Bistro St. Tropez

Duck was amazing! Cooked medium, perfect temperature with just enough fat on it for juicy taste. The lentils and sauce were incredible as well. Great pairing my boyfriend got the lamb which was just as amazing! Service is top of the line as well

Full disclaimer: This is the very first time I’ve felt the compulsion to write a review regarding a restaurant experience. I came here with my girlfriend the day before Valentine’s Day on a trip to Philadelphia from New York City, with a reservation.
Cutting to the chase, the cost of this dining experience was extremely inflated. We payed Michelin star prices for a meal experience reminiscent of a $ 40 dollar NYC midtown theatre pre-​fixe, which is a generous comparison.
1. After ordering our food, the waiter never once checked on its preparation or how we were enjoying it. We poured our own wine for the duration of the meal. Again, no big deal, but at $ 120 per person, I like to expect some degree of attentive service. This felt more like a service at a cheap all-​inclusive resort.
2. We waited 45 minutes for our entrée, which was mediocre at best. The restaurant is extremely understaffed and it shows painfully. Interestingly enough, we received two desserts consecutively, only to have the second taken from our table when they realized they had over-​served. (The exorbitant price — $ 68 per person — only gets you and your partner a shared mousse and grape-​sized portion of sorbet.) There is no organization here — no sense of professionalism from the staff.
3. Returning to the crux of my complaint, the value of this meal is simply non-​existent. This is faux-​fine dining. For a shot glass of soup, two minuscule courses, and a shared dessert, you will pay an arm and a leg. If you are willing to look past the racket they are running at Bistro St. Tropez, then you will enjoy your time here. Coming from Manhattan, I am used to paying a premium on dining, especially during holidays. At the risk of sounding like a snob, I’ve spent three-​times what I’ve spent per person on this meal and felt satisfied. Here, I felt robbed.
4. The environment does not make up for the value. The restaurant is located in what is essentially the fourth floor abandoned construction site The dining quarters are cramped and the décor is outdated and uninspired. Only a neon sign on the other side of the restaurant provided any semblance of ambience. Expect to be packed into tables like sardines.
Ultimately, we left feeling dissatisfied, hungry, and taken advantage of. After a post meal discussion, we learned other diners felt similarly, confessing to us that they were heading to grab take-​out Chinese food after their meal. Not the best way to spend a holiday weekend, nor to blow hard-​earned money. Please do yourself and your date a favor and do your due diligence: avoid this so-​called «bistro» and visit a quality dining establishment that values your time and money.

When you walk in its a little bit shady because it’s located in a building that’s getting renovated — don’t let that fool you!!! This place is awesome. From the moment we walked in everyone was so nice. The hostess even asked us where we wanted to sit. Our waiter was exceptional and extremely helpful. The food here blew me away though, wonderful flavors. We had oysters to start then the lamb and duck dish. Both, amazing ! It’s a shame though because their lease is up in 2 weeks and they may move to Manuyunk. Definitely check it out before they move !! Also– Chef Patrice came out and talked to all of the tables very good vibes here.

Overall, I’d have to say that this was a good eating experience, but seems a bit past it’s prime. I went here for restaurant week, and other than it’s strange location, it got off to a good start and we were seated right away. The décor might have been cool years ago, but the metal and neon lights were not relevant at all to the food or the setting. We asked the waitress for her suggestions, but she just said everything was good, even when asked to compare specific dishes (I like when the staff has had the food, and can give an opinion). The couple cocktails I tried were good.
Meal started off with the mushroom soup and the escargot, both were really good and I liked that the escargot was served with mushrooms, it was a nice pairing. I would recommend either dish depending on tastes. The bread and oil that was served with this course was very good, we got a second helping.
The main course was where the meal started to lose me a bit. We had the duck and the scallops. The duck was a bit on the dry side for me and the fat was not rendered enough, the lentils that it was served with were good, but not notable. The scallops, while few, were good, but could have been seared a bit more, the farro ragout was not my favorite.
Had to wait a long time for the dessert, seems like a bunch of the chefs friends had arrived to stand at the awkward bar and he was out with them for 20 or 30 minutes. The crème brûlée was tasty, but easily the thinnest (height wise) one that I have ever had, the custard layer was just a bit thicker than the sugar layer… disappointing. The St. Tropex Cake was okay, but certainly not a cake, definitely a mousse.
Good enough meal, but I wouldn’t choose to return.

