Lucien is a tasty upscale restaurant located in the old Pravda building and although I thought the space was nice and intimate, in many ways I felt they missed the mark.
THE AMBIANCE/SERVICE:
Despite the space's romantic and intimate feel, the ambiance felt quite stuffy and I got the impression I did not belong. I found it funny that despite other open seats we were sat next to the only visible minority couple in the middle of the restaurant. Patrons would often stare in our direction and quickly turn away when we caught their eye... I felt like I was in a zoo and sort of uncomfortable.Our waitress on the other hand was generally nice and attentive during our meal.
THE FOOD:
First there is the menu. I had previously brought my bf to Black Hoof for what I would credit as one of the most interesting gastronomic experience we've ever had. When a Groupon for this place came up a few weeks ago I quickly snatched one up when I saw their online menu. With mentions of foie gras ice cream I had high expectation for creative and tasty food.
When we looked at the menu, it seemed completely different from the one online (this has since been updated online). A little bummed out that I wouldn't be eating crazy ice cream I ordered the red leaf and bib salad and my bf got the slow cooked pork tongue. Both were quite good but I'd say the tongue was a better value as both aps cost $12 each.
For the main, I got the Black Angus ribeye and bone marrow. The steak was great but the bone marrow arrived on its own with no accompaniments. For those of you unfamiliar with bone marrow it's extremely rich... almost like eating butter or lard and is best served with bread or salt in order to balance the texture.
We ordered a bottle of wine for $40 and a basket of bread. The total came to $170 including tax but excluding tip. The food was good but nothing wowed me except the price tag.