The Early Word on Allegretti's La Promenade Des Anglais

Chef Alain Allegretti brings the flavors of the French riviera to Chelsea with his second New York restaurant, La Promenade Des Anglais, named after the busy promenade that traverses the city of Nice. How will the more casual La Promenade compare to the chef's first restaurant, Allegretti, which was praised for its authenticity, originality, and flavor, but criticized for its inconsistency, stuffiness and lack of cultural context? Early diners, including Allegretti fan Martha Stewart, weigh in below.

The Great News: Regular Eater commenter Big B had a great meal there: "Had my bday dinner here during opening night, last night. The service was outstanding, the food was great, and the upscale-casual atmosphere was much better than Allegretti. Had a good time!" [Eater Comments]

The Raves: All three Yelp reviews so far are three stars. Including this one from an "Elite" reviewer: "After all is said and done, the Spaetzle for me is what I wanted to sell my children and dog into slavery for more. I always thought this dish was Swedish? Swedish, French, Vulcan, I don't care where it comes from, It was amazing. And its such a simple item to make, Eggs, flour and salt. But then, cook it with Bacon. Cook it with onions. Cook it with puppy dog tears, I don't care it, it just came alive and was so flavorful. The roasted beets was another amazing side dish...My wife had the Pork Loin. So flavorful and cooked perfectly. It had some kick to it, there was a spicy chutney on top. I highly recommend this place, I want to come here for Sunday Brunch!" [Yelp]

The Stewart News: Martha, who wrote about her recent meal at La Promenade on her blog, said the restaurant is proof that Alain really knows “how to blend flavors, colors, and textures.” She calls La Promenade “a fantastic new restaurant” in Chelsea; then again, she and the chef are friends from that time he was on her "all things hot" show. [Martha Stewart]

Another Rave: Meanwhile, a commenter on Martha's blog adds, "We were fortunate to have been the first guests at La Promenade des Anglais for brunch on Saturday. The restaurant is beautiful; felt like we were back in the south of France. The staff could not have been friendlier or more attentive and the food so flavorful. We ate the burrata, a first for all of us, and it was excellent. The quiche was the best I have ever eaten in the States; looked and tasted like something from Rue Mouffetard in Paris. Our only regret was being too full to try more amazing sounding dishes." [Martha Comments]

The Not So Great News: From the tipline: "Hey I went to Alain Allegretti's new place this week. It's much better looking than when it was Bungalow 8 but I'm not entirely digging the look of this place for whatever reason. Everything was fine but nothing was extraordinary. I'm happy the chef has been able to find a new spot but nothing blew me away and I probably won't be making the trip back." [Eater Tipline]

More Good News: From the twittervere: "La Promenade Des Anglais was sooo delicious! Great service, great wine, wonderful food, amazing company. I'm a lucky girl!" [Twitter]