Claudette: Koren Grievson in the West Village NYC

Fans of Avec! & Chicago ex=pats here in NYC, like me. Koren Grievson (ex Avec) opened up this place last May. I've been several times throughout the seasons & it's just great. She's doing Provencal French with Morroccan influences, think Chicken Tagine, truffled hummus, lots of fresh seasonal vegetables,saffron flavored boullaibase, an insanely delicious but so simple whole roasted dorade, & my absolute favorite, pomme frites with ras el hanout. Remember the whole lobe of foie gras she used to do at Avec? She's doing that too here. Haven't had it yet, need to get a group together.... Oh, and there was a special of gnudi with black truffles a few weeks ago that I'd like to be smothered in. I had a cassoulet the other night that just...blew..my mind. pork shoulder, duck confit, duck cracklins, blood sausage, topped with lavender bread crumbs. It's like Koren saw the weather forecast & cooked something to go with it. The food is really good here, it's Avec all over again but maybe better. Great cocktails too and pretty impressive all French wine list. Servers are great as well, so warm & friendly. LTH served me well in Chicago, I'd like to return the favor. If you're in NYC & want to say hi to an old favorite, come here! Koren's food is just so good. I know how loved she was at Avec, so if you're here you should check out her new place.

(but ps, I would kill for a Maxwell st. polish! extra mustard...)

Claudette
24 5th Ave.
NY NY
claudettenyc.com

One of my favorite chefs, thanks for the intel. Will pass the word and try to make it there nextime myself. Is she the owner?

Aye, Pete Wells reviewed it a while back:

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/17/dinin ... .html?_r=0

But she's not the owner:

Gradually, it becomes clear that Claudette’s chef, Wade Moises, and chef de cuisine, Koren Grieveson, have made a smart decision about Provence. Rather than treating it as if it were frozen in time and sealed off from the world — Peter Mayle’s “A Year in Provence” repeated forever — they cast a few glances at the North African immigrants who live and cook there.

Claudette’s owners, Carlos Suarez and Mark Barak, were traveling in Provence when, like many English-speaking tourists, they fell under the sunny spell of Lourmarin. They had a charmed meal in that town at a restaurant founded by Claudette Sammut, a Frenchwoman who lived in Tunisia until the 1950s. Before it was over, they had asked her family if they could take her name back to Manhattan.

Well I hate to be a jerk but the last few meals I've had there have been so blah. Really great service! Ted is the best waiter.but completely boring food. Brunch, lunch & dinner, I live nearby Ive had all. But. The menu has gotten smaller & the flavors more muted. There just literally is no flavor in the food, I don't know how else to describe it. It looks good on paper but then you need a salt shaker $32 later. Is chef Koren even there anymore? I was at Avec alot back when & this is not the kinda stuff that I remember. She made great food, this isn't it. Ah so disappointed!

Huh, interesting. Had brunch there about a month ago and we both still remember it as a real highlight. Definitely no lack of flavor, though I obviously have no idea if Grieveson is still there (doubtful she'd be cooking brunch, anyway). I had the lamb burger, for the sake of reference, and she had some kind of eggy thingy.

Well, I hope she finds her signature dish there. No one ever went to Avec and said "I had these, like, dates, I guess "

I had the lamb burger too and it was a soggy mess of spongey gamey meat on a disentegrating english muffin. Sounded so good on paper! Whether or not chef Koren is there her staff is not executing. Same thing for mid week lunches (I had a dismal ahi tuna sandwich there last week) and dinners (some undercooked, bland chicken thighs on a bed of gummy sticky papperdelle in a pool of dishwatery tasting "consumme") Maybe the problem is that she's not there? I don't know. I'm just sad. & like I said, the menu has changed & it's like someone who just doesn't care anymore is in charge.