Startle

The better question might be what French restaurant isn’t good for dates, but yes (or oui), Bouley is the ideal eatery with which to impress your special someone. Romance oozes from every square inch of this Tribeca haunt — from the dim lightening to the plush upholsteries to the grand French pastoral paintings. The subdued atmosphere is conducive to the most intimate of conversations (in fact, hushed tones may be required at times if you don’t want the entire dining room to hear your conversation) and with its tasting menu construct, you’ll have plenty of excuses to nibble off of your special someone’s plate or split dessert.

With its lush tapestries, vibrant French provincial paintings and moody lightening, Bouley is the epitome of a romantic restaurant. The quiet atmosphere — punctuated ever so slightly by subdued instrumental music — lends itself well to intimate conversations (no yelling required!). Plus, with its tasting menu format, the French restaurant offers the perfect excuse to playfully offer a bite or two off of your own plate. To really get your date purring “ooh, la, la,” we recommend sitting in the library. Its slightly secluded feel and even dimmer lighting heighten the romance factor by at least 10. You’re welcome.

Bouley is the brainchild of chef and restaurateur David Bouley, a long-time fixture in the Manhattan culinary scene. In fact, it seems Bouley’s entire life has been spent in the kitchen — one of his first jobs as a teen was washing dishes at a Connecticut restaurant. At 19, Bouley moved to New Mexico to attend college, but eventually left to pursue a career as a chef. After stints in Los Angeles, Paris and San Francisco, Bouley returned to the East Coast to open the French restaurant Montrachet with partner Drew Nieporent. Bouley eventually left Montrachet to open the first incarnation of his eponymous French eatery in 1987. After a few reimaginings, Bouley landed at its current location in 2008, across the street from the chef’s latest endeavor, the Japanese restaurant Brushstroke. Bouley also runs a world-class culinary teaching center two blocks away, the Bouley Test Kitchen. A research and development facility of sorts, many of Brushstroke’s signature dishes were dreamt up on its 200-square-foot slab of slate, which serves as Bouley’s chalkboard.

Bouley does not have a children’s menu. The New York restaurant recommends that parents only bring children 5 years of age or older, and these should be adventurous eaters who are happy with whatever mom and dad are ordering, rather than a menu of kid-targeted creations. With a typical dinner lasting two to three hours, keeping your tyke entertained and seated the entire time might pose a challenge.

Bouley’s petit fours are a true treat for the senses — textures and tastes play off each other to end your meal at this New York restaurant on a decidedly high note. There are the mini macaroons, which are brightly colored and range in flavor from raspberry to pistachio to licorice. Crisp sheets of raspberry and coconut tuile — as well as sesame crunch squares — offering a satisfying contrast to the infinitely richer and denser chocolate tarts. Then there are the truffles. Oh, the truffles. In flavors like passion fruit and coconut rum, you’ll definitely want to save room for these expertly-crafted concoctions.

Bouley’s preponderance of dining room attendants — waiters, servers, sommeliers, captains — are the embodiment of attentiveness. Before taking your order, a server will inquire about any food allergies you may have — a thoughtful touch, to be sure. As each course arrives at your table, a knowledgeable captain will describe the dish in detail and answer any questions you may have. Staffers will check in with you frequently, eager to clear your finished plates. Each course was delivered to our table in a prompt, timely fashion. At times the staff’s service can feel a bit hyper-attentive, but it’s clear the New York restaurant understands and fosters good service.

Subdued is the word we’d use to describe the noise level at Bouley. Though the French restaurant pipes pleasant instrumental music from its sound system, the dulcet tones aren’t enough to disguise any conversation, meaning you might feel like the table next to you — or even the ever-present wait staff — is eavesdropping on your dinner discussion. In keeping with the restaurant’s refined atmosphere, conversations here are infrequently boisterous and sometimes even verge on hushed. On the plus side, you’ll never have to shout to be heard by your date.

Bouley’s sound system pumps a continuous stream of subdued instrumental music, setting the mood for its elegant lunch and dinner presentations. It’s a fitting accompaniment to Bouley’s homey, rustic French interior — all lush tapestries and French provincial paintings — and is never loud enough to impede comfortable conversation. In fact, combined with the sometimes-hushed tones of your fellow dinners, the collective noise level isn’t always loud enough to guarantee privacy for your dinner conversation.

No need to loiter around the entrance of this upscale French restaurant — Bouley has ample space for you to wait comfortably while your table’s being readied. If the scent of apples evokes childhood memories of Grandma’s piping hot pie, we recommend taking one of the few seats available in Bouley’s foyer (known as the Apple Room), where thousands of fresh apples line the walls from floor to ceiling. For bigger parties, the plush seating in the lounge will be your preferred refuge. With larger-than-life lilies painted onto the bar’s dusty blue walls and potted orchids lining the windows, it might be difficult remembering you’re planted in a restaurant and not a botanical garden.

