I am not sure how I feel about the Elysian Cafe in Hoboken. This place has been open since 1895 and that is quite a while, continuing to serve an hungry crowd, lines always forming outside. The Elysian calls itself a French bistro, but, putting French names on their menu and a very limited number of dishes like the steak frites or French onion soup, I would qualify it more as an American bistro. Decent, not the best dinner or brunch in Hoboken, Anthony David’s or Bin 14 being on top of my list, but decent with reasonable prices. Here is what we had there:

For cocktails, their whisky smash made with Four Roses Bourbon, dry curaçao, fresh lemon juice and mint. Strong but refreshing thanks to the mint. For brunch, they serve an Irish coffee that is pretty good also.

The steak frites, made with NY strip and topped with thyme butter is a good deal. At $33, you get a good piece of meat, tender and juicy with French fries.

They also propose a cheese and charcuterie platter. Jodi being vegetarian asked for just the cheese that they accommodated gracefully but I was surprised to pay the same price as I doubt they put more cheese on the board, and their selection of cheese is quite limited as they served only 2 kinds.

Cheese platter at The Elysian in Hoboken

Brunch is quite classic with the egg white omelet being surprisingly good, especially because they put lots of goat cheese in it. But the croque madame was really a let down. It is true that the description says « ham, Gruyère and fried egg sandwich » but I did not think they would literally serve that, expecting an authentic croque madame instead. It was a bit deceptive. The sandwich was just ok: I had better egg sandwiches for sure.

So, yes, I am not sure what to think about this place. It is hit or miss I guess…

Enjoy (…)!

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The Elysian - 1001 Washington St, Hoboken, NJ 07030

I Just Want To Eat!