946 reviews
#197 of 12,362 Restaurants in New York City$$ - $$$, French, American, Vegetarian friendly+1 212-765-7374+ Add websiteImprove this listing
Hours
Sun
11:30 AM - 11:00 PM
Mon
3:30 PM - 11:00 PM
Tue
11:30 AM - 11:00 PM
Wed
11:30 AM - 11:00 PM
Thu
11:30 AM - 11:00 PM
Fri
11:30 AM - 12:00 AM
Sat
11:30 AM - 12:00 AM
Reserve a table
What is Travelers’ Choice?
Tripadvisor gives a Travelers’ Choice award to accommodations, attractions and restaurants that consistently earn great reviews from travelers and are ranked within the top 10% of properties on Tripadvisor.
Ratings and reviews
4.5
Travelers' Choice 2024
RATINGS
Food
Service
Value
Atmosphere
Food and ambience
French, American, Vegetarian friendly, Gluten free options
Is this an American restaurant?
Details
About
Le Rivage offers you a cozy, romantic French country atmosphere where traditional French cuisine is expertly prepared for your pleasure. Fresh flowers embellish each table. Prices are delightfully affordable with incredibly rewarding selections; a true bargain in the heart of the theatre district.
PRICE RANGE
$25.00 – $45.00
CUISINES
French, American
Special Diets
Vegetarian friendly, Gluten free options
Meals
Lunch, Dinner, Late Night, Drinks
FEATURES
Reservations, Seating, Serves Alcohol, Full Bar, Accepts Credit Cards, Table Service, Live Music
Contribute
4.5
946 reviews
Excellent
494
Very good
293
Average
94
Poor
45
Terrible
20
2C2_travel
Boston117 contributions
Dec 2019 • none
Arrived just a few minutes before our 7:15 pm reservation on a Friday night, and we were seated in about 5 to 10 minutes. Restaurant started to empty out soon thereafter as patrons were leaving to make their 8 pm theater curtain call.
Service and food were excellent all around. Don't really know how authentic the food was, but our family of 5 enjoyed our selection from the set menu of escargots, caesar salad, duck a la orange, beef burgundy, seafood crepe, creme brulee, apple tart and chocolate lava cake. All super delicious!
Written January 4, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Lauren K
1 contribution
Feb 2020 • none
I thought the service was wonderful. The food, not so much. The plate my food was served on was searing hot, my chicken, not even lukewarm. The soup was also cold relatively quickly upon it being served to me. All in all, I would likely not want to try this restaurant again. I've been to other French restaurants in New York City, and this is very mediocre compared to them.
Written February 17, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Susan K
Franklin149 contributions
Jul 2021 • none
Went back to Le Rivage for another great dinner. This time we didn’t have any deals but we knew we had to return. They do have an excellent prix fixe menu which we did. Several great choices and with the entree I chose it was just a few dollars more to get the appetizer and dessert. For an extra $3 you can substitute French Onion Soup as an appetizer. We did that for one and the potato leek soup for the other. Both were completely eaten up since they were so flavorful. This time we had the Chicken Cordon Bleu and the Beef Bourguignon (absolutely delicious as it was last time). The chicken was cooked so perfectly, nice crisp crust then covered in ham and oodles of cheese all on a bed of mushrooms. We had the chocolate mousse (again, so dark and chocolatey) and the creme caramel. The creme caramel had so much caramel sauce and it was so, so good. We left feeling very full but also very happy. Everything leaves such a clean taste and when everything is such high quality it is so satisfying.
In addition to the excellent food and fair prices, there is the staff. The lovely woman who greets everyone really makes this an experience. She is so welcoming. She constantly checks to be sure everyone is ok and see if anything is needed but not in an obtrusive way. She is there to help but also allows you space. I am just mad at myself for not getting her name (next time!). The waiter and all the staff did an excellent job. I also noticed a few tables where people lingered after finishing but the restaurant doesn’t hurry you out. They allow you time to savor the experience if you want to.
We will certainly be going there again, soon I hope!
Written July 12, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
jmbrownrn
Baltimore69 contributions
Jan 2020 • friends
We came in because they had bone marrow and sweetbreads, a couple of our favorite dishes. I cannot stress enough how awful the food was. Multiple staff members (not our waiter) asked how the food was, we told them it wasn’t good, and they didn’t respond at all. Our waiter didn’t speak great english so there was a fair amount of miscommunication during the ordering process and he couldn’t answer questions which was frustrating.
We were so sad that we spent so much money and calories at this place and don’t want that to happen to anyone else.
Written January 17, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
LeRivageNYC
I am very sorry for your experience, this is quite surprising that you found these two dishes unappetizing. They are actually some of our most sold specialties, renowned recipes for close to 85 years unchanged. As for the waiter I’m sorry that he did not replace or engage you in a positive way, it is true we are going through some staff changes but still this is unacceptable. We would love a second chance to rectify this as this is a huge blemish. If you could possibly remove the review or very least hold off on it, it would be most appreciated.
