Brasserie Cognac

The stunning if clichéd interior (witness the painted mirrors and French posters) and the more than 100 varieties of the namesake spirit might be this bistro’s only redeeming qualities. Chef Florian Hugo, a protégé of Alain Ducasse, turns out sad entrées, like a sour flambéed filet mignon with a few gloomy potato slices and some wilted romaine. Roasted chicken in a tarragon gravy was better, but the brasserie bellwether, French fries—thin and limp—proved les miserables.