04/20/09

Great date spot near Union Square

by EricP

My wife and I had our anniversary dinner at Gitane this weekend and really enjoyed it. Love how it's tucked away on Claude Lane (next to Cafe Claude. Seating outdoors on warm evenings and the inside is very, trendy & cool with all sorts of funky, contemporary chandeliers and tables where you can easily have conversation but not really overhear your neighbors. Honey glazed pork ribs slid of the bone and lamb noisette was really tasty if not a bit rich. Wonderful choices for half-carafes of wine. Friendly, good service despite being packed. I'd go recommend Gitane and would go back.

• Pros: Very cool interior and location tucked away on Claude Lane
• Cons: Surrounding area shuts down early (stores)

04/14/09

Excellent for Date or Small Groups

by thedamsel

Gorgeous interior: like the villa of a lottery-rich gypsy. Lush, deep and full of eye candy decor. Very interesting mix of dishes from all walks of the Mediterranean. From Moroccan couscous to Portugese stews. Favorites were the chorizo stuffed calamari, fried polenta, chicken tajine and crab stuffed peppers. Awesome desserts and sherry inspired cocktails. We are SO going back!!!!!

Also to note: Service was excellent! Never an empty glass or food-dried plates left on the table.

• Pros: Amazing Decor/Great Food

Mediterranean food in a sexy Union Square location

by Patrick Heig

Sophisticated, exotic, yet welcoming and comfortable, Gitane is that rare thing--an approachable knockout. It's difficult to do justice to the design here, but suffice to say the interior deserves a centerfold spread in Architectural Digest, and if it got one those pages would soon be stuck together; it's sexy. Service is knowledgeable but informal, and the cuisine tours the Mediterranean (Portuguese fish stew, sardinas en escabeche) and ventures into North Africa (tajine, taboule), and though exotic, doesn't forget crowd-pleasers: bacon bon bons (figs stuffed w/ goat cheese, wrapped in bacon), honey-soy-glazed ribs, and pizza (the chef is a certified pizzaioli). The well-pedigreed bartenders make use of expert mixing and esoteric ingredients to create crowd-pleasing cocktails.

11/18/08

Fabulous new restaurant!!!!

by penelpes

Wonderful atmosphere, fantastic drink menu, amazing food and excellent service! This new restaurant has it all. I highly recommend trying it. Their Gitane pizza was amazing, as well as the stuffed quail. I can't wait to go back and try all the other items on the menu.

• Pros: Open til midnight in the restaurant and 1 am at the bar