Had dinner here during restaurant week for the first time. Pros — food was very good, they had decent vegetarian options, lots of options for restaurant week, and the waiter was knowledgable and attentive. Great views and it would be a fantastic place to watch the sunset. Con — the restaurant is very hard to find and Google maps app was not at all helpful. The entrance is on market street and the building is a warehouse that is under construction. The restaurant is up on the 4^th floor.
It’s a good French restaurant but not a new favorite.

My bf and I decided to try Bistro St. Tropez during restaurant week. We arrived at the building where an attendant sat and directed us how to get to the restaurant, and along with signs was very helpful! We were about 15 minutes early for our reservation but they sat us anyway, although it was not at our designated table since they still had people using it. But they still served us our drinks as we waited.
Once we sat down at our table, we noticed the windows next to us were pretty fogged up and blurred our view of the river and 30^th St Station, the windows in the main room though were perfectly clear. The food was great! Tasted like authentic French cuisine which I was happy with. Our waiter was also very attentive and had great recommendations for what to order.
I think if it had not been restaurant week we probably would have avoided this place since it is fairly expensive, but the food and wine/​beer list were worth it!

This place was very underwhelming. The décor is tacky, windows were all fogged up so no view here. It was also incredibly cold and drafty. It’s been a while since I dined here so while I don’t remember what I ordered, I do remember I wasn’t impressed. I felt everything was very safe, and I expected more from a French restaurant. Don’t get me wrong, the food was good enough but there’s better French food in Philly in a much better setting.

Good luck finding this place! You really need to know where you’re going or you’ll think you’re just walking into a construction site. Once you get to the 4^th floor though you’ll have a spectacular view of the river and 30^th street.
Food wise, I was there for a party so we just had cheese and appetizers, but overall they were solid. Good craft beer list too.
Worth checking out! (Although I hear they are closing in February?)

We came in for restaurant week two weeks ago. The food was rather disappointing. We had lamb shank and steak frites as entrees. I am not a big fan of lamb shank. Therefore, my review might be bias so I wont comment anything on the lamb. But the steak frites were plain. The steak was well cooked as i liked it to be medium rare. Too bad the steak had little to no taste.
However, the service was great. Our waiter was polite and nice. He got my order of steak frites mistaken at first with chicken. When the chicken breast came out, he immediately reordered the steak again.

I came here with a few friends during restaurant week. I had heard great things and expected something fantastic, but was a little disappointed. Some dishes were great — but the majority were just okay. Not was I was expecting. The Poulet was the best dish of the night! Amazing! The Crème Brule was also good, but I would hope so for a traditional restaurant! Everything else was decent, but definitely didn’t live up to the hype.

