La Defense

I usually walk along Willoughby but to my surprise just one block over was an office plaza and pedestrian walk with a couple restaurants of catering to the lunch crowd but La Defense looked promising. Decided to give it a try for Brunch service.

An airy place with the bar in the center and a communal table. We choose to sit at the bar since the host 'wasn't' sure quite how long. I actually like sitting at the bar for a more casual dinner and usually with the bartender right there. The Defense platter was simple essentials eggs and potatoes with some greens. My friend got the cornflake French Toast topped with fresh fruits. We also got a side of bacon and chorizo. The food was good and would be something from I would make. The bacon was looking a bit gnarly and paper thin. I tend to like the bacon a little thicker.

The casual atmosphere, the jazz band playing during Brunch and food that was as casual as the place and it works.

Great atmosphere with open seating layout perfect for a date or a intimate night out with friends.
We got two cocktails (french 75 and side car) and both were well made using the classic recipes.
We then had the burrata salad (excellent), ceviche with salmon and shrimp (excellent, it has a small quantity of mango, cucumber and plenty of lime), calamari (I would not order this again. Perfectly cooked but had a very odd flavor), and finished off with the cheese cake (excellent, very thick and came with raspberry jam on top).
Total meal price was $100 for two.

Cons: seating wasn't very comfortable and service could have been better.

Nice place to dine with friends/co-workers. The atmosphere is wonderful and the food is good too.

Lapin and I have been to this airy French eatery several times. The eatery has an indoor restaurant, a bakery that sells pastries, coffee, and premade sandwiches and outdoor eating area. The bakery has really good almond croissants which usually sell out pretty quickly. Their coffee and chocolate chip cookies are okay too.

Our last visit, we decided to have brunch. Our waiter who was French seemed to have a hard time understanding us but he was very friendly. I ordered the La Defense breakfast platter (3 Eggs any style with sautéed potatoes, roasted tomatoes, greens and toast). It came with plenty of food but it was just average. The potatoes were my favorite part but it could have done with a bit more salt/flavor. Lapin ordered the Eggs norvegienne (poached eggs with smoked salmon and a cilantro/lemon hollandaise on bilinis served with confit tomato and mesclun). He thought it was okay as well. We both thought the food was a bit underwhelming. We probably didn’t order the best things off the menu but right now we will just stick to the delicious almond croissants.

We shared scallop ceviche and oysters to start, which were both fresh and delicious. Our steak mains were cooked well and a good size. The menu, though small compared to some, had a selection of seafood, meat dishes and tapas that were interesting but not over complicated. You will definitely find something to your taste. The service was welcoming and prompt. You can sit outside or in where it is spacious and comfortable.
During our short stay in NY I will definitely return for champagne and oysters during happy hour and we hope to have time to sample a bit more of the menu.