L'Aperitif Bistro Fusion

What a fantastic dining experience!The dining area only has a few booths and tables-- highly suggest making reservations!A cute date night spot, dim lighting, low key music, excellent staff and delicious food! We came on Valentine's Day, and it was fully packed, however our waiter was very attentive and provided excellent service.On to the food! Everything was so good, and flavorful! My husband and I had the spicy baked scallops and French onion soup to share-- both equally devious.The chicken pasta was our main course-- the white wine, fresh garlic and sauce really made this pasta dish delicious!And the creame brule with fresh fruits was top notch!All in all, great dining spot in Fresno!

This restaurant deserves 10 STARS. This is the best European restaurant in Fresno and one of the best in the city, period. We did not have a reservation on a very busy holiday, but they were kind enough to accommodate us after calling just a little while before. The service was impeccable throughout, from the owner and head chef Thomas, the wonderful manager and all serving staff. The food is absolutely perfect. The scallop appetizer is genuinely one of the most delicious things I have ever tasted. From the many tasty drinks they have to the starters, mains, and desserts, we were shocked by how accurately French and Italian the dishes are. They are crafted with utmost attention to detail.The restaurant is clean, well-kept, tastefully decorated, and is not too large so it feels very enjoyable. This was our second visit and there will be many more! Thank you Thomas and everyone involved with this incredible establishment. It's a place I would recommend to anyone. It genuinely is one of my favorite restaurants in the world.

Came here for Saturday early dinner for special occasion. Definitely need a reservation for a table otherwise can sit at the bar. Food- got few appetizers: tuna carpaccio, escargots and their daily special of grilled octopus. all were very tasty. Warm bread was great for sopping up the buttery garlic sauce of the escargots and the picante sauce of the octopus. For mains- I got the daily special of duck confit and companion got the lamb t bone. The duck confit itself was good, tender but the sauce was this balsamic drizzle which is atypical for duck confit and I didn't love it. It came with a salad which itself was good but also atypical and a bit off as a side to a rich duck main. Would expect some potato or hot vegetable like leeks or something than a cold salad. The lamb t bone was their daily special too and came with 4 big pieces. Flavored and seasoned well and came with potatoes. Drinks- got a special aperol cocktail which was a nice twist from aperol spritz. Their old fashioned was well made.Ambiance- for special occasions or date nights. Service professional. Sometimes need to get attention of waitstaff.

A hidden gem! The other night my mother in law and I decided to have a girl's night dinner, and I was having a difficult time finding reservations at our usual restaurants. I had seen L'Aperitif a few times on yelp and it always looked very promising! We decided to give it a go. Oh my gosh, I'm so thankful we ended up here! I'm almost 8 months pregnancy and not easily impressed with most restaurants now days. This little bistro blew other places out of the water! The interior is very cute and cozy, and the food was absolutely outstanding! We both started with a small mixed green salad which came with the most delicious sweet vinaigrette and got some yummy bread and butter for the table. For our entrees, my mother in law got the Beef Bourguignon and I decided on the chicken pasta. The beef bourguignon was absolutely wonderful- *almost* as good as my dad's, with a rich red wine sauce and delicate carrots along with a side of rice pilaf. It was her first time trying this dish and she absolutely loved it! My pasta was truly outstanding! It was rich with a white wine cream sauce, buttery mushrooms, and real parmigiano. I truly wasn't expecting the depth of flavor this dish provided. I'm not 100% sure, but the pasta seemed house made as well, and was perfectly al dente. I almost ate the whole plate! I'm so incredibly glad to have stumbled upon this treasure! I will be coming back with my husband for date nights and all of my family on our next family dinner. I also was very impressed by the service! Our waitress was kind and attentive, and the bussers were wonderful as well! Thank you for making a pregnant lady's night! I will be back again and again and I hope this place explodes in popularity because it truly deserves the recognition!

As a first time visitor, my wife and I celebrated our wedding anniversary at L'Aperitif. We made a reservation on Yelp but upon our arrival (on a Wednesday @ 6pm) it so happen that it was not busy and just a few patrons in the seating area and the bar. We checked in and was promptly seated.Service:Our hostess greeted us upon entry and confirmed our reservation. We were given the opportunity to choose our seating (either a table or booth) as there wasn't much patrons at that time - we opted for the booth. We were provided with menus along with complimentary bread (no butter). 5 of 5 starsFood:For appetizers, we ordered the Scallops On Shell (topped which I assumed was caviar) and the Octopus Carpaccio. For the main course, the Chicken Aux Champignon and Chicken Gnocchi. Dessert was their Creme Brulee. Each course of our dinner was quite good and not a single issue with any. 5 of 5 stars Overall:The dining area is smaller than usual - around 7 or so medium sized booth along with 5-7 tables that sit anywhere between 2 to 6 patrons. The bar houses around 10 patrons. I recommend that you reserve via Yelp or their website to be assured a spot as I assume this place attracts quite a few people. I would say this is an upscale restaurant as their presentation, quality of food and pricing reflects as such. I'm not sure how long this establishment has been in business but for the longest time we never had the opportunity to dine here. Now that we have, we are quite certain this will not be the last. I highly recommend.