Review based on dining during restaurant week.
Very unique place. An okay location. I only find it beautiful when the sun was setting behind the buildings.
Now for the food.
Appetizers: salmon — I didn’t hate it, but didn’t like it. There was some kind of sweet bread? or something I can’t really put a finger on, but I did not think that it went well together, tasted like something I’d have to brunch. The salmon was bland and caviar never do much for me. It was definitely missing a bit of lemon
wild boar sausage — flavor was good, however, it tasted very similar to a regular Italian style sausage.
Entrée: lamb — my boyfriend had this dish and I only tasted a small bite from it. It was cooked very well, fell right off the bone, however, again, I did not think the items on the dish went well together. There was some sort of mashed potatoes? and also I think it was beans?, anyway I thought that the dish was very very heavy and needed a light salad on top or something. My boyfriend didn’t finish his lamb nor anything else on that dish. Lamb was lacking a lot of flavor.
monk fish bouillabaisse — I did not like my dish and wish I went with the scallops. This dish had monk fish, which was cooked to perfection, clams, and mussels. Some of the clams were a bit gritty from not being cleaned well and I simply wasn’t crazy about the broth in this dish at all. I’ve had a similar dish at a different restaurant and was hoping it’d be similar. It wasn’t disgusting, but I didn’t like it. I finished most of it because I was starving!
Dessert: crème brûlée — we both had crème brûlée. Not the best we’ve had, but it was still good.
Drinks: they have an awesome selection of drinks to choose from, even very fancy wine which I of course couldn’t afford at $ 500/​bottle (lol). Maybe if my boyfriend and I were celebrating a proposal or something (jk lol).
Service: service was great the moment we walked in. I believe our server name was Matthew (the bar manager). He was great with assisting us with the menu and answered every question we had.
Overall: great experience. Not extremely disappointed that I tried it. My boyfriend and I definitely enjoyed ourselves and the service.

I love it here. It’s my hidden spot for sips and for happy hour, but I like it so much I wish they were less hidden for their sake. Beautiful views of Philly, great sips deals in a relaxed atmosphere and amazing food.
I love their bread and pesto dip, escargot in creamy brandy sauce with mushrooms, and seared scallops! I’ve been here for dinner with friends and with my mom for mothers day and both have been awesome. I really love this restaurant and am interested to see what happens how that the market design center has sold. Come try it, it’s a great hidden gem!

This is kind of an odd venue, but they did host a pretty good party for my grad school class. The ambiance here is strange. We were in the event space area which has an industrial/​warehouse type feel with only one window which requires you to walk down a ramp. The view from said window is nice, as it overlooks the Schuylkill River and you can see the art museum on a clear day, but their event space should have more windows like the actual restaurant does. The venue is also surrounded by a furniture store. So during the party, you can window shop for $ 3000 couches, lol. At least the space was large and could accommodate the 250+ people in our class plus guests without feeling too cramped. And they also had a good DJ and an area for dancing in the middle of the room (not a real dance floor, but good enough).
The food they served was good. The highlights were the hummus, cheese plates, and grilled veggies. There were some meat options which my friends liked, but I don’t eat meat so I didn’t taste them. They also had an open bar for us. I’m not sure if our school or the venue chose the beer and wine, but they had a couple good beers on draft and a decent red wine.

Steak was perfect and the sweet potato, pear and onion purée was delicious. That basil pesto is awesome on those petite warm rolls. Perfect size plates. I hate the food overkill restaurants do. The dishes were perfectly seasoned so no need for salt and pepper on any table. I was pleasantly full. Not stuffed. Pleasantly full.

Went here on a Saturday night with a close friend. We both had the $ 35 3-​course menu (my choices were the Salmon Tartar as appetizer, Salmon as entrée, and Chocolate Cake as dessert), plus $ 18 wine pairing.
Food was great (the salmon entrée was in a generous portion), the ambiance is great, the view of the river is beautiful at night, and the price was decent. Note that the food itself is prob 4 stars out of 5, but when you put everything together it was a great dining experience.
** Note: the restaurant may be difficult to find. It’s on the 4^th floor of the Market Design Center. You need to go DEEP inside the design center, then find the elevator that takes you up to the restaurant. When we went for dinner, the design center was empty so it can be scary at first.

