November 13, 2023
Neal Santos/Bondfire Media
Bar Lesieur, a new French restaurant, opens Wednesday in Center City. The eatery is the latest by Philly restaurateur Michael Schulson.
The space above popular Center City Italian restaurant Giuseppe & Sons has been transformed into a French eatery that opens this week.
Starting Wednesday, Bar Lesieur, located at 1523 Sansom St., will serve customers dinner, late-night bites, cocktails and wines inspired by the Parisian dining scene. The bar is the latest venture by Philly restaurateur Michael Schulson, founder of Schulson Collective, which also operates Double Knot, Harp & Crown, Sampan, Giuseppe & Sons and Independence Beer Garden.
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Bar Lesieur is named for Louis Lesieur, a French restaurateur who ran a bar on Samson Street in the late 1800s.
The restaurant — which can be entered through a door next to the staircase leading down to Giuseppe & Sons — sets a cozy ambiance with dim lighting, dark wood paneling, forest-green tiled walls, vintage artwork and seating for 72. The bar has a zinc top and 12 pink leather barstools.
Small plates, entrées and à la carte sides are offered on the dinner menu. Options include mushroom carpaccio, butter-poached lobster, steak frites, dry-aged duck and caviar. The dessert menu has French favorites like crème brûlée, and bread is baked on-site and shown off in a display at the center of the restaurant. Drinks include cocktails and French wines.
Bar Lesieur's venue was most recently home to Samuel's, a Jewish deli. Schulson Collective previously operated the upstairs space as a pizzeria.
The new restaurant is open Sunday-Tuesday from 5-11 p.m., Wednesday-Thursday from 5 p.m. to 12 a.m. and Friday-Saturday from 5 p.m. to 2 a.m. Happy hour specials are offered daily from 4-6 p.m. Dinner reservations can be made online.
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