Cafe of Love

You have to give credit to a place with a name like this. It happens to be the offshoot off a successful soup shop down the block called Ladle of Love. Southern France is the refrain here, with rustic earth colors, wooden columns, soft lighting and splays of flowers. Parts of the dining areas can get a little too neighborly, and maddeningly loud. The Mediterranean cuisine, however, is exceptional, herbaceous and homey, though not cheap.

Typical dishes are mussels Provençale, authentic bouillabaisse; pan-seared salmon with morels, melted leeks and herbed quinoa; and roasted organic chicken with garlic custard. The well-priced wine list carries some exceptional selections from around the world but, curiously, few from this country.  -Bryan Miller