Le Colonial Awards

Le Colonial Restaurant Review:

About the restaurant: This two-story Texas outpost of the famed New York City French-Vietnamese restaurant lives up to its elegant surroundings in the tony River Oaks District. It’s definitely a see-and-be-seen spot, so if you visit dress to the nines and be prepared to pay for the privilege. Nicole Routhier and executive chef Dan Nguyen re-create the flavors of colonial Vietnam with a few modern updates, and dishes arrive at the table looking as rich as the décor. On the plus side, it’s great to nestle into a banquette in the spacious downstairs dining room where the louvered shutters look out onto the veranda.

Food & Drinks: Here you can enjoy a Sidecar while nibbling on the goi bo, the cold, spicy salad with filet mignon slices. We like the crispy egg noodle nest with oyster sauce and the roasted lemon grass chicken, too. Nothing on the plate is as fiery as we usually prefer, but the service and atmosphere help make up for the lack of heat. A nice, albeit a bit pricey, wine list notes by-the-glass selections such as the M. Chapoutier Belleruche, Côtes du Rhône '15, while “mocktails” use wines mixed with fresh berries and juices to produce some smooth sips.