Went out for a girls dinner. The restaurant is super cute and very comfortable inside. For our appetizer, we had the tuna carpaccio, which was amazing. It was so good. We took our nice warm bread and dipped it into the olive oil/vinaigrette that was drizzled over the tuna carpaccio and again it was so good. We split the chicken gnocchi and the shrimp ravioli. Both dishes were good.All in all, it was a really good dinner. Our server was super nice and very knowledgeable of the specials and the menu.

Great service and amazing food! Menu isn't huge but there expected for this type of restaurant. Tried escargot's here for the first time and there huge

My husband and I recently celebrated our 22nd wedding anniversary and wanted to enjoy a celebratory dinner date somewhere we hadn't eaten before. After a little Yelp research, we decided to try L'Aperitif, a French and Italian fusion bistro "with an Asian touch." Plus, it allowed reservations, which is always a plus in my book to avoid waiting around in a lobby for extensive periods when hungry.When we walked in, we were greeted by a friendly hostess who turned out to be our server as well. She provided truly exceptional and friendly service all evening. The dining room was dark with warm sconce lighting, creating an inviting feel. The mood in the room was bright and happy--it was filled with other diners when we arrived, with every table occupied. (I snapped the interior photo as we were leaving and most diners had finished their meals, hence why the room is less filled.)The drink menu was extensive, featuring house cocktails and classics, along with an expansive wine and beer selection. There were specials on the blackboard near the bar, but they also had a copy for each table titled "Blackboard Specials" on paper, which was a nice touch and made it easy not to forget the limited-run selections.The standard menu featured a considerable selection of appetizers and tapas, including a variety of seafood proteins prepared in multiple ways such as seared scallops on the half shell, shrimp ceviche, tuna carpaccio, and spicy baked mussels. There were also traditional French delicacies like escargot with butter and parsley and Cuisses de Grenouilles à l'Ail (frog legs).We decided to try a special appetizer that was a twist on French pizza from the chef's hometown region of Alsace, France. It was made on a cracker-thin crust with crème fraîche, bacon, and thinly sliced onion. It was tasty, but the onions were still pretty crispy and a little raw so the onion flavor would possibly be too strong for those who aren't big fans.The main course menu featured seafood, pastas, handmade gnocchi, cioppino, paella, lobster tail truffle risotto, and various chicken and steak dishes (including a massive 54-ounce "cowboy steak"). Sides included garlic roasted potatoes and buttery rice pilaf. I opted for a special from the Blackboard, Lac Luc, which was a sautéed steak served with grilled jalapeño peppers and onions and grilled lemon for drizzling. The flavor was great, though the steak in my dish was fairly chewy. I chose the pilaf as well, which was very good. My husband enjoyed the lobster tail risotto and kindly shared a few bites--it was excellent.Since we were celebrating a special occasion, our server generously treated us to a dessert on the house. We were offered tiramisu or crème brûlée, and we went with the crème brûlée, which was served with fresh berries and very rich. Perfectly done.It was fun to see Chef Thomas emerge from the kitchen and socialize with patrons throughout the dining room while we were there. He had a great sense of humor and joked about how, when he was growing up in France, his father told him, "Either you're good at school, or you learn to work in a kitchen." Chef Thomas said, "I went to the kitchen!" A stroke of luck for his diners, no doubt!We enjoyed our time at L'Aperitif and would recommend it to anyone looking to try a new date night spot, especially lovers of French cuisine.

This was such a wonderful experience! Went for a dinner date and had great service from the moment we walked in. It's all family ran and they do a terrific job and have fun while doing it. The food was amazing! We started with baked shrimp bacon with pepper jack cheese that was delicious and great starter size. I ordered the Luc Lac and I couldn't believe how good it was. I could order that daily and never get tired of it. The flavors were tremendous and the meat cooked so right. The drinks looked beautiful and also were so delicious it was hard to stop! The Chef was also soooo kind to us and so was his wife. Instantly our new favorite spot. You must try!

Food here is amazing! Highly recommend the creme brûlée. Service was nice and fast given it wasn't busy the night I went. It was pretty quiet and chill, they played well picked music.