ETATS-UNIS

Critics' Pick

242 E. 81st St., New York, NY 10028 40.775171 -73.955412
nr. Third Ave. See Map | Subway Directions Hopstop Popup
212-517-8826 Send to Phone

Cuisine: American Nouveau
Price Range: $$$
Reader Rating: Write a Review

Map Rate & Review

Nearby Subway Stops

4, 5, 6 at 86th St.

Prices

$28-$38

Payment Methods

American Express, Diners Club, MasterCard, Visa

Special Features

Good for Groups
Teen Appeal

Alcohol

Full Bar

Reservations

Recommended

Profile

This venue is closed.

Behold a small, square, dramatic, and spartan room, devoid of any table-hopping. The daily changing menu choices are spare, but consistent in their bent towards slow roasting, robust sauces, and great vegetables. Both the gorgeous—well, to carnivores—sweetly pink pork shoulder braised in onion, poblanos, and citrus fruit, and the pork chops in a richly flavored but almost airy molé are meats imported from Niman Ranch. The cool-as-Hepburn asparagus soup with crème fraîche, a superb Dungeness crab soufflé pudding with a crust that demands attacking with abandon, and handmade gnocchi under an apronful of sparklingly fresh peas and pea shoots are all derived from local purveyors. But the sheer weightlessness of lemon-pudding cake or Toshi’s rapturous date pudding will quickly remind you how neat it is to have elegant bistros like Etats-Unis scattered all over New York. — Hal Rubenstein

Kitchen Hours

Mon.—Wed., 6 p.m.—10 p.m.; Thu.—Sat., 6 p.m.—10 p.m.; Sun., 5 p.m.—10 p.m.