Aperitif Bistro Bayside

I like this place for brunch. They could definitely afford to have some more options, like waffles or regular pancakes, but the brunch food is pretty good. I also really like that you can do the optional bottomless mimosas for only like 15 extra. I had a group of 15 people here for my birthday and we spent only like 35 bucks each including tip so we def got our money’s worth… especially when u compare it to how expensive brunches in the city could be. Both times that I have been here for brunch, I got the French toast and I liked it better the first time than the second. The second time I found the French toast to be really greasy-​like it was cooked in entirely too much butter. My friend got some kind of egg/​chorizo flatbread and that was actually really good.
I have also came here for dinner twice because I had work parties here, and the food wasn’t bad. I get that it is a French place, but I wish the portions were bigger. On both occasions, I left wanting more. However, what I did get was good. The fried calamari was my favorite. The steak was also very good. I found their chicken Chardonnay to be very juicy, but bland.
If anything, I would probably only come back for brunch because I think it’s a good deal if you go bottomless brunch.

Came here with my hubby for our anniversary, the outside of the restaurant looks a bit old and tacky but once we went inside we were pleasantly surprise! Its very casual yet chic. Our waittress was extremely friendly and attentive as well! We got the brie on toast and the hazelnut crusted scallops as appetizer. The brie on toast got a perfect crunch and i loved the fig jam, the scallops was cooked perfectly with the right amount of seasoning. For entrée we ordered the steak and frites and the duck breasts w peppercorn sauce. While both dishes were seasoned perfectly, both the steak and the duck were unfortunately overcooked… But i love the duck confit au gratin that came with my duck breast.
Overall i like this place a lot, i might tell them not to overcook my meat next time though as it seems like a common complain, will def be back!

Came here for the second time to try their grasshopper cocktail– a sweet minty flavor with a hint of cocoa. It’s a great start whiling waiting for the appetizer. My beef Wellington was under-​seasoned but it was perfectly cooked like how I wanted: medium rare. Avocado shrimp salad with lime dressing was a great and refreshing appetizer. The shrimp croquette with coconut flakes coating was their special of the day, but I was not fond of it because I didn’t get enough of the coconut taste and the crunchy exterior. Their Nutella crème brûlée is amazing. And to top off the great service, this place is pretty good.

A restaurant in Bayside Queens where you can take your date to for a romantic night out.
Scallops, Escargot, Steak, Oysters, Zucchini Pancakes, Brie on Toast, Hazelnut Crusted Salmon.
Those are some of the items we ordered.
Scallops, one word. «unbelievable». I had to imagine what scallops tasted in an upscale restaurant, this would be it. The flavors were not overbearing, the purree that came with it, matched the slight crisps the scallops had just perfectly.
Escargot, did not have a heavy seafood aftertaste. Oysters were super fresh! Steak was cooked perfectly. Zucchini Pancakes, were no different from other places. Brie on toast had a delicious jam you smeared with the brie and it was also delicious. The Hazelnut Crusted Salmon was also delicious, the apple purree, was a bit too overdone for me. Instead of horseradish sauce, I asked for truffle since I do not like mustard.

This restaurant has great ambiance and romantic feeling! Nothing to complain about regarding the restaurant but nothing too exciting or extremely good.
Ordered appetizers and entrees. I had the steak frites and the steak was cooked very well to my liking. The herb butter had that finishing touch to the steak! My french onion soup was good but nothing special or extraordinary. My friend got the fresh fettuccine which had duck confit and he loved it! He said the noodles were made well and you can really taste the duck flavor in the sauce.
All the other appetizers were decent as well. I would recommend the escargot and the calamari!
The price is around $ 40 per person (did not order wine that day, however we had cake & cake cutting is $ 2/​person) when I went! So depending on the price you want to pay for your meal thats a consideration!

