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Good selection on drinks, have not had a chance to try the food but a 23 ounce beer is $23 - go figure. Also, you need to scan QR code.. so no cash or CC (unless you pay through app).
Food was incredibly dry and salty. The bacon and home fries looked and tasted like it was re-heated. The eggs were the only thing made fresh. Couldn't force myself to finish half of the plate. It was that bad even by airport standards. Otherwise, our waiter was quite pleasant and nice. Don't recommend eating here.
What, airport food that is actually good?! Yes, my friend: this place actually serves good food. On a recent trip we stoppet at La Vie for dinner, and we were pleasantly surprised. Having to travel through Terminal 5 quite often, I think I might have found my new favorite place where to grab a bite and a drink before takeoff. My Creole Crab Burger (the bartender's suggestion) was good. Properly cooked, rather flavorful, and served with fries that were crisp on the outside and tender on the inside. The La Vie burger was perfectly cooked, but unfortunately the meat was a bit bland in flavor. The food came out quickly, and even though the place is small there were plenty of seats both at the tables and at the bar. Add to that a pretty damn good beer selection, a bartender who cares about his customers and has some entertaining stories to tell, and you have a pretty nice combination for a relaxing bite at the airport that will actually put you in a good mood. You'll be surprised.
Back in the city, this place would deserve a 2-star. Given the generally low bar of airport food though, it has to be adjusted up to a 3-star. It will be ok if you have time to sit down for a meal before your flight. Onion Soup Gratinée: The broth was really rich and had nice chunks of caramelized onions. Definitely appreciated the generous portion of cheese on top of the floating bread. Unfortunately, there was not a hint of gratinée. It was like microwave melted, not a speck of brown. Entrecôte Grillée: This was priced like a fancy French restaurant, but tasted like a Tad's quality steak. Super thin, which I wasn't expecting. So when I ordered my typical medium-rare, it didn't get much grilling at all. The fries were crispy, but not that noteworthy otherwise.
This is a little oasis tucked away from the bustle. I like coming here. I like their lunch and dinner. All the restaurants serve the same breakfast. The monte Cristo was good but had no turkey. Maybe they ran out? It had enough high quality ham, melted Swiss and it was good French toast. Not the battered and deep fried variety. But no turkey in there. Still good and better than the food court breakfast and dealing with that mob scene. Waitress is attentive but could use more help. She did an excellent job considering she was alone. Coffee is delicious. But of course, La Vie is French!
The macchiato I ordered turned out to be a latte in a GINORMOUS cup. The "croque monsieur" turned out to be a $17 open-faced hot ham and cheese sandwich, any bechamel undetectable. It has good flavor, though, and was enjoyable. The salad with it was limp and blandly dressed. Oh, well, I'm at an airport, what did I expect?! My espresso was delivered with a sizable portion of it swimming around in the saucer around the cup. It was tasty, though. The service was prompt, even if the drinks were sloshed. The bartender served us and was nice. This is essentially most useful as what it mainly functions as: a bar for weary travelers who want to numb themselves with alcohol. The food is overpriced (again, it's an airport), and it's helpful if you adjust your expectations that you're not in Paris!
It seems all the restaurant in the front of terminal 5 are owned by the same company. This is their French café. The food is just fair and like a typical airport restaurant, overpriced.
If you have a flight to catch anytime soon, don't come here. It takes a bit of time and it may stress you out. They seem to be making the food in another restaurant across the way. But if you have about an hour, then no problem. I had a very nice glass of Chardonnay, the French Onion Soup and the Croque Madame. The difference between the Croque Monsieur and the Croque Madame is a fried egg on top of the sandwich. Definitely a nice addition and makes the sandwich more moist. Since the sandwich was a little dry, the egg helped a lot. The side salad is forgettable but the sandwich was good. Service was scattered but nice. The poor guy at the counter seemed to be a one man operation. Food deliverers would appear with food and hand it out to various customers, invariably the wrong customer. But it's all good if you have plenty of time! Eventually you'll get your meal, and it will be delicious.
We had a decent breakfast of an omelette and a "Greek Sundae", both unremarkable but also inoffensive. However, I'm afraid they are taking their dubious French classification too seriously, as the laissez-faire attitude with which they treated the hard deadline of my flight leaving was disconcerting. I understand food takes time to cook, but printing my check should be much simpler. We are in an airport. Time is of the essence.
