. The bar was packed by 7pm which we took as a good sign. All in all, the crepes weren't anything I would go back for. And the service was eh. “ [Yelp]

The OK News: Blogger Salli Vates seems pretty pleased with her experience although overwhelmed by the options: “My eye traveled between the "niac" (small plate) section and the desserts. Profiteroles? Pot de creme with chicory? Nutella crepe? Sardines? Or pate? I settled on the salt-baked potato with oxtail and grey sea salt ($7). This was quite a hearty dish, even more so than the galette. A peeled potato had its insides scooped out, replaced with a rich, delicious oxtail stew. Now I was too full for dessert.” [Salli Vates]

The Great News: This Chowhounder chimes in with a mini-rave: “My coworkers and I had breakfast at this new French crepes place last Friday and were very impressed! The decor is so warm and inviting, kind of like a French farmhouse with charming mismatched chairs and cute pictures on the walls. And the food was great! The fresh squeezed orange juice was perfectly sweet with lots of pulp (the way I like it) and we all loved the galettes we ordered.” [CH]

The Not so Good News: Another Chowhounder is not too thrilled: “I was there for brunch on Saturday morning. I had a different opinion of the place- i didn't particularly care for the atmosphere, it just didn't feel like it had any charm at all. I had the same galette, La Guerande. I thought it was really bland, and dry. I like trumpet mushrooms but they were tasteless, and were lost amid the limp pile of spinach. my 'poached egg' was also overcooked and hardly runny at all, which added to the dryness.” [CH]

Photo via Francis Dzikowski / ESTO