Canaille Wine Bar

I really, really wanted to like this place as my daughter raved about having dinner there. My girlfriend and I went for Sunday brunch and were looking forward to what was suppose to be a great meal. Terribly disappointing. While waiting for our food it seemed the man and woman serving tables (and perhaps owners) seem to be grumbling amongst each other. We ordered the croque and also the hanger steak and eggs. The croque’s bread and ham were so hard you couldn’t cut it with a knife. My hanger steak (which I question was even that cut of meat) was small stew size pieces instead of a steak. It was tough. When we told the woman she said she thought the «steak» was fine but would comp the meal and suggested we eat at Miriams across the street. I really have to thank her because we had a great meal and friendly service there!

Canaille is very French. The food is consistent and strong, as well as very fairly priced. The space is small and can get crowded but it pays to become a regular which will ensure the best service.

What a great place.
My first experience there tonight but perfectly prepared French bistro food.
When we got there the bistro was 90% full and we had to wait about 5 – 10 minutes for our menu and water. Not a problem though as we saw how busy the owner, Phillipe was.
Once we got the menu we ordered a bottle of wine and the $ 25pp prix fixe (only available tuesday through thursday) Which consists of one app, entrée, and dessert per person. MY fiancé ordered the french onion soup, poulet roti (some of the best chicken I ever had) and I ordered french onion soup with steak frites ($ 3 extra)
They also started us off with an amuse bouche of some kind of cooked salmon that was pretty good.
The meal was very good and though the service was kind of spotty, Phillipe was the only person here tonight, it had its charm as you can tell he really cares about his customers.
Overall a great meal and Phillipe even poured us a free extra glass of wine too once we were done with our bottle.

Five stars, not necessarily because the food is «as good as it gets» but because the food is «as unique as it gets».
Many people seem to complain about the service, but we thought the service was fantastic. There was a mix-​up and my order never made it to the chef, so I ate a little late (we were having brunch, so it was really only like … 5 minutes). Marie didn’t charge us for my meal (we didn’t ask — she simply said «no charge»). Marie was warm, inviting, funny, friendly … everything the perfect host should be.
The owners help give it a warm and friendly feel. Décor is lovely. For date spots, I prefer tables to be spaced a bit further apart, but if you don’t mind not having absolute privacy during a date, this is a perfect date spot for you.
Oh, also, my mom’s poached eggs were overdone. She mentioned it to Marie, and without missing a beat, Marie took the plate, apologized, and brought a new plate of poached eggs a few minutes later.
The food was fantastic. Very unique cooking. The sausage was *home made* sausage. They make the sausage right there. Wow! Corned beef hash was also home made. Very unique. It wasn’t my favorite hash ever, but I appreciated its uniqueness. Bacon was fatty and juicy (if you like crispy burned bacon, you’ll hate this bacon; I prefer fatty, soft bacon like this). My Eggs Benedict were perfection. The Hollandaise sauce, again, was not my favorite, but I really appreciated the home made uniqueness of it.
So here’s how I’ll sum up this review. The chef is a true chef. He/​She cooks things in a very unique, very individual way. The food here is unlike the food you’ve had elsewhere, even standby favorites. And while not everything was completely to my liking, I respect and admire the way the dishes were prepared. They have a true chef, not someone following a recipe.
Oh, and the coffee was delicious. An absolutely rarity in NYC restaurants for some reason.

When we first arrived, the French male owner told us not to come to the table until he called us because he sat people, of course the female owner told us It was our table so it came off terribly. That being said, he came over to apologize immediately and we were ready for a great meal.
The two owners waited on tables, in a small dining room. They weren’t perfect, but their imperfections added to the charm, because you know that they care, and aren’t going anywhere. They were attentive, and helpful.
The food was fantastic, I had the steak which was cooked to perfection, my lady had the mussels which were some of the best I have had. The fries were tender and delicious perfect with mayo or anything. The cheeseburger got rave reviews from a friend as well.
I liked that the menu was not too big. Only good stuff allowed.

Small, charming and quirky, Canaille offers great French fare at reasonable (slightly high) prices. The Poulet Roti is excellent, and gets ordered by me more than any other dish. The Grilled Salmon and Moules Frites are as good as any I’ve ever had. One night they offered a special fish soup, which was so good I had to personally congratulate the chef.
Quirky it is. Philippe dances around the restaurant, occasionally singing and always playing odd music, sometimes too loud. But he and his wife Marie are friendly and work hard to make a great dining experience.
I like this place.

Since writing this review, I’ve been to Canaille twice… but both times they were closed. Once was on a Saturday, when they’re not open for brunch, fair enough. But the second time was today (Sunday) at 12:45, when they should have been open. When we arrived there was a sign in the window that said «Closed for Brunch.» Their posted hours for brunch are 11 – 3.
This doesn’t make the restaurant worse, but it’s important to know when a place has somewhat unreliable hours.

