5 Best French Restaurants in New York (2026)

Boucherie West Village is a French brasserie and steakhouse from the Boucherie restaurant group, built around Belle Époque-inspired decor and a menu of French classics alongside prime dry-aged steaks. French onion soup and beef tartare come up again and again as the dishes to order, and the room draws a lively, packed crowd most nights. It's part of a small NYC-based group that also runs La Grande Boucherie and Boucherie Union Square.

La Grande Boucherie sits inside a dramatic glass atrium in Midtown, part of the same Boucherie group, and leans into the setting as much as the menu, wood paneling, cafe tables and greenery overhead. It has the highest review volume of any restaurant on this list, and reviewers repeatedly mention using the timed pre-theater menu to make a curtain call without feeling rushed. The kitchen sticks to French bistro staples: French onion soup, croque monsieur, steak frites.

Boucherie Union Square is the third Boucherie group location on this list, doubling as a steakhouse with a bar program that reviewers call out as strongly as the food. The Green Hour happy hour offers a lower-cost way to sample the menu, including steak skewers at the bar, alongside the full dinner menu of French onion soup and prime cuts. Servers and bar staff get named individually across multiple reviews.

LOULOU is a Chelsea bistro and bar named after the owner's dog, running a menu of French bistro dishes alongside a cocktail program that reviewers describe as the real standout. It draws a lively crowd for dinner, with lamb chops and seared sea bass named repeatedly, and runs a separate brunch service that reviewers describe as good but slightly less consistent than dinner. Live entertainment features on some nights.

L'Express has run as a Gramercy institution since 1996, serving Lyonnaise-leaning French classics on a genuinely all-day schedule that stretches into the early morning on weekends. Reviewers name the Niçoise salad, crème brûlée and homemade lamb burger as consistent favorites, and the restaurant's manager responds personally to feedback in a way that shows up across multiple reviews. Outdoor seating is popular whenever the weather allows.