Le Rivage

I’ll take dining with the senior citizens of Boca Raton for awesome French food any day!
This restaurant is a total hidden gem in Boca Raton. It’s like a little hole in the wall type of place — I have been driving by this place for years and never event noticed it. My boyfriend Nick had been there a few times, years ago, and told me about it — so we thought we would give it a try for a little date night.
If you love authentic French food then this is by far the best place to go. The waiters and waitresses all of French accent — awesome! It makes the restaurant so much more genuine. I love that the owner is the Chef. I am a huge supporter of restaurants that are owned by the Chef.
Every time we go to this place its always pretty packed. The décor is very old school but that is what makes it so great. The ambiance is romantic and the noise level is good.
Nick and I usually share a bottle of cab which I think is perfect with French food. The escargot is to die for and comes out piping hot — it’s buttery, garlicky and so flavorful. Nick loves soaking his bread in the butter. We also always get the lobster bisque and the French onion soup — we cannot decide which one we love more, they are both incredible. I usually ask for no bread in the French onion soup and it makes it so so so much better — 1. because it keeps it Gluten Free (I have a super sensitive stomach) 2. and healthier…
Nick never really changes it up when it comes to his order — but then again neither do I. He always gets the Breast Of Duck, with green pepper corn sauce. He says it’s the most amazing duck he has ever had. I happen to love love love the sea scallop and shiitake salad — It’s big enough and filling enough for a main meal, plus I usually get full from the appetizers. It’s simply delicious.
Nick and I aren’t ever dessert eaters but he usually orders the full dinner which means he gets and appetizer, salad, entrée and dessert — it makes more sense for me to get a la carte. The desserts are so cute and how they plate it. I totally love it!
I definitely recommend coming here. It’s a really nice experience every single time and I am already looking forward to the next time we come here. We’re hoping to bring some of our friends here soon for a double date night.

Le Rivage must have taken a lesson from its snails. Service was soooo slow. Thirty minutes from the time we were seated until the soup and salad were served. Thirty-​five minutes after we finished our appetizers we received our entrees. When we inquired about the slow pace we were told that the kitchen was very busy. No attempt was made to apologize to us or offer an amenity. The steak au poivre was cooked well and the au poivre sauce tasty. The house salad was on the small side but with a tasty dressing. I don’t think we’ll go there again that soon.

Always excellent! The dining room is on the simple side, but the food and service make up for that! Being a former Concierge for Four Seasons Hotels in Chicago, NYC, and L.A. I like to think I know good food and service and Le Rivage has both! Duck, Scallops, Steak Au Pouvrie always excellent! Paul Chef/​Owner super wonderful person. Spotless kitchen (I had a tour! ;)) ALL THE wait are wonderful and true professionals! Thierry, Paulette, Muriel, everyone … …excellent!

I come here regularly and I am always impressed with the food! The chicken tarragon is excellent however to be fair, I don’t eat red meat. The oso bucco according to my dad is amazing. The medallions of veal are exquisite. Chef Paul is the owner and head chef and ensures that the ingredients are fresh and perfectly prepared. The mashed potatoes are wonderful and I wish I could make the carrot soufflé at home! The place is quiet however you come here for the quality of the food. The plaza is not the fanciest but I think that is what adds to the charm, particularly in a town where ambiance is often more important than the quality of the food.

Went there again for our 35^th anniversary, and it was wonderful AGAIN!!! It is our favorite place in Boca. So very authentically french. Have never been disappointed with anything we’ve ordered. Our server, Paulette, never ceases to amaze us with how she can keep track of everything at once. Would recommend it to anyone who wants a great dining experience

This restaurant was probably more like 2&½ stars. We came here for a family birthday celebration. I was impressed by the service – they were kind enough to squeeze in a party of 16 a week before the event when our other venue closed. However, the food was pretty disappointing. Of the three starting soups, only one was good (vichyssoise). The French onion was weak and very salty, and the lobster bisque was incredibly fishy and had formed a gelatinous skin by the time it was set on the table. My main course, the half duck, was alright but the duck was quite dry. However, the 3 sides were all very good: a small ginger carrot soufflé, creamed spinach, and mashed potatoes. Additionally, the baguette was nice and crunchy (but the butter was unsalted – a big pet peeve of mine). I had the floating island for dessert and it was decent for a few bites but overly sweet. The other thing that brought them down a half star or so was the fact that the waiter actively advised me against several things on the menu because they weren’t very good. If the staff is telling patrons not to order a fifth of the menu items it’s probably a bad sign. Overall it was not the fantastic French meal I was expecting.