Seafood is a must. But their steak where eh. okay. We choose this place to celebrate our friends bday. Every single appetizer we got where great. Their calamari was great, definitely not like everyone else. Someone from our party generally don’t like calamari enjoyed theirs. Some dishes we order from their special where delicious. The duck risotto was soo good, Chilean sea bass over Zucchini pancake was cook just right, every bite of the sea bass melted in my mouth.
On the other hand their steak dishes were just blah. Our party order the steak frites which was okay, the truffle fries texture was just awesome for French fries lovers. The other dish … Beef Wellington was just awful. My brother asked for medium rare and it came out well done. Send it back and when we cut it, it looked perfect then he took a bite and literally had to spit it out. Because it was cold in the middle. The chef was just not on their game that day. We felt bad sending everything back. Our waiter was very attentive we loved him.
But that day the seafood was just so much better. I was happy I order the fish

Love this place! Now one of my new go to spots on Bell Blvd!
I like coming here because eating here reminds me of my trips to Europe.
The décor is just lovely just like a French bistro should look like. Honestly perfect place for a private event too which I think I might just have to plan in the future.
Their food is pretty good, I always default to the steak frites medium rare. so good!- I mean how can it not be good when cooked to perfection and topped with a generous portion of truffled butter?
As for appetizers:
— the risotto fritters are pretty good
— Calamari is good but not really memorable
— Steak tartar (I didn’t eat this but everyone else at the table enjoyed it)
As for wine I recommend Notre Dame, Lirac, Côtes du Rhôné, Grenache/​Syrah, Rhôné France– I’ve been defaulting to this red when I come, it’s just so delicious!
All in all… Apertif I’ll be back! perhaps this time to try your brunch! Au Revoir for now!

Great service, food was good. This is a really cute date place. Love the ambiance!
We got the scallops, escargot and grilled calamari as our apps. The scallops were seated nicely. I wasn’t very fond of the escargots, they could’ve skipped on topping it with a piece of bread. The grilled calamari was good, it also came with hummus and pita.
My husband got the steak and I thought it could’ve been seasoned a little better.
Skip on having dessert here. The French Workshop is right around the corner!

My friend who’s a regular here has been wanting me to try this place for quite some time. Needless to say, if I lived any closer I surely would be a saucy regular too! We came for happy hour on a Tuesday evening which happened to be a slow night, but still a steady stream of patrons coming and going. As soon as you enter, the bar is to the right and this is where we parked it for the evening. Lovely décor including my favorite, the paisley pass-​through decorative panels! Seems like a classy joint suitable for a romantic date, special occasion or just any ‘ol day.
Service:
Max, the bartender, was friendly, engaging and knowledgeable. Drinks were refreshed without having to ask. Food was brought out in a reasonable amount of time.
Alex, the manager, was welcoming, hospitable and pleasant.
Wine:
— «La Source» Château Vignelaure, Rosé, Grenache Blend, Provence, France
Red Berries, Tropical Fruit, Floral and Dry.
Suggested by Alex after I gave him the low down of what I like in my wine. Since it was beautiful, spring-​like day, I decided to make my seasonal transition from red to white. This was a Rosé and it was delectable. A definite go-​to if you’re ordering any kind of seafood. You can thank me later ;)
Appetizer:
— Pistachio nut crusted scallops with Apple Parsnip Purée, Spinach, Horseradish Beet
Emulsion.
This was everything and then-​some! Perfectly cooked, buttery morsels in every bite. Surprisingly, the apple parsnip purée paired well with the scallops.
Hors D’oeuvre:
— Hummus And Grilled Calamari with Pita Chips.
Not realizing at the time, I had ordered an hors d’œuvre…I was a bit dismayed at the portion size, especially the calamari. I dig grilled/​sauteed calamari any day of the week and this dish clearly left me wanting more! They should consider switching this to an appetizer portion instead.
Undoubtedly, I shall come back and indulge in more of their menu. They got me… hook, line, and sinker!