So lovely! We went on a Tuesday evening at about 7 and there was no wait. Totally charming, cozy, with vaguely techno-​y Eurotrash music playing not too loud (so you can still talk easily). Our waiter (my guess is Phillipe, the owner?) was delightful and fun. This place has real character. And the Minervois is maybe my new favorite wine. Oh and the fries were perfection. The seafood crêpe appetizer was totally enough food for a meal.
As mentioned below, there may not be a «young, hip crowd,» (I mean, we were there…), but I’ve always taken that as a sign of genuineness and quality.

I have a big fan of this very French park slope classic since they opened years ago. The food never disappoints, and Phillipe and Marie always make me feel welcome, whether I’m alone or with friends. In fact two of my friends insist on coming in from Manhattan to dine there with me when they are in town.
Some of my favorite dishes: pork belly & lentils, roast chicken, corned beef hash (brunch), and I love the charcuterie plate!
It’s small and intimate, and well worth the wait for a table.

went there last night. I concur with all the reviewers that the owner/​skinny French guy «Philippe» with the gray hair is an absolute rude jerk. For that reason all should boycott this place. He was super friendly with the table of gay patrons and other tables of older women who he seemed to know, but treated us very brusquely. How do you expect to woo new customers when you treat them like that? At one point when we finished our meal, he came over and said «Are you going to talk more?» which was his rude way of asking if we wanted to order dessert (mind you, no one was waiting for a table and there were 2 other tables free). Then when he put the check down on our table, he said pointed to it and said in a loud voice «this is for you» and then slammed his index finger into the creditcard receipt and said «and this is for me.»
As for the food, my friend enjoyed the salmon with baked beans. i ordered the steak frites which was very tasty except for the fries which were too greasy and thus soggy. and for $ 18, the fries shouldn’t be soggy. All patrons in the place looked to be older Park Slope residents, in our 2 hours there we didn’t see any young hip diners. The menu is also very limited. There are so many other wonderful dining options in NY — u shouldn’t have to put up with rudeness and soggy fries at that price, give this place a miss.

Finally got around to trying this place. The owner is super cute and typically French which being Lebanese, he had us at hello.
He seated us at the bar while we waited for a table and he got us our choice of wine in a very cute ice bag. The place is small with few tables, but it is surprisingly cozy (IE. not at all cramped) and the atmosphere is super friendly. People kept popping in to just say hi and happy new year. It gave us all that warm fuzzy yay we live in a village kind of feeling.
Moving on to the food. Once we were seated we ordered the butternut squash soup, the tuna tartare, and the portobello mushroom salad to start. The soup was delicious with no cream to mask the taste of my favorite vegetable in the world (tied with Brussels sprouts). The tuna tartare was the star however, being fresh and perfectly diced with fennel and citrus. The salad was good, but a little bit overdressed with olive oil. The baguette was crispy and fresh as well. We then had mussels for mains, and George had the salmon. Nelly’s mussels mariniere were better than my provencale, but they were both filled with succulent, huge mussels, perfectly poached and decadently satisfying. George’s salmon was perfectly seasoned and quite yummy. The star of the mains however were the hand cut french fries. Seriously amazing. The homemade mayo accompanying them was wiped clean and the way they wrap the fries in a newspaper makes it super cute. The music in the place was amazing, and he played Doc Gyneco and Lauryn Hill… need I say more? We skipped dessert this time, but overall a neighborhood gem, reasonably priced and definitely in for a repeat.

Wow — I totally disagree with pretty much every review on here.
The owner is rude. Just plain rude. If you think this is somehow excuseable because he’s French, well, guess what — its not. Rude is rude. He shouldn’t be in a service-​related industry. Neither should the server who seems to share ‘the brain’ with the cook in the back.
My husband and I went here for dinner and found the service poor and the menu boring. There are only about 12 seats in the place, and half were empty, so I have no way to explain why the service suffered so much. Nothing should come out cold when the service area is about 5 feet from where the customers are seated.
About a week after eating there, there was a sign in the window looking for a «Part-​Time Dishwasher/​Light Cooking». I think that says it all.

Food was quite good – mussels in a coco-​curry sauce and frites w/​homemade mayo – and ‘double’ lamb chop for my date which was more like ‘half’ a lamb chop.
Philippe was a parody of a French bistro proprietor, (a la Café Boeuf) and the woman who was our server very warm but absent-​minded.
The house salad excellent, as was the Bourgogne Blanc though for $ 10 the glass coulda been a bit fuller. Skip the skimpy vichyssoise and save your pennies for this place.. . might be our first and only visit.

