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| - Look, I'm not a french food expert by any stretch. The fries aren't different from fast food and you pay a lot by-the-bite. But I do have to give Le Grand Comptoir some props.
For starters - the staff is friendly and willing to work with non-locals. (In old-school eating style they have a big pin-map on the wall to show where different customers have come from.) They handled our stumbling in with a smile, poured the wine, and gladly took our orders. If you need an entry-level french food experience (ie: low on the french, and a few baby steps into the eating), this is a good place to start. Some soup, some meat, some frites, some wine - enough to orient you in the right direction but not the full-blast of a more expensive restaurant over in the Old Port.
The downside is obviously quantity. I gather bistro food is meant to be quicker and lighter, and for our money was definitely that. (Ordering the sausage, for example, means one sausage.) It's not really a black mark - soup, wine, and entrees are a great way to eat but not feel heavier on the way out - but you'll definitely wonder a little bit after getting hit with the sticker shock. All told, our food was chosen, served, devoured and paid for in hardly more than an hour! Three people should expect to make it out alive under a hundred dollars, depending on how much you order. (Foie Gras will obviously boost the number.)
To me, Le Grand Comptoir is a starter restaurant. Perfect for a light meal in the area or as an introduction to more daring locales. It should expose you to the tastes, experience, and the cost of eating en francais. I'm not sure I'd go back, but I don't regret the experience either.
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