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NYC’s Newest French Restaurant is Flying Below the Radar
September 10, 2024, 6:42.34 pm ET

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Photos: Jean Claude

French Bistro Jean Claude, which closed its original location after 14 years, has resurfaced with a new rendition at 1076 1st Avenue near 59th Street in the former Old Stove space.

The new restaurant which seats 78 indoors and another 20 out, offers a menu of French bourgeois classics. Look for dishes like Soupe L’Oignon topped with gruyere; Les Escargots a Beurre with garlic parley butter; Poulet Roti, roasted organic chicken with basil-potato puree and wild mushrooms; and Canard au Miel, honey-lime glazed duck breast with shiitake mushrooms and rosemary sauce.

Owner Kamel Moumeni, who started working at the original location as a waiter in 1991 and took it over in 1995, has added a weekly roster of plats du jour, such as Tuesday’s Calves Liver and Wednesday’s Duck Confit. Moumeni, an Algerian native who grew up eating French food at home with his 12 siblings, notes the chef also always has a fish du jour.

While the menu of the new Jean Claude is very similar to that of its predecessors, the décor veers sharply from the exposed brick and stucco that defined its look. Gleaming white subway tiles line the walls made colorful with copies of famous French Impressionist works commissioned from local Parisian-born artist Olivier Rabbath. The restaurant was designed by Moumeni’s wife Seleha.

Jean Claude is open daily for lunch / brunch and dinner form 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. For more information, visit https://jeanclaudenyc.com/. The phone number is 646-756-4141.



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