Zucco Le French Diner, New York

A tricolor awning hangs above the front door of Zucco: Le French Diner, an intimate French bistro decked out with exposed brick and foreign baubles. A Critics' Pick in the New York magazine restaurant guide, Zucco was modeled by its owner after the typical French truck stop, where he asserts "you can go in knowing that the food will be good and cheap." Within the petite dining room, servers lavish tables with modest meals of baguette sandwiches and classic french onion soup paired with European-style coffees. For heartier alimentary outings, escargot and homemade foie gras starters rev up appetite engines for main courses of seafood, steak, or sausages alongside mashed potatoes sculpted to resemble the Statue of Liberty.