After nearly twenty-five years, Cafe Luxembourg’s glow has not diminished. There’s an energy immediately palpable upon entering the lovely room with its red leather banquettes and rattan bistro chairs and, for spring, huge floral arrangements of cherry blossoms. Honey blondes and silver-haired gentlemen mix with long-necked dancers and t.v. actors. It’s a mix of the best of New York, all basking in the lighting’s soft pink glow.
And there’s a spark to the brasserie-classic menu.For spring, a wild mushroom salad and a sublime asparagus, fava bean, and ramp lasagna, so fresh as to convince you that you are eating tableside in the garden. Crispy artichokes with an olive tapenade. That bread, so chewy, and that butter, so rich. A perfectly fine onion soup.
And desserts at nearly ten dollars a piece nearly merit the price: a ginger and carrot mousse, a banana semi-freddo napoleon. Even in the midst of the pre-theatre rush and the eight-o’clock crush, everything flows smoothly at this well-run institution.
Clearly the three nude Graces who adorn the Luxembourg’s walls and les cartes postales are still safeguarding this New York institution which continues to age like the best of wines and the most beautiful people
LINK: Cafe Luxembourg