This is mom and pop french shop if I have ever seen one. Very intimate place that does have french feel to it, depending on what music they are playing. The owners are very nice and friendly and it is almost like a bed breakfast rather than a restaurant.
They started us with a amuse bouche that was an olive tapenade, it was excellent, but I am sucker for olives! I started with the warm goat cheese wrapped in zucchini, it was very good. I had the braised Short ribs and my girl had the hanger steak. Both were cooked perfectly and it was very pleasant meal.
This is perfect restaurant for nice meal out that will not brake the bank or encounter any of the annoyance of loud places or long waits!

When I walked into Canaille, the front of the house seemed overworked. Granted, it is a tiny little place, but it was just one man running around, greeting guests, listing specials, taking orders, running food, pouring wine, mixing drinks and refilling waters. As such, I couldn’t complain when he nodded toward an open table, and said he’d be with me in a few minutes.
The wait afforded me the opportunity to watch him work. He was understandably brisk, but the many diners who appeared to be regulars received a kiss on each cheek when they walked in, and a few words of recognition. It is clearly a bistro that people enjoy returning to, and that is always a good sign.
When Philippe (his name, as I understand it) finally made it to my table, I ordered the steak frites, and a dirty Hendrick’s martini. Apparently they were out of Hendrick’s, so he cocked an eyebrow at me and asked, «Do you Tanqueray?»
(Well, I don’t remember if it happened exactly like that. But it probably did.)
The amuse-​bouche, some sort of crostini topped with anchovies and a red sauce, was not memorable, but certainly appreciated. I had barely finished it when my steak arrived. It really could not have been more than six or seven minutes since I ordered. Shockingly quick.
It was a nice medium rare, and the shallot sauce was palatable. The fries were crispy and solid as well. Not the best version of the dish I’ve had, but all in all, Canaille seems to be a worthy little French bistro. I plan to return to try a special or two.

Full disclosure — yes i am throwing a brunch at Canaille but that is not my reason for defending them. I think the place is great (or i wouldn’t have chosen it as my brunch venue) and i think that the food speaks for its self.
If the staff of Canaille are a bit surly or quirky sometimes (which they seem to be, according to many of you) it’s because they are doing everything themselves. they don’t have the budget of Fridays or Olive Garden where they can mass produce smiles and service (you want that — go there) — they are waiting tables, running food, bartending busing etc etc so sit down — enjoy the amazing food and relax that you didn’t get the table you thought should be yours… surly can be funny (after all Kenny Shopsin has made a business out of it)
I just want to point out that the ONLY bad reviews for Canaille are from one-​time users (husband and wife) who obviously signed on here JUST to slam the place over a simple seating snafu — i mean really — be real or be gone. (
)

I understand where some of these reviews are coming from, re: service. That was our first impression as well. But I think it’s fair to say that the service is more odd than it is rude. Once we were seated, we were taken care of. The waiter (who I believe is the owner) even used his iPhone to light our cheese plate as he described it.
We’ll definitely go back again.

Genuine french bistro — with an awesome owner (Philippe) who’ll probably become your best friend throughout the meal.
Menu is somewhat limited, but that’s ok because you know each dish is served with love… Specials are typically the best option — but you can’t go wrong with their moules frites, endive salad, and braised short ribs.
Have Phillippe suggest the right bottle to go with the meal and you’ll realize this could very quickly become your favorite neighborhood find.

I’m a big fan of Canaille. After each visit, I have found myself thinking more about another return visit. I’ve been there four times so far, and I hope the fifth visit comes soon.
I think some previous reviewers might have misinterpreted the mannerisms of the gentleman who attends to most of the tables. It is true that the wine list has been «out of date» every time we have been there, but he is always willing to offer a taste of type of wine of our choice. His «sneer» is probably just him thinking of what he happens to have on hand to offer. I have seen this look. Just tell him what your main is, and taste what he brings out. If you don’t like it, ask to try something else.
Canaille is a fantastic, laid-​back local restaurant. I highly recommend it. But when you go, keep in mind that this is a small place that runs at it’s own pace. If you’re willing to just experience the meal and enjoy the service, then you will have a great night.

This has quickly become our favorite place to dine out at in the neighborhood. We’ve been here a half dozen times now, and haven’t had anything but great meals. It’s a comfortably small storefront place, but we’ve never needed reservations.
The menu is short, but there’s also usually at least one special each day — the ribeye was one that I especially hope will make another appearance back on the menu. It’s a nice mix of traditional bistro dishes and classical home cooking — tasty, hearty meals, not high concept frippery. The owner is friendly, and knows the menu and wine in detail — there’s clearly a lot of thought put into every item.
I hope this place has a long and prosperous run here; the food and atmosphere make it a place I want to keep coming back to.