Le Mazet — Restaurant in West Hartford

TL;DR: A mixed bag. Gnocchi and duck confit salad were standouts; several dishes ranged from underwhelming to misguided. Service was decent, atmosphere warm, but execution didn’t match the price—especially disappointing for a birthday dinner.

We dined at Le Mazet for my birthday. My wife suggested we return to Materia in Litchfield, but I opted to try something new. Unfortunately, the experience left us regretful—some highlights, but overall disappointment.

Bread Service – $7 Small Sourdough Boule :( Tasty and well-baked, but the portion was small, and charging for bread and butter— lacking any elevating accompaniments—felt odd given many restaurants provide it gratis.

The Excellent !! :D Duck Confit Salad A standout. Succulent duck, well-balanced flavors—rich, yet well balanced. It managed to feel indulgent while still refreshing—an impressive feat for a confit dish.

Gnocchi with Truffle Cream, Peas, and Mushrooms Our favorite. Delicate crisp outside, pillowy inside. Truffle, mushrooms, and English peas (which added a bright fresh pop) created a perfectly comforting, elevated dish.

The Pleasant - :P Ratatouille A warm, delicately balanced dish that let the natural sweetness and earthiness of the vegetables shine through. Excellent and comforting. The presentation leaned rustic—vegetable slices were nearly half an inch thick. It lacked the refinement I’d hoped for - Mandolin-thin slices. In the context of Le Mazet’s "approachable upscale" ethos, it wasn't an egregious choice—just a stylistic one.

The Good - :) Crème Brûlée A standard presentation. Pleasantly salted custard, but the sugar topping was under-brûléed and grainy, missing that glass-like finish.

The Unpleasantly Strange -!? Tinned Scallop Conserva I did not anticipate the presentation to involve literally unboxing the can and placing it, along with its collapsed packaging, directly on the plate. No additional preparation or refinement. Tasted more like sardines. The house-pickled veg and bread were the best part. Overall, a bizarre, unrefined presentation for a restaurant setting. If I wanted to eat out of a can, I could have done so at home over the sink.

The Severely Disappointing- :( Seared Tuna Overwhelmed by sesame seeds and overly salty olive crumbles. No acid to balance the dish. Visually and conceptually underwhelming. The potato chips theoretically add a conceptual fun crunch to the dish... but only managed to add further confusion to the plate. The flavors all competed for attention rather than harmonize together.

Steak Tartare on Chickpea Panisse As someone who seeks out steak tartare wherever I go, I can unfortunately say this was the worst version I've ever encountered. Serving tartare over a soft chickpea panisse log was a baffling choice—the panisse, being porous and warm, caused the tartare to lose its chill and texture. It quickly became a lukewarm, mushy mess. To compound matters, the tartare was overwhelmed by an excess of capers, making it aggressively salty. This dish sorely needed a crispy accompaniment (crostini, toasted baguette) and more thoughtful seasoning. A misfire on all fronts.

Pistachio Flan More like a pistachio pudding pie. The "custard" was fine, but the crust was thick, underbaked, and gummy. My slice was broken and poorly plated—a lackluster end to the meal.

Service & Atmosphere Le Mazet succeeds in its goal of being upscale yet relaxed. The space is warm and inviting. Though we didn’t interact directly with the maître d’, his energetic presence stood out—he brought a vibrant, welcoming feel to the establishment. The rest of the staff was polite, though unremarkable.

Final Thoughts There’s talent here—duck and gnocchi prove that—but too many dishes felt unrefined or conceptually confused. The menu could benefit from restraint, better balance, and sharper execution.

If I’m craving French fare locally, I’d return to Avert around the corner. Their food is consistent, classic, and well-executed. That said, Le Mazet does offer the better atmosphere, and with refinement, it could become something...

We made 8p.m. reservations for Le Mazet's New Year's Eve 4 course special menu. The restaurant is aesthetically pleasing and tastefully decorated. The setting is intimate while also feeling relaxed and welcoming. We were given complimentary champagne to start along with a potato skin with pate and cavier appetizer. Delicious. For our first course we had the Casear salad and the winter citrus salad. Both were colorful, fresh and full of wonderful flavors and textures. Next we had the French onion agnolotti and the duck tatarlette. The agnolotti dish was a rich taste sensation with gruyere, prosciutto and croutons. Absolutely decadent. The duck tartalette with cranberry and au jus was an amazing creation of moist and slightly sweet shredded duck atop a perfectly flaky pastry. For the main courses we chose the Beef Wellington and the lamb rack with potatoes pave and broccolini. The presentations of these dishes were outstanding. The lamb was perfectly cooked and so flavorful. The potatoes pave were delectable. The Beef Wellington was tender and also perfectly cooked and the au jus was luxuriously rich. Dessert was gingerbread creme brulee and chocolate crepes! Both were amazing. All portions of every dish were generous. It is obvious that these dishes were carefully and expertly created and prepared with complete focus and attention to every last detail. It was one of the best meals we have ever had and was the perfect way to ring in the new year. We also thoroughly enjoyed our after dinner digestifs, the Mandarin Napoleon, and the time the owner, Patrick, took to come to our table to discuss his choices and recommendations ( and samples) of both aperitifs and digestifs we might consider trying. We met a family who frequently dines at Le Mazet and they recommended some must try dishes from the regular menu. They had nothing but high praises. It was a very special night night of culinary delights and we most highly recommend and will be returning. There is parking in the back of the building which is also were the entry is during the...

We were really impressed with the food and service here after trying our 2nd time to get in. Managed on a Thursday night as the Sat before was impossible due to a 2 hr wait by 7pm since they don’t take reservations. We had the 1/2 chicken, the boeuf bourguignon and the fig tart. The portions were generous too for the price point. Honestly loved it all. The staff was friendly and kind too. The things that could be improved - you get a saucer size side plate for the chicken that’s really too small to eat from, a small bowl for the stew that could also be a bit bigger, neither of us liked our cocktails we started with - no offense to the bartender or drink list - maybe just not to our taste that night - and the stocky little jam jar for my wine was silly. You can ‘upgrade’ to a glass if you order a bottle we were told. My husband had the cider that night, which went really well with the chicken but I’m a lightweight anyway and had already had one drink. I certainly can’t knock back a bottle by myself. It’s not a cute quirk when I can see everyone else drinking out of actual glasses but wine by the glass comes in a jar. The cider is also under the jam jar list but was served in a normal glass. They note the food is ‘family style’ so it comes out when it comes out, which ours was a bit staggered but I heard the woman next to us say to her partner, ‘I’m just supposed to watch you eat now?,’ when hers didn’t come out at the same time as his. She had a point. It’s French, not tapas and we ordered what we ordered not intending to share other than the tart. Since they don’t take reservations it is a bit tough on a weekend unless you don’t mind waiting for 2 hrs. The service and food were excellent, which is what mattered. New places evolve and grow and the cons are minor. Only a couple other places we think are the same quality in the center and the rest is pretty hit and miss for us so I do think Le Mazet will challenge the rest of those businesses to up their game. We look forward to the take out option...