Chef Paul
Written January 18, 2020
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
ArtsyGalBaltimore
896 contributions
Feb 2020 • none
Proximity to our Broadway show made this our choice for French dining. We chose the Prix Fixe and it was an average meal at a good price point; Moules Farcies (first time for breadcrumb coated mussels), potato soup, boeuf Bourguignon, Truite Amandine, chocolate mousse, and creme caramel. Server was helpful. Setting is pleasant; tables well placed and conversation is possible. There is a no coat on chair back rule.
Written February 22, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Larry D
Montville184 contributions
May 2022 • none
We had dinner here prior to a Tuesday evening Broadway play. Le Rivage is well organized to handle the time constraint involved and seated us promptly. The interior is romantically dark with fun paintings on the walls and tables an adequate distance apart. The staff was good about wearing masks, although that made it a little difficult to understand our waiter. For dinner we had the seafood crepe and Coq au Vin both of which were good. The prix -fixe menu makes sense for a theater night however the advertised meal for the day of the week wasn't available. For that reason and the server not knowing which of us got which meal is why I've rated the restaurant four stars rather than five. We will come back.
Written May 5, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
jcmtl1965
Montreal9730 contributions
Apr 2022 • none
I went there before a play. They have a fixed menu so I was unable to do what I usually do, which is to order 2 appetizers as I don't like to have a heavy meal before a play.
I had the onion soup, followed by moules marinières and then a chocolate mousse.
The soup was the real deal and delicious. The moules were lacking flavors and they were unable to provide me with mayo for the fries. The mousse was very good.
The atmosphere was really good.
Written May 2, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Kim L
1 contribution
Oct 2021 • none
I searched for a good French restaurant to go to for my birthday. I found Le Rivage online and decided to try it especially because it had a jazz band. What could be better than French food and jazz on my birthday? I called the restaurant to make my reservation and asked the person about the band. He stated they start at 7:30 and that 7:00 was a perfect time to start dinner. The play we were going to would be over at 4:00 so we waited the 3 hours since it would be worth the wait. When we arrived at 7:00 we noticed there was outside seating and since it was beautiful out we asked if we would be able to hear the band if we stayed outside. We were told that the band would be inside only. We went inside and waited while we had our appetizers and dinner. At 8 o'clock we asked the "manager" where the band was and he stated they were playing outside until 8:30. We were frustrated. No, he didn't get the point that would have preferred to be outside and in fact, we would been done with our meal by the time the band comes inside. When he saw our disappointment, he actually yelled at us! And kept yelling at us! It was truly bizarre! While the food was good, that did not compensate for being yelled at especially on my birthday! In all the years I have been going to restaurants I have never been treated this way. This person should not be in the front lines working with customers.
Written October 9, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
ckaoworldtraveler
Bethesda18 contributions
Jul 2023 • solo
I've been here once and all staff personnel treated me like King Charles from accidentally seeking a dinner restaurant when I was caught in the thunderstorm during my 5 days/4 night stay in NYC late June to early July 2023. I glanced at the dinner menu by the hostess who greeted me with a friendly smile. She informed what's good like a saleswoman selling her restaurant. I was walked to my solo table by another hostess. I asked if someone had an iPhone 11 charger as my battery was 10% and the hostess stated she has an iPhone so no worries to offer to charge my iPhone while I'm relaxing and enjoying the peace music by the pianist and the wonderful well trained staff at Le Rivage. The bus boy came along after 2 minutes which is excellent for just being witted down to read the French menu offerings. My waiter came out with my 3 course fixed meal which consisted of an appetizer/entree/and dessert for $70 bucks USD (for those foreigners visiting NYC). I ordered my speciality cocktail: Violette which was wicked STRONG by the bartender. Wow! I was planning on ordering round 2 of my Violette but I couldn't. 🤣👎 The bartender passed by my solo table seeing I'm trying to fan myself off as it's wicked humid outside plus thunderstorms so he went to turn the ac lower to allow me to cool off during my dinner. I was given upon my exiting the restaurant a business card plus a post card for my souvenir.
I would highly rated this French authentic cuisine 12 out of 10 stars for my review. I plan on visiting and having a delicious fabulous ambiance decor atmosphere with the staff having "no attitude" towards the customers.
Much appreciated to owner(s);to relay to your personnel to keep up the awesome customer service with a smiley face in each personnel i interacted with plus ****always good sign when your food items are delivered to your table the entree is smoking hot fresh off the oven or pan as the plate was still extremely hot touch it. Also, it's beautiful having the logo written on the plates "Le Rivage".
Best,
Charlie K.
Ckaoworldtraveler@yahoo.com
Written July 26, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Weebobster
Puerto Vallarta7 contributions
Jul 2022 • none
Inside may be nice but the shack atmosphere outside was not pleasant. Paper table covers were not expected at what is billed as fine dining.
