La Belle Vie

 

8

80

jenny A.

Saint Paul, MN

Super duper swank.  I only have three five star reviews for restaurants in the TC and this is one of em.  The details, the service, the atmosphere are all pure class.  The food is great from the butter and bread to that last bite of TDF dessert you won't be disappointed.

I haven't eaten here for two years, so my review won't be very detailed (I'll update soon, hopefully).  Two things stand out in my memories: I was heavily pregnant and it was the perfect portion size for my shrunken stomach.  The meal was paced out slowly so I had time to digest enough.  This may not be a huge selling point with some people, but the point of the smaller portions is that you can order enough of them to experience the full gamut of their offerings and not be painfully full the entire time.  The second thing I remember was that the restaurant is really big and spread out and it feels like you've entered an alternate universe of plush couches, antiques and white table cloths.  I guess that why they call it the "the beautiful life."

Glad to hear the lounge is worthwhile.  I will definitely be checking it out soon.  We always need another Fort Awesome in Minneapolis.

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58

44

sarah p.

Minneapolis, MN

This restaurant is on my "last supper" list.  I've been going here since it was in its original Stillwater location. The food is consistently great. Recently, however, I've started going to the Lounge side (Keyes Lounge), because I think the atmosphere is a little more relaxed and hip. The great part is you can still order off the dining room menu, but if you just want a great lite bite, there is the lounge menu. I highly recommend the french fries, the prosciutto panini, the lamb burgers, and shrimp. Bang for buck has to be the fois gras...5 large pats for only 10$ (maybe 11$ or 9$?).

The best part of this place is the mixologist, Johnny. He is the best one in the city. The cocktail list is endless and creative. He is always making something new up. When I was last there he was soaking goji berries in gin--just to see how it came out. My husband always orders "This Charming Man"--a gin lovers orgasm.

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11

53

James K.

Chicago, IL

As someone familiar with many of the country's finest French restaurants, I must say I was shocked to find a gem that rivaled the nation's best in little Minneapolis. La Belle Vie delivered excellent cuisine that was reasonably priced (for this category of dining) in a charming setting, accompanied with tremendous service. The portion sizes were perfect for a degustation menu, giving you enough to fully enjoy mixing each dish's flavors in different proportions, while having enough to share, without being overwhelming.

Though, the real treat were the wine pairings. It doesn't take much skill to pair dishes with fantastic, trophy wines that are outstanding on their own. At LBV, the owner and sommelier take a much more difficult path of finding out-of-the-ordinary wines that aren't always that good, or even enjoyable on their own, but, when paired, generate a transcendent and otherworldly multiplicative effect on the combined flavor profile that must experienced to be understood. As truly impressed as I was with the wine service, after speaking to one of the two gentlemen responsible for its splendor, I was even more blown away by his passion for, and understanding of, wine.

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0

4

Jeremy K.

Silver Spring, MD

If this place isn't your favorite restaurant of all time, I want to know what is....

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13

25

Nellie T.

Chicago, IL

La Belle Vie is amazing.  I've heard that is is comparable to other fine dining restaurants such as Charlie Trotter's and Tru.  It is top of it's class in value for the food, wine, ambiance, service, and experience.  Truly a memorable experience.  We went here in March 2007 and still have fond memories of the food and experience 4 months later.

My beau and I were in Minneapolis celebrating a dating anniversary.  We decided to come here after readinga about it in a magazine in the hotel.  The description mentioned that La Belle Vie was rated as one of the top 50 restaurants in the country and a "foodie's must."  That was enough for us.  

We made reservations on opentable.com for that night.  We went on a Sunday night to avoid the crowds and it was great.  The restaurant is a little bit outside of the main Minneapolis downtown area in a condo building.  The main room has several tables that face the middle with the exception of a few round tables.  At first we thought it was a little odd that a couple would be seated side by side facing the middle, but we soon came to love the idea.  

We decided to splurge and get the 8 course tasting menu.  Compared with other big city restaurants that offer similar menus, the $80/person is amazingly cheap.  They also have a 5 course for $65.  Check out their website to see what they have on their menu.  It changes with the seasons.  Although we got the 8 course, there were three additional dishes, an amuse boiche, a garlic pastry roll, and a second dessert dish.  We also got amazing wine suggestions.  My favorate course was the squab and foie grois dish.  Every dish was just amazing.  We savored every morsel and couldn't stop talking about how memorable every bite was.  

Service was AMAZING! Our waitress knew everything.  Whenever we asked her a question about a dish, we talked about it with such joy and pleasure.  Her excitement really made us excited to eat the food.  She exemplified great and enjoyable service.  At the end of our meal, the manager came to ask about our experience and offered suggestions for other Minneapolis restaurants.

