Restaurant Toulouse

In business for more than 20 years, the chefs of Restaurant Toulouse dish decadent French cuisine in a luxuriously refurbished turn-of-the-century building. Diners can dive into French culture with a starter such as escargot madrid lightly doused with butter, pancetta, tomato, garlic, shallots, and parsley. Afterward, refresh palettes with a light house salad, or warm Francophilic stomachs with a hearty bowl of french onion soup with grated joie de vivre melting on top. Entree options include the house specialty—a French country-style cassoulet of great northern beans, bacon, duck, pork sausage, duck confit, and vegetable du jour—or the chicken picatta, which features a thinly sliced breaded chicken breast drizzled with a lemon-caper beurre blanc served with a helping of rice pilaf. The herb-crusted marinated hanger steak arrives outfitted with caramelized onions alongside golden-brown duchess potatoes. Finally, a trio of toothsome desserts—including chocolate mousse, crème brûleé, and a rotating third selection—guide the meal to a close with the sweetness of a grandmother directing traffic. Throughout the meal, diners wash down bites with a choice of red or white house wine as they bask in Restaurant Toulouse’s lavishly appointed interior. Art deco-style posters and a wood-burning hearth adorn the vibrantly hued and elegantly textured walls, and an enclosed, heated patio provides a moonlit venue for rounds of trivia on the French muppets.