Walking into the lovely upstairs dining rooms at Le Languedoc is like walking into a time warp, revealing island elegance we thought long past. In fact Le Languedoc has preserved it in the wonderful service and décor, and apply classic French techniques to dishes made from local or nearby ingredients.
And no wonder! The same partnership: Alan & Ann Cunha, Neil Grennan and Ed Grennan have been running Le Languedoc for an astonishing forty years! The food and service are as elegant as ever, with a warm, friendly staff attending to your every need and request.
The menu at Le Languedoc includes appetizers, main course entrees and “bistro favorites.” At one time, the lower level served only the simpler bistro items, but now you can order any item in either dining room. And that means that you could, if you wanted, order their famous cheeseburger, considered one of the island’s finest anywhere, as well as the more elaborate courses.
We proved that by ordering their fantastic chopped salad ($14) from the bistro menu as one appetizer. It’s a huge salad mixed with blue cheese and buttermilk, and simply delicious, although you may not be able to finish it.
And, in a show of versatility, we were delighted to be able to order the Escargot with Lobster Roe Fettucini, garlic butter and lemon ($18.50) for our other appetizer. Again, this one is also pretty filling, but the flavors in the pasta and sauce were unique, and there were an amazing number of escargot buried in that pasta. You won’t find either of those two dishes anywhere else on the island.
One of our main course items was actually listed as an appetizer, but as substantial as any main course: Pressed Veal Sweetbreads ($18.50) with parmesan, pancetta and pea risotto. Again, a truly creative mix of tastes in an excellent presentation.
Finally, our other main course was quite traditional: Traditional Steak Frites ($29) with watercress, truffle vinaigrette and béarnaise. The steak was as tender as any we’ve had, perfectly prepared (medium rare) and the béarnaise perfect. The French fries were clearly freshly made and very hot, and stayed that way served in the tall paper-lined dish. Just about perfect in every way.
While we could easily have left without it, we were interested in the Duo of Custards dessert ($12.50), where one was a traditional, but perfect, Crème Brulee, and the other a Butterscotch and Sea Salt Budino. They were truly irresistible and vanished in seconds.
Despite the excellent food and service, our bill with 3 glasses of an excellent Pinot Noir was only $142. We’ve been coming to Le Languedoc for 20 years and have never been anything but delighted.
Food Science Institute 