L'Orange Bleue

L'Orange Bleue used to be my favorite restaurant, but somehow I've managed to neglect the dear old spot in the past few years. K and I finally revisited it last week, and it's as good as I remember, but louder; I've aged.


The Carpaccio Medi-Nobu is a tuna carpaccio with Nobu Matsuhisa marinade and eggplant caviar. It is the one thing I have to order every single time I come. I love pairing it with L'Orange Bleue's bread, stretchy, holey on the inside, slightly charred on the outside.

The curried mussels were not pitch perfect that night, but mussels rarely are. It was fine, but I haven't found a great mussels place yet. For a moment I thought Resto would hold that lofty position, but still, nothing beats Plouf in San Francisco.

These frites accompanying the moules is enough to make a gal reconsider: that much lusted after perfect combo of crispy on the ends, wilty in the middle, and very salty. Ask for mayonnaise and you'll get a pot of salmon colored flavored mayo, and life, one remembers, is good.

The Morrocan Salad with endive, gruyere (a bit too much), apple, walnuts, black olives and apply curry vinaigrette was a great combination of flavors and something I'll want to copy soon.

L'Orange Bleue, 430 Broome Street (at Crosby St.), 212-226-4999