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| - Delicious meal and a bit of entertainment mixed in via watching the chefs in the open kitchen.
Upon arriving at L'Atelier, we were surprised to be sat a the counter area as opposed to a table. The restaurant is very tiny and only has 6 tables, which are reserved for parties of 3 or more. Everyone else is sat at the counter that is in front of the open kitchen. I'm not a fan of counter seating when dining with a guest because you're sitting right next to other diners and conversations are not private. But we made it work. And it was kinda fun to watch the chefs do their work. L'Atelier is very focused on presentation so it was like watching artists paint every time they prepared a dish. :-)
The menu options are plentiful, including small a la carte tasting portions, larger a la carte entrees, and several tasting menus. My friend decided to go the a la carte route and I chose one of the smaller tasting menus. Our meal started with an amuse bouche of foie gras in a port wine reduction with Parmesan cheese. Delicious! For me, this was followed by cauliflower gazpacho, pumpkin veloute, spiced Maine lobster, and then a trio of gelato and sorbet. Every one of these was very good, however I would have preferred a bit more seasoning in the cauliflower gazpacho. My friend had the langoustine, the beef with eggplant, and king crab. Yum!
Service was of course very good and made the dining experience quite nice. I would recommend L'Atelier to adventurous foodies but not for a romantic experience.
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