Absolutely amazing! Impeccable service and classic french cuisine. Great 4-​course dinner with many options. I had lobster bisque to start and my husband had split pea soup. Both were incredibly flavorful and velvety in texture. Salads were next — fresh with fancy cut veggies and homemade vinegrette. I chose the yellowtail snapper and he chise the duck. Both of us were thrilled with our entrees! Super flavorful, fresh herbs, amazing. Desserts didn’t disappoint. I’d highly recommend the crème brûlée!

Food and atmosphere excellent. Good value for quality of food and dining experience. We had escargot, crab cakes which were fantastic and yellow tail snapper.
Definitely recommend.

A pleasant surprise. Great service, delicious good.
A little loud.
Wish they had soufflé on the menu
Excellent price fixed menu.
Happy Valentines Day!!!

I don’t understand these reviews. Six of us came here for my girlfriends birthday and it was a horrible experience. All of our food was overcooked, tasteless and gelatinous. The service was also terrible, and we felt like this was a chain restaurant.
The décor here reminds me of grandmas house in the 1970s, and overall they don’t even seem to maintain this place.
Keep in mind I have been ALL OVER France, and there was nothing even remotely close to genuine french cuisine, including the arrogant columbian waiter.
The waiter was very generous (sarcasm) and brought my girlfriend a piece of cheesecake for her birthday. but then had the balls to charge us $ 9.00 for it! When we left the waiter even had the audacity to chase us outside complaining about his tip, saying «the law was 20%». LMAO what a dump!

They definitely need to update the décor and maybe the plating, but the food as a whole was really good. I had the escargot, quite yummy. The french onion soup and mashed potatoes needed a lil salt, but that might be bc most of the patrons we saw their can’t afford the extra sodium. My husband and I aren’t big drinkers but they seemed to have a nice assortment of wine. We had the lamb and it was melt in your mouth good. Overall it was a good dining experience – I would return when I’m older though.

This is the real french cuisine, from appetizer to main meal. The service is friendly –will not rush you. –Small but nice selection of wines — Try the desserts —
A must reservation in season –enjoy

Terrible service. Class F! We came here for my grandparents’ 61^st wedding anniversary with 12 people and they separated the party at two tables. The hostess refused to rearrange the tables to accommodate us even though we had made the reservation days in advance. She was also very rude and had an attitude — she seemed genuinely offended that we even expected her to do her job and «help us.“The food is good but not worth the hassle of dealing with the piss poor staff. In addition, the manager refused to come out of his back office after we requested multiple times to speak with him. Never again.

We really enjoyed this restaurant for my daughter’s birthday. The place was small and in a strip mall but when you walked in you thought you were in France. All the waite staff were highly professional. The snapper was fresh and delicious. Everything was great especially the desserts.

Treated for lunch. Had French Onion Soup, Grouper Chardonnay and split a piece of citrus cheesecake.
The soup was average. The fish and cheesecake were both terrific.
In a strip center so you have a «view» of the parking lot.
Excellent service but there was only one other table occupied when we were there.
Chef came out to see if we liked everything.