It was truly a memorable experience.  I highly recommend this restaurant to true foodies who do not mind spending the money for a memorable meal.  This restaurant really allowed me to have the foodie experience that I cannot afford in the big cities.  It is extremely romantic and all about the food and wine.  This may not be for everyone, but if you are a foodie and wine lover... this is an experience not to be missed.

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Elite '08

7

32

Amy C.

Saint Paul, MN

Okay, I will start off by saying that I may have ordered the wrong dish at La Belle Vie but I had SUCH high hopes for this restaurant that everyone, and I mean everyone, raves about. I went there for my birthday dinner and I really couldn't wait to pay the bill and leave. First of all, I will say that the service was amazing. When I walked in I saw the lounge area, which was a nice combination of modern and old world charm. They were playing Thievery Corporation. I was hoping for even more from the dining room. Unfortunately the dining room was very bland. I felt like I was at a high end nursing home. There was NO music at all. I thought they would have live music (like a pianist or guitar player). Nothing. And it was very, very dark--and not in a romantic way. I started to feel very sleepy. There were mostly older people there too, so it was not a high-energy environment. Anyway, I was told I couldn't order from the lounge menu, which had some progressive sounding small plates that I would have loved to try. You can choose a la carte for entrees or go with the tasting menu, and they ask that you both order from the same tasting menu if you go that route. My date and I didn't want the same tasting menu and I didn't care for several of the items on either of the menus. I asked our server (who was very sweet) about the bouillabaisse and she said it was their signature dish. I have had amazing bouillabaisse in California and France and I make my own at home, so maybe I shouldn't have taken the risk. But a good bouillabaisse makes me so happy. The portion size was small and it was the most disgusting bouillabaisse I have ever had. It was nearly inedible (it had an overwhelming fishy taste). The server seemed genuinely upset that we didn't eat very much. She pressed us about it and asked us if we weren't hungry and we admitted that we had had far better tasting food. I really don't know why people say it's so expensive. I guess if you never eat out or go to nice restaurants you might get sticker shock but our bill came to $85 with cocktails. If you do the tasting menu your bill might come to $150 but that is not outrageous for fine dining. I was so let down, as I was told this was the pinnacle of dining experiences. I think the lounge would be a nice place for a date or to meet a group of sophisticated friends. I just found the experience in the dining room to be very melancholy.

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Elite '08

54

73

JAZON L.

Boston, MA

This restaurant is NOT FOR YOU if you have to look at the price when ordering off the menu.  La Belle Vie is an exceptional french restaurant in Minneapolis.

We had the 5 course tasting menu with the wine pairing. It was exceptional!!  The wines are mostly french and they have for the most part done a great job of pairing.

Well done and impressed coming from a guy in Boston.

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Elite '08

145

268

Tony C.

Los Angeles, CA

1 review? for a Gourmet top 50 restaurant? hello YELP?

I too had the 5 course tasting menu. Still have the menu somewhere. The photos totally didn't come out because the room was dim and a flash didn't seem appropriate even tho i was sitting at the bar area... the bar area... ahh yes, my biggest mistake.

When you're sitting at a 3* restaurant with perfect white linens going for the gastro menu, sit in the dining room, even when you're alone. Especially when you're alone!

I matched the degustation menu with a "bubbly" flight and the moscato started me down a path of alcoholism all the way to Xmas. The pacing was perfect, server was extremely knowledgeable and attentive even tho I was at the bar area. La Belle Bie showed they care about their food, they want to accomodate you, they want you to taste, they want you to KNOW what you're tasting, but not in a condescending, obtrusive manner. Lovely place.

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0

14

Tony B.

Minneapolis, MN

OK, this is one of the very few restaurants I would give 5 stars.  It is not an exaggeration for me to say that the best food I've ever experienced in my life has come from La Belle Vie.   I splurge on this kind of dining only once or twice a year but, for me, each time at La Belle Vie has been a very memorable experience.  This is where I learned to fall in love with fois gras and had a near out-of-body experience with it.   (Yes, I feel bad for those poor little geese but if they knew the happiness they brought me, I hope they'd understand.)   At La Belle Vie is also the first time I really experienced that amazing "movie of tastes" (ok, I made that up because I can't think of a better way of putting it) where different tastes rise and subside with each bite.  You know those times in life when you experience something so beautiful that in your mind you think "OK, I can die now"?  La Belle Vie is up there for me.   Have I said enough?

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