Chez Josephine

What a cute restaurant with good service for a pre-show dinner! We had the prefixe and it was nice. They have nice jazz music playing and a live piano player. The food was good and the wait staff was very friendly and gave suggestions on what to order.For anyone with mobility issues, the bathrooms are upstairs.

It's Restaurant Week, winter 2025. Allons-y a Chez Josephine! Pre-fixe or le prix fixe menu includes one appetizer, one entree, and a dessert for $45. Cocktails are $18 and offer a balanced, unique variety. Walking into Chez Josephine is a fever dream cabaret if Toulouse Lautrec was a designer and his sole muse was Josephine Baker. In the evenings there is live music. From roughly 9pm to 11 we had a pianist playing jovial and elegant recognizable tunes. He even through in What Is Youth, the theme song to the 1968 Romeo & Juliet - possibly a tribute to the late Olivia Hussey. This tells you roughly the expected crowd here, over 60 or theatre people.We started with cocktails. The Bakertini was beautifully decorated with a pattern of bitters on top of the egg white foam. This was light but had a decent kick. Absolutely a low sipper. For my meal, I went with the potato leek soup of the day, the steak frites, and paid an additional $19 for a lava cake, a la carte. I loved the soup and the lava cake, but the steak was way too chewy for my taste and challenging to cut. The sauce was perfectly seasoned and the right consistency. The plating was lovely. The sautéed onions added a nice texture to the dish. This was a perfect portion of fries for me. I find I'm always given too many fries and they end up being wasted. My friend actually took a few from the plate as well. A shareable is always enjoyable when in good company. The sauce was my favorite part of the dish. It absorbed right into my fries, which I love. My friend ordered the tomato mozzarella salad, the lemon sole, and a panna cotta from the Restaurant Week menu for ($45). The salad was a bit small for my liking. The plating was nice, but they could have added more greens. In comparison to the soup, this portion size was more amuse bouche. Unfortunately the waiter came over and let my friend know that they were out of the lemon sole. He substituted it with a trout instead. In the dim lighting her plate looked a bit flat and simple. I think they could do more to accentuate the lemon. She did enjoy the taste though. The panna cotta was rich and delicious. For a prix fixe meal $45 was a great price. The staff was also attentive and kept our water filled. They were friendly and made sure we had what we needed. I was even offered ketchup for my gravy fries, which I politely declined. This is located in the heart of the theatre district and around the corner from Port Authority. It's easy to walk to and it does give a wow factor when you walk in. I deducted a star for the texture of my steak and because they were out of the fish my friend wanted for dinner. Hopefully when we come back, the ingredients will have some improvements to make this a 5 star night!

Came in with a reservation for four during a busy hour, was seated nearly immediately, but took a minute for our waiter to serve us. The Lobster Bisque here must be a purée soup, but I prefer this dish to include more bits and chunks. The French Onion soup runs on the thinner side as well. I was very impressed with the Skate Wing! Such a nice flavor palette. Bright, tangy, and savory. The Tiger Shrimp was overcooked though--about 2-3 minutes less cook time would've left it more plump and juicy. Love the interior. It sounded like there was a live performer in the back as well. Pretty setting for a date/intimate dinner, but I am not rushing to try again.

A cute hidden French restaurant off of the main touristy area. We tried the restaurant week menu. The food was good however I thought the coq au vin dish was rather small. Not to mention there were only 2 of each vegetable in it (mushroom, carrot, pearl onion). The steak was tasty and cooked perfectly. We had the pâté and beet salad as an app and the poached pear for dessert. I wouldn't come here for a quick bite as the service was a bit slower. While the restaurant is small, it was rather busy (maybe 20-25 people) and there were only 2 servers for the whole place. It was tough to get attention but they were nice and working hard to accommodate everyone. I would be interested to come back when I have more time and try other items on their menu.

Amazing and romantic restaurant. The food was delicious and the ambiance very cute and cozy. Our server was very attentive, will go back again for another date night.

9/21/24Chez Josephine is a charming French restaurant that has long intrigued me. Finally, after years of walking by, I had the opportunity to dine there. The interior is beautifully decorated, evoking the glamorous Parisian atmosphere of Josephine Baker's era.French Onion soup - rich and flavorful, though a bit sweeter than I expected. The cheese was perfectly melted and formed a delicious, crispy top. Grilled Octopus - full of flavor, though I found it slightly chewy.Duck a l'Orange - cooked to perfection and had a delightful balance of sweet and savory flavors. Seafood Casserole - a bit of a disappointment. While it was tasty, it was more like a soup than a casserole, and the seafood was slightly overcooked.The service was impeccable. Our servers, Ulises, Mayra, and Ariel, were attentive and knowledgeable, making our dining experience even more enjoyable.Overall, Chez Josephine is a delightful restaurant that captures the essence of Parisian cuisine. While there were a few minor hiccups, the overall experience was enjoyable, and I would definitely recommend it to others.

This review is for Summer Restaurant Week 2024. As a resident of Hell's Kitchen, I have been looking forward to dining at Chez Josephine for some time. However, our experience during Restaurant Week lunch fell short. While the food presentations were impressive, the flavors were not memorable. The service was decent overall, so perhaps the Restaurant Week menu does not accurately reflect the restaurant's typical offerings.

This dowager French restaurant in the theater district has been serving tasty food at reasonable prices for years. We went for NYC restaurant week and had a tasty three course lunch. The only negative I have for the place is the ambience. Dedicated to Josephine Baker, the walls are covered with classic posters and artwork of her as it has been forever. The ambience however could use an upgrade as it shows the wear and tear of years.

It's a beautiful restaurant, perfect for a date night with your special someone. They had great drink options and cocktails. The food was tasty but a bit underwhelming. I definitely will go again and try something different the next time

Visited during NYC Restaurant Week and got the $30 prix fixe. As a party of one on a Sunday afternoon, I was seated quickly and the service was good. I started off with the gazpacho which was the soup of the time. It was cantaloupe topped with champagne. First time having a cold soup and I can't say I was too big of a fan. I love cantaloupe and the flavours were as expected but I would say the lack of complex flavor made it difficult to want to keep eating. The steak frites was good. Perfectly medium steak and the sauce was delicious. Fries were good. However because it was $30 for 3 courses, it was the smallest steak I've ever seen lol. Ended the meal with the mango raspberry mousse. The base is coconut based and I hate the texture of coconut so I wasn't a fan of that part, but the mousse was absolutely delicious! I would definitely recommend checking out the restaurant week menu and allow yourself to try something new!