Cote Gourmet

• Cuisine(s): Cafe, French, Mediterranean
  Hours: Mon-Sat 9am-3pm, Sat 6pm-11pm
  Price: $$
• Payment Types: All Major Credit Cards
  Attire: Casual
  Features: Takeout
• Serving: Breakfast, Dinner, Lunch
  Reservations: Accepted, Recommended for Large Parties
  Parking: Street

Description

The space is small (and hidden inside an office building, in a waaaay-off-the-tourist-track, zero-glamour locale), and the food is simple - mostly soups, sandwiches, salads, and crêpes, with a few daily specials and more substantial entrées. Yet the experience is so satisfying that, like the mythical first illegal drug hit, one meal instantly turns most diners into addicts. Prices are luncheonette-level low, but fine-dining niceties - such as entirely housemade breads and pastries - abound. Proprietor Caroline Poussardin and her parents ran restaurants in Aix-en-Provençe before moving to the States, and the solid French technique shows throughout the menu, from humble items like butter/sugar crêpes (made with Brittany's signature buckwheat batter) or unusually subtle pea soup to big food such as a fresh Scottish salmon fillet, in lovely lemon sauce, with sautéed shrimp plus three veggie sides. For $23.95, a prix fixe option is available for dinner of three courses - with a glass of wine free from 6 - 8 p.m.