THIS RESTAURANT IS CLOSED Aix

THIS RESTAURANT IS CLOSED Aix Restaurant Review:

A honeycomb of niches spreads across three different levels, so you're never squished up against another table. The rear ground floor dining room may be near the kitchen entrance, but it's also the coziest space, painted a warm orange and lined with banquettes and glowing sconces. The lively bar area has café seating and a casual menu that includes a $15 cheeseburger (a bestseller); summer marks the start of sidewalk seating. Didier Virot's eponymous restaurant in the Dylan hotel may have been short-lived (and oh, the shame of being replaced by Britney Spears' Nyla!), but the former Jean Georges chef de cuisine has the last laugh. Just try to get a last-minute reservation at Aix. Bolstering the Upper West Side's reputation as a dining destination (vaunted Ouest is four blocks away), Aix serves French food that is, for the most part, well executed and sometimes exceptional. The menu offers a couple of nods to its regional name: pistou, a traditional thick vegetable soup with a basil base pepped up with mirepoix (diced spiced vegetables) and olive oil, is dramatically served as the waiter pours it into your oversized bowl, surrounding a little island of sardine tartare. Virot shows his talents in dishes such as seared wild striped bass with braised-leek-and-blue-mussel-stuffed Napa cabbage that is complemented by a chanterelle broth with young garlic. We follow with respect Virot's efforts as he constantly tweaks his menu to perfect his art and hoist Aix even higher. Dinner ends with a bang. Pastry chef Jehangir Mehta, who has been with Virot since Jean Georges, never fails to astonish---and seduce---with incredible desserts such as a Provence cake of bisquit, violet nougat parfait and a grapefruit marmalade, as well as a lovely apple-rosemary brioche with Calvados sauce and citrus ice cream. If your favorite memory of your last trip to Provence is of the bargain wines you had with every meal, you'll love the range of under-$40 offerings from the south of France such as the fruity and appropriate Côteaux d'Aix.