Overall, food in an airport is not good. In fact, this little restaurant is flanked by overpriced crap, so one would expect the same. After looking at the reviews, however, I thought I'd give Brasserie La Vie a chance and I was very pleasantly surprised! I ordered the duck which came in a dark pool of balsamic reduction, vegetables, and strawberries. Appearance (as you will see in the photo) was sacrificed, but the flavor was not. The pairing worked well and, personally, I love a fair amount of sauce so the dish was a winner for me. Chances are I will fly through the Jet Blue terminal again, and when I do I will be trying another dish from Brasserie La Vie.
French! The theme is everywhere -- even the bartender/guy who takes your order is in full character with a very French looking mustache. There were too many items on the menu and I couldn't decide. If you're a beer drinker, try the magic hat #9! I wanted to stray away from the norm & was really surprised by how yummy this one was. Cool decor for a small space & musica. I liked how it wasn't a huge restaurant. Though I was seated facing a wall (because all of the other chairs were pretty much occupied), I still liked the privacy while still being semi-intimate with my solo dining experience. I had the steak sandwich on a baguette with a side of frites. I thought that parts of the meat were kind of tough and chewy... but I liked the fries. They weren't greasy or soggy. The sandwich had it's good and not so good bites. I should have stuck with my intuition and gotten one of the yummy sounding salads with ahi or have gotten one of their other specialties. If I ever fly Jet Blue into JFK again, I'll be sure to stop by La Vie. Personally, I think this place has a more interesting menu in comparison to other Terminal 5 restaurants. I say give this place a try! :]
I was at JFK waiting for my flight and stopped by La Vie for a drink to kill some time. It's definitely a lot smaller and cozier than the other restaurants and bars in terminal 5. But the prices are exactly what you expect - airport inflated prices. For example, I ordered a small glass of prosecco for $13. I made sure to sip it slowly or else I would have ended up spending way too much money here. Overall, not a bad place for a drink but make sure you don't get too carried away or you'll pay for it!
We tried the French onion soup and the poulet sandwich. Soup was salty but not bad! Everything came out quick and fast. However, the sandwich was so boring and plain - not worth $16 at all!!! The cheese wasn't melted and the onions weren't carmrelized... Sad excuse for french food but I guess what can you expect. No outlets either. At least the decor was cute lol
Thought I was selecting the best option in terminal 5 of jfk, but sadly it was just a sad option. The service was excellent and very attentive. However the food was less than spectacular. The restaurant is a little outpost with a bar, Parisian style. I ordered the beets and farro salad, the pieces of beets were so small and probably only amounted to a spoonful on a bed of cold farro and micro greens. And I ordered an eggplant parm, but they did not have it! I was so upset, it should've been a sign for me to go somewhere else! But I opted for the spaghetti and meatballs. It was just a bland spaghetti with burned meatballs. Overall sad food and meal. read more
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OTG
Hi Amanda - We apologize that you did not have a positive experience…
1 year ago
Business owner information
OTG
Thanks for sharing your experience, Caro! We're thrilled to hear you…
3 years ago
2 stars for the terrific waitress! 0 stars for the food. Small portions! High prices! Dried-out food! Edit: Dropped to one star after the comment from the establishment "airport culinary team". Seriously it's Spaghetti and meatballs! Does it need a team to determine it's a dried out, small portion? Perhaps it would be better to ask the financial team who decided to maximize profits from captive clientele? read more
Business owner information
OTG
Hi James, thank you for taking the time to share your feedback. We…
2 years ago
Good selection on drinks, have not had a chance to try the food but a 23 ounce beer is $23 - go figure. Also, you need to scan QR code.. so no cash or CC (unless you pay through app). read more
1 year ago
Business owner information
OTG
We’re sorry to hear about your experience with the chicken tenders…
3 years ago
Food was incredibly dry and salty. The bacon and home fries looked and tasted like it was re-heated. The eggs were the only thing made fresh. Couldn't force myself to finish half of the plate. It was that bad even by airport standards. Otherwise, our waiter was quite pleasant and nice. Don't recommend eating here. read more
Business owner information
OTG
Hi Lohfu. That is certainly not the experience that we pride…
3 years ago
Business owner information
OTG