We went based on the glowing reviews on trip advisor. I don’t know where those reviewers ate but it sure didn’t seem like the place we were. I apologize to the lady who asked how everything was. I lied. It was not fine. Bread was brought with one pat of butter in a bowl and no bread plates. I had to ask twice for more butter and for plates. I had a seafood bisque which was tomato based, disappointing but acceptable, but poorly flavoured, thin and containing only a few flecks of seafood. My husband had French onion soup which was over salted and otherwise poorly flavoured. Was that canned broth?
The main course bordered on appalling. My beef bourguignon was meat in gravy poured over soft noodles with a few over boiled carrots on the side. The dish totally lacked the rich flavour I expected. The second entree of chicken cordon bleu was a deep fried breaded chicken breast, singed edges, with a slice of cold-cut ham layer over it, no cheese, and mushrooms (possibly canned) in an indistinguishable sauce on the side.
Desert…molten lava chocolate cake which wasn’t molten and tasted like it had been heated in a microwave, and cheesecake which was two thirds crust, poorly flavoured filling and a bland raspberry drizzle.
I very rarely leave meals half eaten as a matter of principle. So why didn’t we send it back? My husband was not feeling well and we’d had a very busy few days. Just not feeling energetic enough to confront people.
Written July 31, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Hope F
Howell40 contributions
Jun 2022 • none
We sat outside for the lunch pre-fixe. The service was outstanding. Very attentive, constantly filling water glasses, food brought out at reasonable intervals between courses. I went with my 9 y/o daughter to celebrate her birthday. We split our meals so we got to taste six dishes between the two of us.
The escargot were AMAZING, as was the Boeuf Bourginon (sp?). The pate was just okay; I wouldn't order it again. The salmon was excellent as well, though the potato it was served with was undercooked. We would return just for that beef again and again.
The presentation of the desserts was very nice, and they even put a candle in my daughter's and sang Happy Birthday. The issue was that the desserts were just no good. She had the creme brûlée. The top was sort of soggy instead of making an amazing crack, and the pudding itself was very, very eggy; no vanilla flavor at all. I had the chocolate mouse. Instead of being light and fluffy, it was dense, tasted as if it had been frozen and defrosted, and was grainy. We both love dessert, and didn't even end up eating much of either one. It was super disappointing.
That being said, the regular food was so good, we will definitely return, but probably not for the prix-fixe!
Written June 18, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Vincebat
Walden29 contributions
Nov 2021 • couples
Le Rivage is a wonderful French Restaurant in the Broadway Theater District. We had reservations for 6:00pm. Arriving early at 5:30 we were welcomed and seated without a second thought. The menu is a 3 course Prix fixe at $60.00 per person with lots of choices. We had Escargots and a Seafood Crepe for starters followed by Boeuf Bourguignon and Foie de Veau (veal liver). Our desserts were Chocolate Mousse and Apple Tart. All delicious. Service was not rushed and the ambience was warm and friendly. We shall return. Highly recommended.
Written November 17, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
sa6409
Providence9 contributions
Mar 2022 • none
My husband and I ate here after seeing a 5pm show. We were a bit early for our reservation, but the restaurant was very accommodating. They offer a 3 course prix fixe menu, that was lovely. We had the escargot, baked mussels, and steak frites. All were wonderful. Great espresso martinis as well!
If you are here before your theater show, the waitstaff is super helpful in making sure you get your dinner and dessert timely. Can't say enough about the waitstaff!
Written March 14, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Andrew K
New York City920 contributions
Dec 2022 • none
The "About Us" page at Le Rivage's website says: "Le Rivage offers you a cozy, romantic French country atmosphere where traditional French cuisine is expertly prepared for your pleasure." The food IS wonderful, but the atmosphere is busy cafeteria, neither cozy nor romantic, with waiters and bus staff constantly bumping diners at small tables packed together. Think I'm being too tough for a pre-theatre experience? When was the last time you saw a waiter asking a woman at a table who was waiting for her husband in the bathroom to return, to get up, clear out their belongings, and wait for him at the bar so that they could refresh the table for the next diners? The great food was no match for the experience. We won't be back.
Written December 24, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Voyager266464
New York City98 contributions
Aug 2023 • friends
Pre theater dinner
My wife and our aunt and uncle has been coming to this quail restaurant for decades. My aunt and uncle had known the owner and his son for at least that long.
My wife had decided to treat her staff ( and their significant others ) to a pre theater dinner prior to our broadway play. We had not been here for a few years and there was a lot of turnover in staff. The food however was still good. We all chose the price fix dinner which included an appetizer , main dish and dessert. There were about 15 of us seated at 2 tables Si I am uncertain about all the dishes. I had the onion soup which was very good, my wife chose the pate. One person chose the escargot. My main dish was the salmon my wife’s was the duck.Others had a steak dish. I had the cheese cake, some had crème boule.
There were no complaints !
For some it was the first time in a french restaurant
Written August 30, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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