Le Fleur Rouge | Creative Chinese-French Dining in Park Slope — Restaurant in New York

A Disappointing Transformation

Le Fleur Rouge was once a gem in the neighborhood—an easy favorite I recommended to everyone for its flavorful, Shanghai-inspired cuisine and authentic touch. Sadly, after a complete concept overhaul, I find myself needing to unrecommend it just as strongly.

The restaurant has pivoted to a French-inspired menu aiming for Michelin-level sophistication, but unfortunately, it misses the mark by a wide margin. The result is a pretentious dining experience with unjustifiably high prices and underwhelming food.

Shareables: The so-called “shareables” are misleadingly named—these portions are smaller than standard appetizers. Definitely not suited for sharing unless you’re only passing around a bite.

Dishes We Tried:

Dan Dan Noodles (2/10): This was a major letdown—store-bought spaghetti tossed in an overly sweet peanut sauce. A far cry from the rich, spicy depth you’d expect from authentic dan dan noodles.

Crispy Chinese Eggplant: Another miss. The portion was t-i-n-y drowned in sauce, and again, excessively sweet. Lacked complexity and balance.

Mains:

Butter Poached Branzino (3/10): The fish was unpleasantly fishy, and the accompanying sauce did nothing to enhance the dish.

Crispy Spicy Chicken: This was the one somewhat redeeming plate, but it’s comparable to what you’d get at a standard Chinese restaurant—only here, you're paying triple the price.

Overall Impression: Le Fleur Rouge’s ambitious shift toward haute cuisine feels misguided. The menu lacks focus, and the execution simply doesn’t live up to the elevated concept or the steep prices. If you're seeking a Michelin-star dining experience, I’d suggest choosing an establishment that actually holds that...

Here’s a polished, clearer version of your review that keeps your authentic voice and detailed observations while making it easier to follow:

⸻

Le Fleur Rouge When my wife and I first sat down, we almost walked out—the menu was full of fried items and heavy cream sauces, which isn’t usually our thing. But we decided to stay (and put on a few extra calories), and we were quite surprised. The food was delicious.

We had the crispy Chinese eggplant, pork soup dumplings, and a spicy crispy chicken dish—all terrific. (Stay away from the sesame noodles, though: they tasted like limp pasta tossed with some cheese. We mentioned it to the manager, and they might rework that recipe.)

Prices aren’t cheap—$15 for three soup dumplings, for example, where most places serve six—but the sauces are outstanding, and it’s worth trying. The atmosphere is beautifully designed, and the music adds a great vibe. You can choose between a booth or table. If you come for happy hour, the drinks are very reasonably priced.

It’s an unusual take on dim sum, with some creative dishes. I would’ve liked a straightforward noodle dish, but most had a lobster bisque base, which isn’t my preference (I don’t care for cream sauces).

Service was first class—attentive and friendly. They even offered us free ice cream at the end. I wouldn’t give it five stars overall, but for what it is, it’s absolutely worth a stop if you’re in the mood for some delicious fried bites, rich sauces, and excellent service.

By the way, it turns out the same owner runs Shan, a first-class restaurant on...

Pretty good flavors overall, but could definitely use more spice in their food. Feels like they're playing it safe and relatively basic with nothing standing out. Dumplings unfortunately are made with the thick skin style

Still a soft opening so I'm looking forward to going back and try more dishes. The pickled cucumbers and radishes were good, but could/should have some spice to them as would be found in typical dim sum restaurants. While very simple, the noodles had more flavor than I had expected. The scallion pancakes were a nice thinness and the dipping sauce paired very well, but it could use more scallions.

My favorite dish was actually the wonton soup as the dumplings skin was nice and thin with the warm broth encompassing food seasoning. Despite what others have said, the other dim sum dumplings are a bit of a miss. The skin wrappings are SO THICK. I don't know how people like eating through so much dough where it takes away from the overall goodness inside. If they could make these thinner they'd be much better and more dim sum style. From Chicago to Hong Kong I don't see them made like this. There's a reason why a place like Din Tai Fung is so highly regarded.

I hope they're still tinkering with improving the dumplings and I'll be back to try their main dishes when...