Restaurant L’Ostal in Darien is a Stone Cold Stunner
/It has been a very long time since I’ve dedicated a full blog post to one restaurant. And the few times I’ve done it in the past have been reserved for my most favorite local spots. Well, a new favorite local spot emerged last year!
Restaurant L’Ostal quietly opened in Darien in early 2021 after COVID caused Chef Jared Sippel to shutter his Manhattan restaurant. New York’s loss was Connecticut’s gain. L’Ostal isn’t just the best restaurant to open recently in Fairfield County - it’s one of the absolute best restaurants to open in the general area in the entire decade that I’ve lived here.
L’Ostal is both a place to celebrate a special occasion (because the service and atmosphere are mature and the dishes are complex) and a place to kick back with a few friends or your spouse (because you can wear jeans here and there’s nothing wrong with doing L’Ostal as a quick pasta and glass of wine at the bar before rushing to pick up your kids at a playdate).
The food at L’Ostal is incredibly delicious and I’ll get more into that soon. But what truly sets L’Ostal apart from the pack is that this is a restaurant that knows exactly what it is doing. This is a restaurant run by folks who know how to run a restaurant. Service at L’Ostal is professional and capable and so far beyond the usual scattered service we get in the suburbs. There is a personable GM at L’Ostal who also acts as the restaurant’s warm and congenial sommelier. The room and accompanying outdoor patio are cozy and intimate and manage to perfectly straddle the line between informal and formal. It is not surprising that Chef Sippel spent much of his career in big city kitchens - this is a NYC style restaurant that we are lucky enough to have here in the suburbs.
Ok but how does that food taste? Outstanding! There are classic French dishes like Escargot and Ouefs Mayonnaise on the menu, along with a delectable medley of Provencal garden vegetables cooked to perfection in house-made vinegar and then covered in black truffle. There are at least three fresh pasta dishes (each NOT to be missed) on the menu, and a wonderful plate of Prosciutto served with house-made Grissini breadsticks, European butter and fresh horseradish.
There are nightly specials, which often include a larger format entrée to be split among two. On one of my visits, it was a Cote de Bouef and on my most recent visit, it was the best lamb preparation I’ve ever had, served with a large portion of Potatoes Au Gratin and leafy greens. Also on my last visit, I sampled a Sformato, which, despite being half Italian, I’d never had before. This dish - a flan of sorts served with wild mushroom and pecorino - was so freaking tasty, I’m still thinking about it. In short, the dishes at L’Ostal are well done versions of comforting Provencal classics.
L’Ostal is not a place for kids nor is it a spot for a large group of 10 looking for a wild night out. But if you’re in the market for a super satisfying, intimate but still incredibly comfortable meal - particularly during the cold, dark winter - with a loved one or ones, you really cannot do better right now in all of Westchester or Fairfield Counties than Restaurant L’Ostal in Darien, CT.
