Café Simone (CLOSED)

It’s appropriate that chef Didier Durand would name his new venture after his daughter, Simone, because the cafe/cabaret is the offspring of his restaurant Cyrano’s Bistrot. Housed in Cyrano’s basement, the energetic space features musicians and entertainers performing nightly. The menu is composed mostly of half-portions from the restaurant upstairs: mussels with curry sauce, cones of frites and hearty charcuterie plates. As good as the food is, nothing tops Durand taking the mic and singing a ditty about coq au vin.