Excellent all around! A great casual dining experience and authentically French. Or at least as true as it can be in Bayside, Queens.
Our bartender was well mannered, professional and knew his menus. The staff overall was was very pleasant.
The escargot was very good though just a little less than traditional. Heavy on the parsley but in the end really some of the best I’ve had in New York. As for the quality of the snails themselves, wow, so tender and flavorful. I can’t say if this has to do with the type, the age or the preparation but these folks are getting it right regardless.
Now, the steak tartar! Wow! Maybe the best tartar in the 5 boroughs. Not ground but so finely tenderized and minced that it’s hard to tell the difference. The difference however is there. Just a little bit more body than a ground tartar. The accoutrements do not overpower the flavor and delicacy of the meat. Simply excellent!
Great décor. Reasonable prices. Just far enough off of Bell Blvd to clear the loud Friday and Saturday night crowd but still a visible location.
Oh right, they make a proper Bloody Mary too.
Will return, probably many times. Thumbs up!

This place is really fantastic! I came here with my family over Valentine’s Day weekend.
Grilled Octopus? Yes!
Fish Cakes! Yes!
I ordered the Hazelnut Crusted Salmon, and that was so delicious. The salmon was not overcooked, the light crust and apple purée gave it a nice crunch & tartness.
My sister ordered the Butternut squash gnocchi, it was so good but of course, super stuffy. She had to wrap up the leftovers. I’m sure it tasted even better the day after.
Honestly, I can’t even remember what my parents ordered. I was too busy munch away at my salmon… So much that I even forgot to take photos of my food for this review!
Service was great as well, always a bonus.
If you’re wondering about coming to this restaurant, think no more and just come. Plus The French Workshop bakery is basically next door… Dinner and dessert? Yum!
**Overall, I will come back again!

Despite being a bayside resident for a long time, I have never known of Apéritif Bistro’s existence until recently. I decided to come here on Valentines day with a few other people for a boozy singles thing. I’ve always liked French restaurants and this place was definitely no exception.
14 $ for unlimited brunch drinks with something else on the menu is one of the better brunch deals that I’ve seen. I don’t quite remember how many Bloody Marys & Mimosas I had that day but I do remember reacting like a vampire to the bright daylight when I left.
My friends and I ordered the Mussels Marinire to start. White Wine and Mussels classic french fare and although delicious, it seemed a bit lacking. I think there should have been a bit more mussels for the price. Also Apéritif should serve this with bread so you can sop up all the seafoody wine sauce that my slightly tipsy brain needed to do.
I ordered the Eggs Bourguignon, which was basically eggs benedict with beef bourguignon. The beef was perfectly tender and the sauce flavorful. The eggs however were extremely overdone. It seemed to be poached solid instead of poached runny.
Despite the mishaps with the eggs and minimal amount of mussels, the service was exemplary. The server tended to our tipsy group with any demands we needed even giving us an extra side of béarnaise and drinks up until when we paid. The décor was amazing and definitely reminded me of my days in Paris.
Overall, I have to find the time to come back to this place, as this review was based on Valentines Day brunch, a time notorious for couples and awkward morning after breakfasts. I’m sure this place will easily earn 4 – 5 stars when it doesn’t have to deal with insane crowds.

I took my brother’s gf here tonight to celebrate her birthday as she wanted to try Apéritif so I popped both our cherries hehe! The guy was going to seat us at a 4 seater by the window but mama like the corner emptied booth so I redirected him there. Our server Nicholas came over to our table with menus and dinner specials. I suggested to the birthday girl that we should order a few dishes instead individual entrees that way we can try a little of everything… yea I know smart thinking! I informed our server about my nut allergy and he took really care of me, which was a big A plus =)
Hors D’Oeuvres: Zucchini Pancakes
Appetizers: Escargots and Risotto du Jour
First we started off with the Risotto du Jour, oh my goodness what a heavenly delicious dish! Plenty of mussels but wish I tasted the clam meat because I just had the shell hehe. The Zucchini Pancakes was topped with that delicious Dill Yogurt Sauce. Wooo hooo I love the fresh pesto that the escargots were covered in topped with a crostini. Good thing we share all the dishes as they were super fulfilling.
Before every dishes were served to our table, the staff would change a clean plate with new utensils which is a good idea so you can savor the dishes as individually flavor profiles.
I would definitely come back because the service that Nicholas provided us was superbly excellent that’s what I am talking about =P