Bouley’s private dining room may not be as ostentatious as its extravagantly decorated upstairs main dining area, but the subdued design sets a similarly refined and relaxed mood. Vaulted ceilings top this space, befitted with several twinkling chandeliers. Burgundy is the ruling color palette here, but hints of color emerge thanks to pastels created by Claude Chevalley to complement the main dining room’s paintings. Finishing off the modest display are several 18th-century walnut doors with original wrought-iron fleur de lis hinges. The private dining room can hold 50 people for a meal or 70 people for a reception.

Bouley’s dress code is characterized as “casual celebratory,” a nebulous term at best, which simply means men are required to wear a jacket. (Though Bouley staff will be more than happy to check your jacket once you take a seat in the dining room.) Owning to its Financial District-adjacent location, we observed numerous business men in suits, in addition to the prototypical ladies-who-lunch crowd, clad in their finest fur-collared frocks and perfectly pressed designer dresses. In short, keep your tuxedos and ball gowns tucked safely in the closet, but don’t be afraid to dress with a bit of aplomb.

Bouley asks that you give 24 hours’ notice if you need to change or cancel a reservation for lunch or dinner. The French restaurant does not require reservations, though they do recommend them (you can make a reservation by calling or e-mailing the restaurant). Bouley is open six days a week (Monday through Saturday) from 11:30 a.m. to 11:30 p.m. It is closed on Sunday. The dress code is “casual celebratory,” and jackets are required.

There are a number of ways to get reservations at Bouley. You can call the reservation line to secure a table for lunch or dinner, or you can send an email to the restaurant. Bouley asks that you give 24 hours’ notice if you need to change or cancel your reservation. The New York restaurant is open six days a week (Monday through Saturday) for lunch and dinner from 11:30 a.m. to 11:30 p.m. The dress code is “casual celebratory,” and jackets are required.

Bouley’s chocolate soufflé isn’t the only sweet treat on the menu — the French restaurant’s interior is pure, unadulterated eye candy for design aficionados and amateurs alike. The main level of chef David Bouley’s eponymous eatery is divided into several sections, all reflecting a similar French provincial sensibility. When you first enter the 1860s Mohawk Building, you’ll find yourself in the Apple Room, and as its name implies, this foyer is lined with shelves upon shelves of the fruit — totaling several thousand in all. As you pass into the reception and lounge area, you’ll see the area’s dusty blue walls painted with larger-than-life white lilies. Next comes the main dining room, which boasts mica-glazed vaulted ceilings, rich tapestries and paintings of the French countryside. And finally is the library, where dim lighting and volumes of tomes set a homey yet romantic feel.

Bouley is open for lunch and dinner, six days a week (Monday through Saturday) between the hours of 11:30 a.m. and 11:30 p.m. It is closed on Sunday.

The New York restaurant is located at 163 Duane Street, on the corner of Hudson Street, walking distance from the Chambers Street subway stop, which services the 1, 2 , 3, A and C lines. It’s also easily accessible from the West Side Highway if you’re driving or taking a cab.

Bouley is a short walk from the Chambers Street subway stop, which services the 1, 2 and 3 lines. Once you exit the subway station, walk two blocks north on Hudson Street — the casually elegant eatery is located on the corner of Hudson on Duane Street. A second Chambers Street stop, two blocks southeast, services the A and C lines and is also within walking distance of the restaurant.

If you drive, Brushstroke is most easily accessible from the West Side Highway. Turn off at Vestry Street and make your way south into Tribeca. Probably the quickest — and most convenient — way to get to this New York restaurant is to hail one of the city’s more than 10,000 yellow cabs.

Parking comes at a bit of a premium in Bouley’s upscale neighborhood. Metered street parking is available on surrounding corners and is unrestricted after 7 p.m. That said, the New York restaurant’s surroundings aren’t the most car-friendly, thanks to narrow streets and a pedestrian park blocking off part of Hudson. There are a couple of nearby parking garages, but this being Manhattan, we recommend you either take the subway or a cab to avoid any parking headaches standing between you and David Bouley’s gourmet French fare. The closest subway stop is Chambers Street, which services the 1, 2, 3, A and C lines.

Chef David Bouley’s eponymous eatery is nestled in downtown Manhattan’s tony Tribeca neighborhood, housed in the unassuming, peach-hued Mohawk Building which dates back to the 1860s. The French restaurant is located at 163 Duane Street, on the corner of Hudson Street — right across the street from Bouley’s latest culinary innovation, the Japanese restaurant Brushstroke.

Bouley is a short walk from the Chambers Street subway stop, which services the 1, 2, 3, A and C lines, and is also easily accessible from the West Side Highway if you drive.