La Bonne Soupe

I've been to this restaurant a handful of times because it's close to my job. Each time the service has been quite poor but if you can ignore that the food is excellent. The restaurant is a little crowded with the tables on top of each other. If you have a choice between the chocolate mousse and the creme caramel go with the mousse. The creme caramel doesn't have that layer of sugary caramel on the top. The creme caramel at La Bonne Soupe is syrup poured over a custard.

Their soups are always delicious as are the baguettes. Great, authentic French atmosphere, service is friendly and one is never rushed -- that would be so un-French. Very good prices -- $6 for a bowl of French onion soup in Midtown in pleasant surroundings is far from pricey. Will be back often. Fast-food Hale & Hearty soups are $4-5 and not as good.

Matre'd was rude. Refused to let me sit until my guest arrived, but sat 2 other tables with single people (guess they were dining alone?). Once she arrived.... we were sat promptly, then came the cute French waitress, then the limited menu, then came the fairly decent Parisian fare accompanied by typical brasserie box au vin. Croque Madame - not too shabby. I wolfed it. All in all a good time -- overpriced -- but pretty good.

Have been coming here for years. A post-movie Sunday meal was disappointing. The food was mediocre. The kitchen does not seem to care anymore about flavor. I am not pleased about how excellence is not maintained.

Great food for the great price, below average service. The escargot is really good, although they running out today's special, but the regular menu is pretty good, too. Morrocan chicken soup is a must try! The atmosphere is unpretentious and cozy, just a bit too bright for a romantic date... Overall, great place for eating out, probably not for dating out.

The food is very good. The service is brisk and cordial. The atmosphere is, thankfully, work-a-day and unpretentious--diners are there for a good meal and conversation with their company and La Bonne Soupe provides the space for that. It was our first time there and we have vowed to return. I strongly recommend the poulet au citron and the lemon tart. The steak et frites was good but not exceptional. The house wine is a great value. Our waitress was attentive but did not hover. She also did not pressure us as we enjoyed a leisurely two-hour meal amidst a very busy time when tables around us were turning over in about hour. As for the atmosphere, you can call it simple but that is preferable to a place that pretends to be in Paris when it is on West 55th Street. One seeming draw back is that the tables are very tightly spaced and one might think that there would be no sense of privacy. But whether it is the acoustics, a white noise machine somewhere in the place, or something else, even though you have other couples just two feet from you (on either side), there is a real sense of privacy amidst the bustle of other people's meals and the buzz of their conversations. Overall, this is a great place for a highly satisfying meal.

A Friday night meal on our visit to NY was marked by a delightful meal at La Bonne Soupe. The soup and salad first courses were tasty. The blackened cod retained its moistness and the hamburger cooked exactly as we remember it in Paris. Chocolate fondue completed the meal. The price was good for NY. The wine list was just a little limited. Yes, we would go back!