By Abigael T. Sidi
It’s hot out, so I’m sticking with Moroccan dishes: After last week’s Moroccan Fish at Bustan, I present to you Café du Soleil’s Moroccan Sandwich (a.k.a., Merguez Sandwich).
Café du Soleil, the staple, always jovial French brasserie on Broadway between West 104th and 105th streets, has been our family’s go-to for everything soccer since we moved to the upper UWS 15 years ago (World Cup and Euros — this is where we watch). The Café is as safe a place as it gets to unapologetically support Les Bleus – singing La Marseillaise at the very top of your lungs is not only tolerated, it is required. The Café is also one of very few places in the city that offers THE dish to have when cheering Les Bleus, the iconic merguez sandwich with fries. The merguez/Les Bleus combo is as self-evident as wings for the Super Bowl (or a Jets loss) or hot dogs at a Yankee game (or Mets loss).
Merguez are the staple North African sausage, with origins in all of Maghreb (Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia), where they are typically eaten alone off the grill, in a baguette sandwich, or as one of the meats in a Royal couscous. They are most commonly made of lamb or mutton and seasoned with a distinctive spice mix comprising paprika, cumin, fennel seeds, garlic and red chili powder or harissa, which together give the sausage its distinctive red color. Imported to France through many waves of post-colonial Maghrebi immigration, merguez have become an integral part of the country’s sausage repertoire (alongside chipolatas and other delicacies).
“The merguez sandwich is one of our best sellers”, Café du Soleil co-owner Nadine Chevreux told me. “We order them from a butcher in New Jersey and they are made fresh every day. They are delicious on a crispy French Baguette with harissa (hot red pepper sauce from Morocco). Some people add a little Dijon mustard as well.” Café du Soleil serves you not one, not two, but three merguez, topped with fresh arugula salad, French fries on the side.
The sausages are as good as they can possibly get this side of the Atlantic: great snap, a meaty and juicy (but not too greasy) chew, and a genuine spice kick with lovely Maghrebi flavors. They lack in the bright, almost neon red intensity typical of traditional merguez, but the only one complaining is Dad (though he will still devour the sandwich and must always be stopped from ordering a refill). The fries are also as good as they get in the city: classic Belgian cut (slightly thinner and shorter than the classic American cut), up there with Balthazar’s in their crisp, tenderness and overall fantastic taste.
The arugula, while fresh, tasty and a natural complement to the merguez with its peppery undertones, is a little controversial, or so claims Dad. “What’s this?” he always says, pointing to the salad, before setting it aside it and swapping it with the fries. He then tops the sandwich with the other half of the baguette and presents it to us as if it were God’s greatest creation: “Le Merguez/Frites, just like the grill guys outside the stadium in Paris!”
Speaking with Chevreux, I got the sense that Café du Soleil is her family’s crown achievement (they have operated six other spots in the city). “Café du Soleil has been around for 20 years. We compiled our past New York experience to open our baby on the Upper West Side,” she said. “This is a family business and all of our four sons worked there at some point. We have a following of regulars who know everyone in our family and call us on a first name basis. Alain [Chevreux, her husband] works the back of the house, I do catering with our sister company, Voila Caterers NYC, and Stefan [Chevreux, her son] works the front of the house as the manager. Our staff has been with us for 10 to 15 years which is rare in NYC.”
Indeed, with its authentic blend of cheery/unpretentious neighborhood brasserie vibe, the Café has evolved into a jewel of the upper UWS: There is a genuine community feel here, not only fanatically French on gameday, but open to all. “The ambiance at Cafe du Soleil is very warm and very friendly,” Chevreux said with a nod. “Our customers know we are a family business and they feel like they are coming home when they dine with us. They see the same faces and feel like they know everyone.”
The Café’s festive and welcoming feel was on full display during this weekend’s Bastille Day celebrations, where the team installed two pétanque lanes on the sidewalk, inviting everyone to compete, pros and the curious alike (pétanque, a bocce relative, is one of France’s national past times, especially in the south.) “It is a lot of fun, especially while drinking rosé,” Chevreux joked.
The Café has all the brasserie classics, nightly specials which include a stupendous bouillabaisse (Provencal fish stew) on Wednesdays and Thursdays, and a killer $89 pre-Theater 3-course prix-fixe for two which includes a full bottle of wine (available from 4 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. Sunday-Thursday; at $44.50 per person, probably one of the best deals in town).
Café du Soleil opens at 9 a.m. on weekends, 11 a.m. on Thursdays and Fridays, and 4 p.m. from Monday to Wednesday. There are daily happy hours from 4-7 p.m., and the restaurant closes at 10 p.m. (10:30 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays). Take out and delivery available are at these times. Note that the merguez sandwich ($19) is only available at lunch/brunch from Thursday till Sunday, but the merguez are also available as an appetizer every night under “merguez grillées” (which includes the harissa and garlic fries; $14).
I’ll leave you with the Café’s motto, a citation from French playwriter Jean Anouilh, which encapsulates the place’s personality to perfection: “Everything ends this way in France – everything. Weddings, christenings, duels, burials, swindlings, diplomatic affairs – everything is a pretext for a good dinner.”
The Dish: Moroccan Sandwich ($19)
The Restaurant: Café du Soleil, 2723 Broadway (between West 104th and 105th streets)
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Lovely hommage to one of the neighborhood’s very best spots. They have this” je-ne-sais-quoi” that just feels right, clicks. Unpretentious, as you said, but deeply welcoming, always a good meal, and reasonably prized. In short, what a brasserie should be (but almost never is in the city)
Yes, this is a great, homey spot, definition of a neighborhood restaurant.
I really enjoy your reviews. In fact, I prefer your writing to the NYT’s restaurant critic’s purple prose. Please keep it up!
Thank you
I don’t see this on their menu. I see a merquez platter, but not a sandwich.
Hi mef: thanks for your question. As I mentioned at the end of the piece, the sandwich is only listed on the lunch/brunch menu, not the happy hour or dinner menus. Also, remember it’s listed as Moroccan Sandwich, not Merguez Sandwich. Please write back if you have any questions. Thank you!
Ravissant!
Their merguez sandwich is second to none, as tasty and satisfying as a pepperoni slice at Sal and Carmine just a few feet away. Boy are we blessed in this 3 block radius, though most of this stuff will have to be paid for eventually!
CdS is as friendly as it gets but at the same time serious with their food. Special place, like you said
Another great column from Abigael T. Sidi – and extra points for proper use of the verb “comprised”!