I went to Bistro St. Tropez for Valentine’s Day, 2015. The location is on the river, however unfortunately the room we were in where the bar is) had windows that were fogged over, so that diminished the ambiance a bit. Our server was very attentive and had a great personality. As many restaurants do for Valentine’s day, Mother’s Day, and the like, the menu was a «special» pre-​fixe at $ 68. This included an amuse of a lobster tart, a starter (I had the foie gras), a main (I had the rack of lamb), and a shared dessert. My date had a salad as her starter and scallops as her main.
To say that the $ 68 price tag for the «special» menu was overpriced is an understatement. The amuse was amuse-​sized; my foie gras was just as small as the amuse, and two average bites at best. The entrée was a nicely prepared rack of frenched lamb chops, «lollipop» sized, and the dessert was probably 1.25 the size of a dessert for one person. I also added an extra course of oysters; 6 for $ 14, which was actually a reasonable price for six very nice pieces. Everything we had was good, but certainly not outstanding, but it’s the ridiculous pricing that really upset me. The «special» menu was (as accurately as I can tell) just about 100% more expensive than the usual three-​course menu. I can understand a premium for a «special» day, but I think the restaurant really took advantage of its diners on this particular day.
Overall, the value for the price was substantially below my expectations, and while I had a nice time with my date, I left with a very bad opinion of the restaurant. I really don’t know if I’d return for this reason alone.

We came for Valentine’s Day dinner. The place was very scenic. We ordered the calamars and saumon as appetizers. They were both tasty.
For our main course we had the hanger steak and the fillet mignon. Both steaks were very tasty and juicy.
I enjoyed the experience and I would return.

I’ve been to Bistro St. Tropez a few times before, but this time it was restaurant week here in Philly for my friends birthday. Every time the experience is pretty great. The restaurant is situated in a building for interior design, so the location can be difficult to find if you’re a first timer. Tucked away on the corner of the top floor of the building, it is a large, but at the same time intimate setting. Views from the large windows of the west side of the city and the Schuylkill are great.
We sat on a booth seat, which sat rather low and was a little bit awkward, but otherwise the ambience was good. We had the mushroom soup as first course, saumon and pâté for second course, scallops, lamb shank, duck breast, and hanger steak for main course, and crème brûlée, chocolate mousse cake, Apple tart, and ice cream puffs for dessert. Highly recommend the lamb shank and the saumon! The Rosemary jus and potato purée were the best part of the lamb shank.
Service was good, the place was rather busy but most likely due to it being restaurant week. Definitely still quiet enough for a good conversation. Would recommend for a nice dinner date or celebration!

Me and my gf came here for restaurant week, 4 course meal for $ 35 per person. They had a lot of creative dishes on the restaurant week menu, which was the reason why we picked st tropez over other restaurants.
Their setup is kinda weird. It’s on the 4^th floor of a mall, and the restaurant it’s kinda of hiding behind a wide open 4^th floor and was a little confusing where the entrance was.
Their drinks were good, they were accommodating too. My gf wanted an appletini and even tho they aren’t on the menu they were able to make it.
Food overall was great. The wild mushroom soup shooter was creative and tasted good. Escartgots and pâté for the second course were both amazing, fresh and very tasty. For the main course we went with lamb shank and duck breast. Honestly might be the best duck I’ve had. Lamb was very well seasoned and cooked to perfection. Dessert was ok but wasn’t as awesome as their other food.
Service was good, it’s kinda expected for a restaurant in this price range. It was very good tho to have the chef come out and greet each table and ask if everything was good. He also had a thick French accent so you know this is authentic.
Overall I’d suggest this restaurant to anyone hungry for some good French food. It is a little pricy but it’s worth a try.

I cannot emphasize enough how amazing our Thanksgiving dinner was at Bistro St. Tropez this year. My previous experiences here had been good, but this last visit really blew my average rating for the restaurant way above 5 stars.
From the moment I called in to make our reservation to the point when I crawled out of the restaurant (I was so full by the end of the meal), the service was impeccable from everybody. Extra props to the service and kitchen staffs for their hard work on the holiday.
Food-​wise, we had the opportunity to enjoy a full thanksgiving fare while also having access to a buffet of delicious French delicacies — ranging from a silky mushroom soup to delectable cheeses to some of the best selections of charcuterie and olives I’ve had in town. The amazing glass of rosé that accompanied my meal certainly did not hurt.
Despite being a big dessert fan, I got so excited about the food that I barely left any room for dessert. However, as a result, I was actually relieved, rather than dismayed, that the dessert buffet was miniature rather than full-​sized. All in all, it was a great dining experience from beginning to end.