The Good King Tavern

"This neighborhood French spot works just as well for a casual Friday night dinner with friends as it does for a first date on a weeknight. Get the martini, an order of crispy socca, and some steak frites. Will the food move you to tears? Probably not. But it just feels good to sit in the dim-lit room and forget about your 40 unread text messages. That's why you'll keep coming back." - alison kessler, candis mclean

"The Good King is a laid-back French bistro with a drinks list worth paying attention to. It covers the usuals — sazeracs, martinis, and so on — but riffing off the classics is where the bartenders here truly excel, like the Marseille Afternoon, a spritz with pastis, orgeat, and lime." - Annemarie Dooling, Ernest Owens

"Between the maps on the walls and the handwritten specials on the chalkboard, this casual Bella Vista restaurant feels like a Parisian antique shop that happens to serve good food. The neighborhood spot works great for casual Friday night dinner with friends or first dates on a weeknight. You’ll find bistro hits like steak frites, escargot, and all kinds of duck. Plus, they have an extensive wine list—after all, they own the wine bar upstairs, and a fantastic snacky wine bar in Rittenhouse (see below)." - alison kessler

"You posted a picture with Swoop at the Eagles' open practice, they posted a selfie with Anya Taylor-Joy's blur in Cannes, and it’s been war ever since. They’ve come back from the French Riviera with two things: an awful I Heart Van Gogh shirt and an advanced degree in rosé. Instead of suffering through their sommelier-in-training rant sober, take them to Bella Vista’s Good King Tavern. They have great traditional dishes like steak frites, socca, and garlicky escargot. Plus, the wine list is long enough to get you buzzed when they start going on and on about nodes and perfect grape size. " - candis mclean

"Good Wine But No Influencers Good King Tavern has a wine list that will take you to the same horny place as Parc's will, except you get to drink in a much more intimate room. Between the maps on the walls and the handwritten specials on the chalkboard, this casual Bella Vista restaurant may incite a French accent after three chenin blancs. The menu also has bistro hits like a burger, steak frites, and escargot. In terms of the quality of the dishes, Good King edges it out over Parc—hence the higher rating. " - candis mclean