Delice & Sarrasin, 178 W. Houston St., New York, NY
Hours: 11 a.m.-10 p.m. daily
Menu: https://delicesarrasin.com/menu
Suitable for: Vegans, vegetarians, lovers of good French food
Visiting Delice & Sarrasin has become a Christmas Eve tradition for LeeLee and me on our holiday jaunts to New York. Quite frankly, it’s also become a nearly-every-trip tradition when we come up to the city for a weekend, a show, a concert … you get the picture. We can find pretty much any reason to visit Delice & Sarrasin when we’re in town – and we’re never disappointed.
Now, this time when we took an Uber to the restaurant after Christmas Eve church service, we were surprised when the driver pulled over in front of an unfamiliar spot. Sure enough, there was the awning which read “Delice & Sarrasin,” but this location was not at all as we remembered. We hadn’t lost our marbles, it turns out (well, not about this, anyway); the restaurant moved earlier this year from its decade-long residence over on Christopher Street. The space is much bigger, and while it has a slightly different vibe from the old location, it’s still just as wonderfully cozy with a pop of elegance. A perfect combination for a French restaurant in the Village!
Though we were a few minutes early for our reservation, we were seated right away and settled in with a glass of wine – a merlot-cabernet for LeeLee and a Riesling for me. My Riesling was great, but the merlot-cabernet was SO good that I elected to join Team Red for my second glass! But I’ve yet to come across a bad wine at Delice & Sarrasin – whatever you choose will be great.
The restaurant’s menu is always a challenge – completely vegan, all delectable, it’s very hard to make any choices and it’s incredibly easy to fall prey to decision fatigue. But take heart! You can’t make a bad choice.
From the cheese plates to the French onion soup to the “escargots,” your appetizer options are incredibly varied depending on your whims of the day. On this particular visit, we chose the baked brie with bread and potatoes, and when it arrived, it warmed the heart and the stomach with its piping-hot, creamy goodness, tasting for all the world like a dairy-based brie. Better, in fact! If it had been socially appropriate I would have licked the serving dish afterward.
Next it was time for the main course. Now, it’s here where I have a confession: As many wonderful entrees as there are, and as many as I’ve gotten to try from LeeLee’s plate, I always order the exact same thing for the main course. I’m a little embarrassed about this – what kind of food writer AM I, anyway?! – but the heart wants what it wants, and in my case the heart wants tagliatelle aux fruits de mer. Tagliatelle pasta with a variety of vegan seafood – it does this Gulf Coast girl’s heart so very, very good. In the case of Christmas Eve, I can explain my repetition away by saying I’m just adhering to the vegetarian version of the Feast of the Seven Fishes, but quite honestly, I can come up with any excuse to order it. At once hearty and light, with pronounced piquant oceanic notes, it’s a wonderful feast for the erstwhile seafood lover who no longer loves actual seafood.
LeeLee, ever the explorer, tried something new to us both: The Poulet Basquaise, or Basque chik’n (pictured at the top of this post). I snuck a taste (or several), and WOW, what a treat this was! The chik’n legs were so tender and succulent, and the sausage was perfectly spicy. The tomatoes, onions and peppers that served as the base of the sauce came together in beautiful concert, and the whole shebang was presented atop a bed of semolina to thundering applause. One taste in and I was hooked; I think I’ve found my replacement for the tagliatelle on our next visit!
Finally, it was time to move on to dessert. Now, I am partial to the orange crème brulee, but this time around we decided to try something new, and before too long we both landed on the La Suzette crepe, with is a crepe flambe with Grand Marnier, cooked in lemon and cashew butter. We certainly enjoyed it, but I found the orange liqueur and the lemon juice to be a bit too tart for a sweet treat (though I certainly finished my share, so please don’t cry for me!). LeeLee, meanwhile, did not find it too tart at all, lemon-lover that he is, so I suppose your mileage will vary based on your temperament. While I think I will go back to the crème brulee next time, we were both very happy to have tried one of the crepes (and I see plenty of other options to try on future visits!).
Ninety minutes or so after we arrived, we rolled out of the restaurant fat and happy. I can’t think of a better Christmas Eve mealtime tradition than Delice & Sarrasin – and encourage you to add it to your docket the next time you find yourself in New York! You won’t be disappointed. We’re already looking forward to our next visit; knowing us, it won’t be long!
:)