Hi there, Barry. We're pleased to hear that we met your expectations…
What, airport food that is actually good?! Yes, my friend: this place actually serves good food. On a recent trip we stoppet at La Vie for dinner, and we were pleasantly surprised. Having to travel through Terminal 5 quite often, I think I might have found my new favorite place where to grab a bite and a drink before takeoff. My Creole Crab Burger (the bartender's suggestion) was good. Properly cooked, rather flavorful, and served with fries that were crisp on the outside and tender on the inside. The La Vie burger was perfectly cooked, but unfortunately the meat was a bit bland in flavor. The food came out quickly, and even though the place is small there were plenty of seats both at the tables and at the bar. Add to that a pretty damn good beer selection, a bartender who cares about his customers and has some entertaining stories to tell, and you have a pretty nice combination for a relaxing bite at the airport that will actually put you in a good mood. You'll be surprised. read more
Back in the city, this place would deserve a 2-star. Given the generally low bar of airport food though, it has to be adjusted up to a 3-star. It will be ok if you have time to sit down for a meal before your flight. Onion Soup Gratinée: The broth was really rich and had nice chunks of caramelized onions. Definitely appreciated the generous portion of cheese on top of the floating bread. Unfortunately, there was not a hint of gratinée. It was like microwave melted, not a speck of brown. Entrecôte Grillée: This was priced like a fancy French restaurant, but tasted like a Tad's quality steak. Super thin, which I wasn't expecting. So when I ordered my typical medium-rare, it didn't get much grilling at all. The fries were crispy, but not that noteworthy otherwise. read more
9 years ago
This is a little oasis tucked away from the bustle. I like coming here. I like their lunch and dinner. All the restaurants serve the same breakfast. The monte Cristo was good but had no turkey. Maybe they ran out? It had enough high quality ham, melted Swiss and it was good French toast. Not the battered and deep fried variety. But no turkey in there. Still good and better than the food court breakfast and dealing with that mob scene. Waitress is attentive but could use more help. She did an excellent job considering she was alone. Coffee is delicious. But of course, La Vie is French! read more
The macchiato I ordered turned out to be a latte in a GINORMOUS cup. The "croque monsieur" turned out to be a $17 open-faced hot ham and cheese sandwich, any bechamel undetectable. It has good flavor, though, and was enjoyable. The salad with it was limp and blandly dressed. Oh, well, I'm at an airport, what did I expect?! My espresso was delivered with a sizable portion of it swimming around in the saucer around the cup. It was tasty, though. The service was prompt, even if the drinks were sloshed. The bartender served us and was nice. This is essentially most useful as what it mainly functions as: a bar for weary travelers who want to numb themselves with alcohol. The food is overpriced (again, it's an airport), and it's helpful if you adjust your expectations that you're not in Paris! read more
7 years ago
It seems all the restaurant in the front of terminal 5 are owned by the same company. This is their French café. The food is just fair and like a typical airport restaurant, overpriced. read more
Business owner information
OTG
Hi Richard, Thanks for taking the time to share feedback on your…
If you have a flight to catch anytime soon, don't come here. It takes a bit of time and it may stress you out. They seem to be making the food in another restaurant across the way. But if you have about an hour, then no problem. I had a very nice glass of Chardonnay, the French Onion Soup and the Croque Madame. The difference between the Croque Monsieur and the Croque Madame is a fried egg on top of the sandwich. Definitely a nice addition and makes the sandwich more moist. Since the sandwich was a little dry, the egg helped a lot. The side salad is forgettable but the sandwich was good. Service was scattered but nice. The poor guy at the counter seemed to be a one man operation. Food deliverers would appear with food and hand it out to various customers, invariably the wrong customer. But it's all good if you have plenty of time! Eventually you'll get your meal, and it will be delicious. read more
We had a decent breakfast of an omelette and a "Greek Sundae", both unremarkable but also inoffensive. However, I'm afraid they are taking their dubious French classification too seriously, as the laissez-faire attitude with which they treated the hard deadline of my flight leaving was disconcerting. I understand food takes time to cook, but printing my check should be much simpler. We are in an airport. Time is of the essence. read more
