Le Veau d'Or Makes Everyone Feel Like a VIP

Le Veau d'Or originated in 1937 as a classic French bistro. The restaurant was acquired by the team behind Frenchette and Le Rock in 2019, but only re-opened in July of 2024. It was time well spent.

Le Veau d'Or (literally translates to “The Golden Calf”) was on the top of my hit list for some time before I had a reasonable excuse to throw down $125/person on a three course pre-fixe. When the excuse finally arrived, it was as a part of my birthday weekend eating marathon, which included the likes of Sailor (twice) and Rolo’s (once). 9:30pm was the only reservation I could secure for a two-top on a Saturday night. Not ideal, but beggars can't be choosers. We made the most of the time we had to kill by taking a much needed nap after a Sailor brunch-induced coma.

We arrived at 9:30pm on the dot, walked through the red velvet curtains, and descended into a dining room that was alive. I’m sure it had at least partly to do with the copious amount of alcohol consumed by the patrons at this point on a Saturday night, but it was exhilarating. The Maître d’ (Erica Cantley - hostess of the highly recommended podcast “Maître D’ Diaries”) was warm and welcoming as she explained our table was not yet free and invited us to have a drink at the bar while we waited.

The bar is quite small with five seats, but it’s perfect for a short hydration pit stop as you wait for your table to free up. (Side note: I highly recommend walking in at 5pm and sitting at the bar where you can order items a la carte.) I ordered one of their N/A options which was a riff on a bramble. It was perfectly balanced, with sweet red fruit, sour lemon and herbaceous mint, served over a mound of pebble ice and riddled with fresh muddled raspberries at the bottom.

While seated at the bar, I looked over my shoulder to get a sense of the space and spotted Missy Robbins out of the corner of my eye. This was a clear indicator I was in the right place.

As we sat there, I grew hungrier and more tired, but that only heightened my anticipation. Just before 10pm, Erica came back around to notify us our table was ready. We had the honor of having the iconic sleeping calf painting in our direct line of sight.

The original Sleeping Calf painting has hung in LVD since its inception

We were also able to see every other diner in the restaurant from our vantage point which made the experience feel communal. Our waitress was friendly, confident, and personable. It’s possible the confidence may be partially fueled by their epic uniforms—beige button ups (that rarely seem to be buttoned) and white aprons folded down.

You order your app, entree, and dessert all at once. The pre-fixe also includes bread and butter to start, an herby salad, and Lyonnaise-style beignets. The bread course features an Einkorn & Spelt variety, as well as a classic French baguette with butter. It is as you would expect—high quality, house-made bread and creamy butter. From there, I had the Goujonettes of Fluke Sauce Tartar and Oysters Chipolatas. The goujonettes reminded me of chicken fries from BK due to their shape. Thankfully, they tasted nothing of the sort. These had a beautifully puffed batter and were fried to golden perfection. Finishing them with a squeeze of lemon and a dunk in the accompanying tartar sauce supplied the perfect amount of acid to cut through the fattiness of their oily coating.

Fluke fingers garnished with a gravy boat of tartar sauce and fried parsley

The oysters and sausages ate unexpectedly well together—hot and cold, fatty and briny, etc. It’s also fun to eat—hit the oyster with a splash of mignonette, sink it, stab a greasy pork sausage with a tiny two-pronged fork and chase.

For my main, I opted for the Duck Magret Aux Cerises. Since then, I’ve also tried the Onglet Frites, Hanger Steak Béarnaise and Gigot of Lamb "Coco" Beans. The duck is the standout. The fat on the breast is rendered into submission and the skin can be easily shattered with the tap of a fork. It is seasoned with warm spices—guessing coriander, clove, cumin—and served with stewed tart cherries.

Magret duck breast served with cherries, baby turnips, mache and jus

The leg of lamb was cooked to rosy pink perfection and served with a velvety jus, herbed navy beans, and a roasted stuffed tomato. The tomato was stuffed with parsley and breadcrumbs and unfortunately did not enhance the dish. However, the lamb was tender as could be and had a deeply roasted flavor. The hanger steak was similarly soft in texture. Although alone the steak ate underseasoned, this was remedied by the side of bearnaise which provided a much needed punch of salt and lemon. The fries were perfect—golden, crispy, salty—and I could drink the side of aioli straight up.

Naturally, we expected dessert to hit the table next, but alas, we received a refreshing leafy salad. It was packed with lettuce, parsley, tarragon, chervil, and a light vinegar based shallot dressing. It was so simple and so perfect—one of my favorite bites of the entire meal.

Salade Verte Pour La Table

It may have even tricked us into thinking we were just now having our app and were ravenous for the next course.

At this point, our server came around to offer coffee and tea. My chamomile tea was served in its own clear glass kettle and included in the pre-fixe price, but my cappuccino on another visit was an additional fee, so I’m unsure of the pricing structure here. My dining companion opted for neither as she was already daydreaming about being cozied up in bed immediately after dinner and couldn’t risk a caffeine-triggered night of insomnia. Still, it was time for the finale–where I chose the Ile Flottante. Since then, I’ve also ordered the Tatin aux Rhubarbe. This course is where they do their most impressive cooking.

Ile Flottante has all the makings of an overly sweet, uninspired dessert considering both components—meringue and creme anglaise—mainly consist of: eggs, vanilla, and sugar. I assure you, it’s not. It manages to be delicate and the addition of pralined almond slivers and bitter caramel droplets on the meringue adds a subtle complexity to the flavor profile that left me craving more.

A buoyant mountain of baked meringue stands at the ready

The tatin had a beautifully flaky puff pastry and caramelized rhubarb with a quenelle of vanilla ice cream atop. This combination of warm and jammy rhubarb, cold and creamy ice cream, and buttery pastry left me in a prolonged state of bliss. Even after all that, I inevitably welcomed the beignets when they hit the table (1/person). However, these were not light and funnel-cake like as they appear. They are quite dense and eat more like a scone. I’m confident these are exactly as pastry chef Michelle Palazzo intends them to be, and I’ll never leave a bite of one on the table, but they do not hold a candle to the on-menu desserts.

On my way home, I was already texting a friend that I could not wait to go back to that place. Keep in mind, this is after I had to wait 30 minutes to be seated for my 9:30pm reservation and finished up around midnight. I did not care. It was a humbling experience that filled me with gratitude. This front of house team truly makes you believe they care about you and your experience—i.e., comping a bottle of sparkling water after accidentally pouring tap in my glass and putting red checkered cloth napkins over table stains to conceal our blunders.

I didn’t wait long to go back—two weeks to be exact. LVD provides my favorite dining experience in NYC. It is an incredibly personal and intimate restaurant that is about far more than the food. LVD will be considered for all special occasions going forward and for those times when I can irrationally convince myself I can afford it on a casual Friday night. Within three weeks of trying LVD for the first time, I dined at Frenchette and Le Rock for the first time, and returned to LVD. That speaks volumes about this restaurant group.

This restaurant is one a kind and it’s obvious why owners Lee Hanson and Riad Nasr are 2025 finalists for the James Beard Outstanding Restaurateur award. I implore anyone who deeply appreciates food and / or hospitality to dine at LVD—it’s guaranteed to be a real treat.

Reservations: Released 2 weeks in advance at 12am on OpenTable: https://www.opentable.com/r/le-veau-dor-new-york

Contact:

129 E 60th St

New York, NY 10022

646-386-7608

www.lvdnyc.com