I feel a bit mixed about this place. My friends and I went during a lunch this past Monday, Presidents’ Day and tried many different items. For starters we shared the zucchini pancakes, lobster and shrimp tower, and octopus. I personally enjoyed all three appetizers. Each one was fresh and seasoned well.
Also of note — our waitress was super nice and accommodating any/​all of our requests. One of my friends was craving a Bloody Mary and they searched all over for tomatoes to create her drink, this was very kind of them.
Their décor is cute as it’s probably one of the nicer restaurants on Bell Boulevard. Casual yet classy.
For our entrees we ordered the lobster roll, filet mignon and BLT sandwich. Fries came on the side and we ordered a veggie side as well (fresh steamed broccoli). I was underwhelmed with the lobster roll as I’ve had much better, my friend loved the BLT sandwich and claimed the filet mignon sliders were very good as well.
All in all this was a 4 star place however as I walked out I noticed they had a «B» as their grade level. This seriously skived me out but the damage was done. Would go back if their grade level goes up but wouldn’t order the lobster roll again.

I came here for President’s Day because the original place I selected was not open. I am kind of glad we came here (but that was until I saw they had a B grade from the health dept, whomp whomp) The décor inside is very nice and better then I ever expected. We arrived around 1PM on Monday and there was about 5 tables filled. We were quickly seated and presented with their menu and drink specials. Their lunch menu was very concise with the usual app’s, salad’s, sandwiches, entrees and sides. Nothing seemed very expensive nor cheap.
We all ordered a round of drinks. I had a glass of their tempranillo $ 11 (very tasty) and my friend ordered a bloody mary. The waitress said that they didn’t have any because they only serve that drink during brunch on the weekends. She was nice enough to say that she would check and if they didn’t have, she would make it fresh for her. They didn’t have any left so she blended fresh tomatoes and made her own «tomato juice,» which my friend said was the best Mary she’s ever tasted. So it might be worth a try if bloody Mary’s are your thing.
For lunch we ordered the following: grilled octopus, zucchini pancakes and shrimp and avocado salad tower. All of the apps were tasty as hell. The salad was probably my favorite. For our entrees we ordered the lobster roll, BLT with avocado and filet mignon sliders (3oz per patty, 2 patties per order). The lobster roll was a pretty large serving compared to other rolls I’ve tasted. There was a lot of meat but still something wasn’t hitting the spot, I can’t seem to put my finger on it. It might be the roll they used, seemed a little limp and too soft for my liking. The BLT was delicious! I would definitely recommend this sandwich for those who like the traditional BLT’s because the inclusion of avocado is a real game changer. Lastly, the sliders were also very good. We ordered them medium. All of the entrees came with salad and fries.
Overall, this place is very nice and tasty for Bayside since Bayside seriously lacks good food. However, its very unfortunate that they have a B grade. I wont be coming back until they receive an A.

My boyfriend and I went here for Valentine’s Day brunch around 1pm and we were pretty excited to try it out! Honestly, I wanted to give Apéritif Bayside 4 stars, but there were a few things that could have been improved that forced me to stay at the 3-​star mark.
First, I loved the décor and vibe of the place. There’s a nice mix of French vintage and an industrial feel (exposed, high ceilings are always a plus in my book!) that really just added to the whole experience.
Second, let’s talk about the food. B got the Sirloin Burger with Brie cheese, I got the Eggs Bourguignon, and we shared the Red Velvet Pancakes. Our individual dishes were pretty good and well-​portioned. The burger was thick and juicy, my eggs were poached perfectly, and my beef was tender and flavorful. The only downside was the red velvet pancakes. While they tasted as expected, they were more like cake than a pancake. Batter was too thick, a little dry, in my opinion, and overpriced. The one other thing was the coffee. It wasn’t bad, but I think they should consider not using the general coffee pots you see in delis and diners because it really takes away from the overall experience. Maybe even consider a French press option? Just a thought!
Third and last, we need to talk about the service. The hostess was great. Friendly and greeted us as soon as we came in. With our reservation, we were seated right away without any wait. We were served our water as soon as we were seated, but then we waited. And waited. Then waited a little more until finally, our waiter came over to take our order. After we put our drink & food orders in, we were served some warm bread and butter while we waited for our food. The food wait wasn’t so bad — the usual amount of time expected. After the runner served us our food, we began to eat. Meanwhile, we never saw our waiter until after we were finished eating and desperately needed more coffee. I understood that they seemed understaffed and it was a holiday, but just a simple, «how did everything come out?» would have made us feel better. Oh, well!
All in all, we had a nice meal and got to try out a new place. I think we’d return maybe for dinner to try some more dishes and get a better feel for the place.

