Brasserie Perrier

City natives, recent transplants and everyday tourists can all agree on one unfortunate food fact – a good French meal is hard to come by in the City of Brotherly Love. While delectable Italian bistros and hearty pub grub can be found on every corner, the sophisticated European fare of France is trickier to locate. While Le Bec-Fin reigns supreme as a five-star favorite, most diners lack the sufficient funds to nosh on its world-famous cuisine on a regular basis. Luckily, Brasserie Perrier offers a wonderful alternative for French food lovers of all tastes and backgrounds.

Georges Perrier, owner and founder of Le Bec-Fin, decided to open a more casual restaurant in January 1997, and the result has been met with a loyal following ever since. Renowned as the leader of Philadelphia’s restaurant revolution, Perrier received his culinary training at La Pyramide in Paris and brought that knowledge back to Philadelphia in the late 1960s. Soon after its opening in 1970, Le Bec-Fin staked its claim as the city’s finest restaurant, but after years of commercial success, Perrier’s taste began to lean more towards easygoing than extravagant.

Brasserie Perrier opened its doors more than a decade ago, and its consistent popularity has as much to do with the food as does its location. Situated in the heart of Philadelphia’s busiest restaurant and shopping locale, Walnut Street is an easy walk from the business district and an ideal resting point for the city’s many shopaholics. It also caters to the wealthy Rittenhouse crowd, making it a hotspot for people-watching. 

Brasserie Perrier walks a fine line between homey and haute, maintaining a menu of classic French comfort food in a decidedly upscale setting. Designed in a classic Art Deco-style, the bar and lounge area is filled with colorful banquettes and silver leaf ceilings for those interested in a more casual atmosphere, while the formal 100-seat dining area located in the back of the restaurant is a more elegant option for patrons. Expect to find the lounge packed with 30-something professionals sipping on fancy cocktails and nibbling on the many appetizer options available from the dinner menu. The traditional dining room, which features hand-painted columns by local artist Denis Haugh, is home to an older crowd and romantic couples on dates.

The menu is a cornucopia of traditional French fare with a twist, an obvious reflection of head Chef Chris Scarduzio’s versatility and creativity. Perrier met Scarduzio in 1995 at the Germantown Cricket Club where he was dishing up the area’s best omelettes, and he would later be handpicked by Perrier to join in the restaurant’s opening. Scarduzio began as a sous-chef, but after two years, he took the reins as executive chef and is now a partner. Scarduzio’s simple yet elegant style reflects Perrier’s vision in full – French food doesn’t have to be formal.

Perhaps Brasserie Perrier’s greatest attraction lies in its flexibility. Patrons can choose between two dining options – a casual bistro meal in the lounge or a more elegant affair in the back dining room. Outdoor seating is also available in the warmer months, but I opted for the lounge since it best reflects the restaurant’s strengths – a lively atmosphere free of pomp and circumstance.

Brasserie Perrier’s impressive appetizers could be a meal in themselves, and I found it extremely difficult to choose from the variety of dishes. The Shellfish Platter with oysters and clams on the half shell, shrimp cocktail, steamed mussels, and three dipping sauces was fresh and mouthwatering. The three sauces give the choice of tangy, tart or creamy, but use them sparingly – you don’t want the sauces to mask the high quality of the seafood.

The House Smoked Salmon with lemon crème fraîche, potato blini, and salmon roe was light and flavorful. Delicate twirls of pink salmon were accented by the citrus crème, and the vibrant red specks of salmon roe made the dish an eye-catching treat.

But the Rigatoni Pasta "Woodsman Style" was the dish to remember. Made with mushrooms, roasted peppers, Marsala essence, and shaved pecorino, the pasta’s delectable sauce left me wanting to lick my plate clean. The rigatoni was perfectly “al dente” and the roasted red peppers added a nice earthy twist to the lush sauce.

For a main course, the Szechwan Peppered Sushi-Grade Tuna with purple Thai rice, wilted pea leaves, and black bean ginger was a delightful experiment in Asian-fused French cuisine. The interesting mix of ingredients highlighted the tuna’s natural flavors without masking any of its freshness. Truly a feast for the eyes, the deep-red tuna was buttery, the bright purple rice was light and moist, and the intensely green pea leaves were the perfect accompaniment.

The Roasted Breast of Free Range Chicken with a Marsala-braised thigh, Lyonnaise potatoes, and tomato Marsala sauce was a more rustic meal option and showcased Scarduzio’s diverse culinary style. Simple in its approach yet superb in its execution, it was far from the average chicken dinner. When it hit the table, it reminded me of an old-fashioned dinner I had in a small Paris bistro, but the moist chicken and creamy potatoes were far richer than the traditional fare.

The eight-ounce USDA Prime Ribeye Filet with a porcini mushroom polenta cake, goat cheese dumpling, and merlot sauce is one of the most expensive menu choices, but was well worth the price tag. The meat was cooked exactly to my liking, and the sauce accentuated its deep flavor. And while the steak was easily the main attraction, the porcini mushroom polenta cake and goat cheese dumpling were two of the best sides I had eaten in recent memory.

No French restaurant is complete without a rich and decadent dessert, and in my case, I had several. My favorite dessert, Crème Brûlée, was made to perfection and enhanced with sweet Tahitian vanilla. The sugar casing was fired to a deep gold, and its crispiness was an ideal contrast to the luscious custard.

The Sicily Cake with chocolate pecan cream and hazelnut ice cream is also a lovely way to cap off the meal. The warm, heavy cake and the cool ice cream define comfort food to its core, but warm chocolate cake with liquid center and vanilla ice cream is a must-try. Definitely worth the extra weight gain, the moist cake is as rich as they come, and once the dark liquid center spreads out onto your white plate, you’ll think you died and went to French heaven.

Brassiere Perrier also boasts an impressive wine list of domestic and international treasures. Guests can choose between a variety of sparkling, rosé, white, red, and sweet wines, and are also invited to bring their own bottle on Sunday nights. For those looking to splurge, several of France’s finest wines are available by the glass and bottle, but the collection of California domestics is a more than adequate alternative.

While Brassier Perrier isn’t an inexpensive French dining option, it’s a far cry from its extravagant counterpart, Le Bec-Fin. World-class ingredients, perfectly-sized portions and more modest prices make this venue stand apart from the rest. And even though Brasserie Perrier can’t quite live up to the title of “brasserie” because of its indulgent tendencies, it remains one of Philadelphia’s top French restaurants and will continue to do so for years to come.