An elevated taste of France—without the plane ticket or the jet lag.
Restaurants replace one another all the time. But it’s tricky when the predecessor is a diner, as is the case of newcomer Micheline in Scarsdale. Gone is Scarsdale Metro Restaurant, once a vinyl-booth hangout with its cheeseburgers and spanakopita. In its place is a sleek bistro: plaster-and subway-tiled walls, a giant mirror, and a show-stopping bar with a zinc counter. Good looks aside, however, Micheline faces down an unspoken dictum: If you replace an eatery that filled diners’ ordinary needs, you’d better serve extraordinary food.
Challenge accepted. Since its opening last September, Micheline has drawn crowds of patrons eager to try its sophisticated offerings. Nor are all these patrons local: “We just had two couples come in. One was from Bedford and the other was from New York City,” explains owner and operator Jonathan Aubrey.
Photo by Eric Medsker
To understand the magic generating repeat customers, you need to know who’s running the place. Aubrey was the general manager of Simon & the Whale and the George Washington Bar in Manhattan’s trendy Freehand New York Hotel. Dining afficionados may be especially awed that he spent two years as a maître d’ at uber-famous Eleven Madison Park. Backing him up is general manager Devin Carthan, a protégé of celeb chefs Marcus Samuelsson and Francois Payard, plus chef Joshua Capone, who spent a decade at NYC’s iconic haute-cuisine temple Daniel, the last two as chef de cuisine.
All this top-drawer experience means wonderful and often surprising dining. “Our escargot is popular because it’s not your traditional escargot in the standard little dish. Ours are tossed and sautéed, and served in a soubise sauce,” says Aubrey. Mussels, normally a solo act, get the Micheline treatment with a toasted baguette tucked beneath, which soaks in the sauce. “It’s a delicious little treat once you’re done eating the mussels,” he says. You’ll want to kick off the meal with a cocktail such as the breakout star Allegro, a mix of blanco and reposado tequilas, Lillet, orgeat, and lemon. Mocktails are available upon request.
Photo by Eric Medsker
Dishes abound with seasonal ingredients. “We buy our eggs from Heermance Farm near Tivoli and our dairy from Ronnybrook Farm in Ancramdale,” says Aubrey. “Our chickens come from Hemlock Hill Farm in Cortlandt, our ducks from Tivoli. And there’s wonderful produce in the Hudson Valley and we take advantage of it.” This means vegetarians can look forward to something other than plant-based burgers—say, glazed baby carrots with spiced coconut sauce accented by apricot, pumpkin seeds, and wild rice. (Aubrey suggests pairing it with a glass of Rousette de Savoie white wine, made from little-known altesse grapes grown at the bottom of the French Alps). Honey-roasted duck breast twins seamlessly with the Syrah-Grenache blend of Mon Coeur by winemaker Jean-Louis Chave.
Dessert is a chance to sample an underrated fruit, quince, in a galette with a sidekick of honeycomb ice cream. If you’re looking for something that’s bit more tangy, the delicious lemon tart, with a hint of bergamot and toasted meringue, is the finale for you.
Steak au poivre in green peppercorn sauce and seared fluke. Photo by Eric Medsker.
The menu constantly evolves, so visit the website for current offerings. The homepage sports a line drawing that’s a cross between a Micheline–a vintage French train with Michelin tires—and a Metro-North train, since the restaurant is a minute’s walk from the station. It’s an apt symbol for the restaurant, which is going places.
Courtesy of Micheline