I loved the atmosphere of this place. But I came here for brunch one Sunday with two other friends we were sat at the bar which was fine however the bartender was very inattentive. The brunch deal is 2 hours of free mimosas, bellinis or Bloody Mary’s with the purchase of an entrée. We had to constantly keep asking for refills and were often not given them — making the deal irrelevant.
On to the food — I had asked the bartender what items he would recommend to which he had no answer. I ordered the red velvet pancakes. Only to be extremely disappointed. These had no flavor, & were slightly burnt. The consistency was like burnt cupcake tops. Also the handmade vanilla whipped cream was just ready whip.
Lastly the bartender kept running out of purées to make the bellinis with. I had a regular peach bellini, a pear bellini and lastly an apple bellini.
I probably will not be returning for brunch

Definitely was very pleased with Apertif.
I don’t want to say anything was overly mindblowing, but it was good, very good.
I will say the service/​wait staff definitely gets a ⁶⁄₅ stars (yes, seriously that good — almost too good). My water was never more than 2 sips empty. lol. And it was pretty busy.
The filet mignon risotto was incredibly savory w/​red wine sauce. It was a special, not sure how often they make it but it really was very good. The steak could have used some more charring in opinion but was good.
My lady had the butternut squash gnocchi which was good, but definitely lacked sauce. It came with a white wine pesto, we should have asked for more, might do so next time.
Both very savory dishes.
The fried calamari was excellent. Perfect texture and crispiness.
As with most «French» or French inspired restaurants it was a bit too pricey IMO. Not a place that you could visit frequently, but once in a while for a nice meal, definitely worth it.

I’ve dined at Apéritif twice, both within a week of each other — just to make sure my first experience did not unfairly define my review. Romantic atmosphere, dimly lit. I enjoyed their soft, jazzy background music so I even saved their playlist on Spotify. They have a knowledgeable sommelier on staff, too, who brought out my red wine flight.
While the dishes are aesthetically pleasing, they fall short in several ways. First of all, portion sizes are ludicrously small. $ 15 for two tiny pieces of lamb that weren’t even cooked medium rare like we ordered? Stop playing games with me. And while the grilled octopus was good, you can easily find better elsewhere on the Bell Blvd strip — namely, Fino and Avli.
The second time, we sat at the bar. My friend, who had visited several times before, recommended the tuna tartare, grilled calamari & hummus, and tuna pizza. Although all were tasty, the flavors were not memorable in the least. In fact, it put me off completely from ever thinking about coming back again.

Brunch itself was delicious ⁴⁄₅. Everything on point.
I must say however our service was well below par. We arrived at 1:30pm, and our orders were taken. Food did not come out until about one hour later at 2:30pm. Due to the wait, we had to feed the meter twice.
It wasn’t particularly crowded, and about 3 – 4 tables got their orders ahead of us. After an hour, we had to approach one of the waiters and when we asked about our order, there wasn’t too much explanation except for the waitress that apologized and said things were backed up.
Service aside, everything was good. But an hour wait for food and no explanation? Come on man… I will give the benefit of the doubt and say that this is not a common experience.