Overall, food in an airport is not good. In fact, this little restaurant is flanked by overpriced crap, so one would expect the same. After looking at the reviews, however, I thought I'd give Brasserie La Vie a chance and I was very pleasantly surprised! I ordered the duck which came in a dark pool of balsamic reduction, vegetables, and strawberries. Appearance (as you will see in the photo) was sacrificed, but the flavor was not. The pairing worked well and, personally, I love a fair amount of sauce so the dish was a winner for me. Chances are I will fly through the Jet Blue terminal again, and when I do I will be trying another dish from Brasserie La Vie. read more
French! The theme is everywhere -- even the bartender/guy who takes your order is in full character with a very French looking mustache. There were too many items on the menu and I couldn't decide. If you're a beer drinker, try the magic hat #9! I wanted to stray away from the norm & was really surprised by how yummy this one was. Cool decor for a small space & musica. I liked how it wasn't a huge restaurant. Though I was seated facing a wall (because all of the other chairs were pretty much occupied), I still liked the privacy while still being semi-intimate with my solo dining experience. I had the steak sandwich on a baguette with a side of frites. I thought that parts of the meat were kind of tough and chewy... but I liked the fries. They weren't greasy or soggy. The sandwich had it's good and not so good bites. I should have stuck with my intuition and gotten one of the yummy sounding salads with ahi or have gotten one of their other specialties. If I ever fly Jet Blue into JFK again, I'll be sure to stop by La Vie. Personally, I think this place has a more interesting menu in comparison to other Terminal 5 restaurants. I say give this place a try! :] read more
4 years ago
I was at JFK waiting for my flight and stopped by La Vie for a drink to kill some time. It's definitely a lot smaller and cozier than the other restaurants and bars in terminal 5. But the prices are exactly what you expect - airport inflated prices. For example, I ordered a small glass of prosecco for $13. I made sure to sip it slowly or else I would have ended up spending way too much money here. Overall, not a bad place for a drink but make sure you don't get too carried away or you'll pay for it! read more
8 years ago
We tried the French onion soup and the poulet sandwich. Soup was salty but not bad! Everything came out quick and fast. However, the sandwich was so boring and plain - not worth $16 at all!!! The cheese wasn't melted and the onions weren't carmrelized... Sad excuse for french food but I guess what can you expect. No outlets either. At least the decor was cute lol read more
Business owner information
OTG
Hi Kristin E., We're sorry to hear about this. That's not the…
Pros: latte and monte cristo sandwich tasted good...until I saw the...(see below) Cons: the service was very slow and below average- I actually didn't mind the slow service as I was trying to kill time during my layover, but they were understaffed, 1.5 server (one woman was there constantly but the other man was there half of the time) for about 15 customers. They were busy and the 1.5 server probably felt a little bit overwhelmed, but they wouldn't recognize the customers (including myself) when anyone entered the restaurant or needed the attention. I believe most people can understand and somewhat related to being busy and overwhelmed, but it would be nice to be recognized with a smile and a simple, "I'll be with you in just a second!" or something along the same line. I felt like they were trying to avoid eye contact with me when I was standing there by an empty table. I just wanted to know if I could sit down and wait for them, but they would actively avoid eye contact with me until they were completely ready for me. Also, I found a hair in my food. It was a hair about arm length coiled underwear my sandwich. I pulled it out and felt overwhelmingly grossed by it so I tossed the hair on the floor right away. I didn't take a picture so if you didn't believe me I would totally understand. But I found a hair and that was my reality. read more
Business owner information
OTG
Hucky,…
I don't know if there anything french about this place other than name and posters on the wall. It's more like tiny old school diner. But - coffee is strong, food is solid, they are quick and efficient, and prices are OK. If you looking for filling breakfast before the flight - this is the spot. Farmers omelette (egg whites, bacon, veggies, with potatoes on a side) and coffee. I am out in 20 minutes flat. Knowing I will not get food till evening is not that bad now. read more
7 years ago
10 years ago