N’est pas magnifique — extraordinaire!
I’ve eaten at many French restaurants in my life, lived in France, speak the language fluently, have a god-​daughter there and so on — I know France!
Been in this country for over 25 years and I’ve never been to such a wonderful and authentic restaurant as this. I was actually looking for somewhere that had fruits de mer and the other Unilocal reviews turned me on to this place.
We had lunch there one day — Lobster bisque & escargots for my partner and I had salmon niçoise. Sure niçoise is typically with tuna, but this was probably the best cooked salmon I’ve ever eaten — a little crispy on the outside and perfectly soft in the middle but yet cooked perfectly. The waiter (Carlos) was perfectly attentive and very helpful. So impressed, so we had to have dinner there.
So tonight we went for dinner. They have an á la carte menu, but it’s all pretty much paired into a four course $ 35 prix-​fixe menu with supplements for the more expensive items. Mon dieu what a great deal! My partner started with scallop on julienned vegetables and I had a goat cheese crêpe. I’ve never seen a bigger scallop and as well cooked and my crêpe was fantastic! (British readers — think Findus crispy pancake but no where near as pikey!)
Salad in between with brilliant dressing (which they sell by the way for a very reasonable $ 6) and my partner never eats tomatoes — she did tonight!
For our mains, I had dover sole ($ 12 supplement but it’s bloody $ 30 by itself so the rest of the dinner for me was almost «free») and she had sweetbreads. Once the sole was cooked, it was presented to me on a platter and I was then asked if I’d like deboned which I chose (sole can be such a pain to eat otherwise). I’ve never had this offered except in France or maybe England — wow! My partner’s sweetbread was crispy on the outside and soft in the middle with a great cream and mushroom sauce — again, something one typically only finds in France.
Dessert — oh my God! I chose Crème Brûlée — a perfect example with lovely biscuits (see the photo). My partner chose chocolate and hazelnut torte with banana ice-​cream — I’m not a big chocolate desert fan, but when I return, I’ll order this. The bottle of Sauternes we had with puddings really made them special.
To sum up — excellent staff, fantastic food, rather crappy location and décor but if you’re in Boca Raton and want to experience some of the best French food in America, seriously go here!

Been here several times for lunch. It’s not too busy for lunch, so if you are in a hurry you can get in and out within an hour. The food and service is always always superb. The last time I was there I tried the breast of chicken with taragon. My mouth thanks the chef! I wasn’t expecting the chicken with taragon to taste so good! It was flavorful, and the taragon was not overpowering. The meal came with mashed potatoes and creamed spinach.

What a great find!
My wife and I were looking for a nice, sit-​down restaurant with escargots and a great atmosphere. Le Rivage not only met these requirements, but everything we ate was quite delicious!
Our evening got off to a terrific start with the warm greeting, and the outstanding service continued throughout the entire meal.
We both had the duck with peppercorn sauce and the chocolate mousse… deee-​licious! The escargots was excellent, and the buttery sauce offered a great dip for the bread.
Next time we find ourselves in the Boca area, we’ll definitely be back.

C’est manifique!!!
Since romance has not typically been my sweetheart’s long suit, I asked him to take the time to plan a romantic evening for me. He came through with aces, when he took me to Le Rivage for an intimate, elegant diner.
From the moment we entered, the staff was attentive and friendly. Our waiter was helpful, but didn’t hover. When we decided to slip out of our jackets, two people magically appeared to help us drape them over the backs of our chairs. They clearly care about making each patron feel valuable and appreciated for chosing Le Rivage. THAT’S GOOD BUSINESS!
Now, let me get to the food. Ahhhhhhhhhhh, the food. The best escargot I’ve ever had… served with an extra basket of excellent bread for sopping up every drop of the sublime garlic herbed butter that the snails had rested under. Both the rack of lamb and the sole munieure were perfection. Even though the servings were generous and we were full early on, we ate every bite.
Then there was dessert. Crème brûlée with the carmelized top just thick enough and crisp enough (I have trouble getting it that way, even though I use a torch when I make it). Also, the crème itself was the perfect consistency. I’m a good baker, but not that good. I bow to the experts at this charming establishment.
The only suggestions I would make to the manager are to lower the lights just a little to enhance the mood of the room, and, if possible, improve the acoustics (It felt a bit noisy, when we arrived). Though I must admit, we stopped noticing the noise as we became involved in all that was sooooo right about Le Rivage. They have created a lovely spot that is sophisticated without being stuffy. Bravo!
Go…Enjoy!

The food is simply amazing. I tried the salmon, haddock and steak. Everything was cooked to perfection and the presentation was immaculate.