Along with State of the Art Coffee and the Laughing Horse Coffee Co., the newly-opened Café Deux is raising the café and restaurant bar in Harrison. It also brings a French twist to the town, which is becoming known for the quality of its dining, like sister communities Rye and Greenwich.
Café Deux may be new but it”™s no greenhorn. Co-owner sisters Charlotte and Carrie Denoyer (the “deux” sound in their last name, besides there being two of them, was the inspiration for the café”™s name) are the daughters of New York restaurateur Jean Denoyer, he of Le Goulue, Bar Italia and Orsay fame. So they”™re no strangers to casual but sophisticated European dining.
And heavens, does Café Deux look the part, with its basket-weave patterned floor, big brasserie-style mirrors, reupholstered chairs (which have indeed come from Le Goulue) and toffee-colored banquette, which runs the length of the room. But “looking the part” doesn”™t mean pastiche or cliché. Café Deux is a one-off. You need only check out the antique-style Edison bulb lights in a variety of shapes and sizes above the bar to know that ”“ more of a St. Germain or Marais vibe, I”™d say, than a traditional Montparnasse brasserie one.
As for the food, the sisters, steeped in the upscale restaurant business, have got it absolutely spot-on. Open early until late, you”™ll find croissants, pain au chocolats (both made in-house daily) and scrumptious hot egg dishes for breakfast, transitioning into seasonal salads, quiches, rice bowls, and a superb steak tartare at lunch. Dinner sees a couple of rather more substantial dishes ”“ one fish, one chicken ”“ along with an excellent steak frites, join the menu.
At a recent weekend brunch, I rolled out all the superlatives for my Norwegian eggs, which is what Café Deux calls its eggs Benedict with smoked salmon ”“ eggs with rich, golden yokes sitting on prime smoked salmon over delicate English muffins, the whole lot anointed with a perfect hollandaise. And while I never thought I”™d wax lyrical about anything as prosaic as quiche, Café Deux”™s crust-less quiche, an ambrosial, almost soufflé-like tumble of featherlight eggs folded with Gruyère, spinach and cream and served piping hot in an earthenware dish, had me at the first, unforgettable forkful.
For dessert, the unashamedly indulgent menu includes chocolate caramel parfait and a beautifully made, elegant rhubarb and orange galette. In a virtuoso rendering of a classic New York cheesecake, Caf̩ DeuxӪs version has hibiscus-poached strawberries crowning a splendid homemade cheesecake, which sits on a buttery, croissant crust. Also available are petits-fours-sized chocolates, or Cupped Desserts, top-quality, chocolatey confections that represent a separate business for the Denoyer sisters. The confections are strikingly displayed at the caf̩Ӫs entrance, to guzzle on-site or to have boxed to take away.
As for drinking, it”™s a pleasure, with a short, eclectic, mostly French wine list and a full complement of spritzes and classic cocktails. There is also a raft of nonalcoholic ones, including a Figlia spritz, a spicy “margarita” and “espresso martini.” Even the teas won praise, the cinnamon plum tea “as delicious as a dessert,” according to my guest. Still and sparkling bottled water, by the way, are free of charge.
I”™ll admit to feeling a little perplexed by the glitter ball at the far end of the room. Are the sisters planning discos nights? Watch out for the noise volume if so, as even with just eight other people eating on one of my visits, the decibel count in the smallish space was high.
But that”™s the only gray mark against this utterly charming café, where the quality of the food is matched only by the sweetness of the service ”“ where the answer to our first three requests went like this: “Yes,” “of course” and “no problem” and continued in the same affirmative vein.
In other words, my kind of café. I think it may be yours, too.
For reservations, visit cafedeuxny.com.
For more on Cupped Desserts, visit cuppeddesserts.com.