Born and raised NYer who was hungry before a long flight. Usually I eat before I get to the airport and just snack on the plane, this time I had to do things differently. After some debating on spots in Terminal 5 I chose La Vie. The four stars is because for airport food in NYC this was pretty good. Better than some bars I've been in, and that's saying a lot! I had the calamari as an appetizer, it was ok. It comes with an aioli that can be switched for a marinara, I wasn't aware so I ate them plain. I had the La Vie burger and it was definitely better than expected. Tasted fresh, made to how I ordered it and juicy. No complaints at all. The fries could have been a bit crispier but I didn't ask for that so I won't put that on the cook or establishment. A nice selection of beer, I didn't check for anything else. The waiter was great and exhibited plenty of patience with some of the pain in the ass patrons who were there. This is not a place to eat if in a rush, give your food at least 15 mins before it gets to you. A regular spot in the streets of NY? I'd give it 3.5 stars easily. In the airport? At minimum 4, definitely recommend eating here. read more
Trying this place out as other places seemed to be...unacceptably bad? Not sure...but this small bar-like French place really caught me the second I walked by, so decided to give a try given my loose schedule. Ordered the grilled chicken sandwich and OJ. First of all, it was not quick, so if you are in a hurry catching the flight please pass. The sandwich is ok, but I skipped the cheese part as it was a bit too greasy. Overall a 3.5 star place. read more
I'm shocked, I tell you. Shocked. I mean, I'm in an AIRPORT. But the food here is really great! If you're ever in Terminal 5 at JFK, definitely eat at La Vie. The woman next to me got a gorgeous salad, and my onion soup was terrific. And I only found it through Yelp! read more
They created a small Bistro in the terminal. The first time when I came, I worried I would miss my flight. The foods were coming out very slow and waited for 30 minutes for Tuna Salad Nicoise to arrive. I wasn't happy for the long wait but it was well worth the wait. I couldn't believe I was eating this tasty salad at the terminal. The quality and execution of this southern France salad was tasty! The perfectly creamy vinaigrette definitely helped but lightly grilled tuna with a hue of reddish pink meat of tuna was excitingly delicious. This salad relaxed and comforted me. It was a must have comfort food before departure. Second time when I was there, I chose vegetable omelet for my early breakfast. I didn't really read the menu but ordred it since I totally trust them. The dish came pretty fast than last time. The omelet I picked was healthy one. Used only white egg so it wasn't heavy and nicely cooked vegetables complemented each other (see my photo). I like the visual (modern, clean and blue) of JetBlue terminal. It is very attractively fresh and exciting. There are many good thing about this terminal but what surprised me the this French bistro next to DeepBlue (Sushi) restaurant. read more
11 years ago
Come here before my 8am flight and was pleasantly surprised. The food was great. Standard eggs Benedict but I loved the hollandaise (sp?) sauce-tasted like someone's recipe. Only three stars bc the oj was 4.99 and the server kept rubbing my shoulder. read more
9 years ago
Business owner information
OTG
Hi Melanie, Thanks for your feedback! Looking forward to serving you…
11 years ago
I ordered the croque-monsieur which, well, was good in the way that bacon is always good. You put some ham in bread and melt cheese on top, I'm going to eat it every time. But was this special? No. It was the version that your seven year old child made as their first culinary experiment. I understand it is just a sandwich, but for $15 they didn't even try to impress me. read more
9 years ago
8 years ago
Business owner information
OTG
Hi Brom, We're sorry to hear about this. That's not the experience…
Like many brasseries in France the space is quaint, cramped, and dimly lit. The service is EXTREMELY slow, but if you are patient someone will come. They had one staff member in the restaurant working the bar, taking orders, and getting food! Yet, he was still extremely friendly. I ordered the omelet with herbs and a side salad. The omelet and side salad for airport food was actually decent. I was looking for something on the lighter side and this fit the bill perfectly. The price tag though was not light. But then, everything in an airport is over priced. From a visual observation the food appeared to be hit or miss - some looked bland, while other dishes looked pretty good. The restaurant itself doesn't have a designated kitchen. It must share a larger kitchen, as the food was all being run in from somewhere else in the airport. read more
10 years ago
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More info about La Vie
John F Kennedy International Airport
Terminal 5
Queens, NY 11447
JFK Airport
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(866) 508-3558
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http://OTGexp.com
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