Claudette

Carlos Suarez’s cheery Provençal-themed restaurant on lower Fifth Avenue offers a Mediterranean-themed menu that features bowls of hummus touched with truffles, Moroccan tagines served in tall porcelain cones, and a variety of vegetable dishes. Some of the cooking can veer toward heaviness (the bouillabaisse en croute and chicken tagine are both big enough for two), so focus on the lighter dishes (warm lamb salad, tomatoes with toasted bulgur and mint, the excellent whole-roasted dorade) and save room for the toppling little pistachio cake, which is scattered with candied orange peel and layered with a smooth deposit of whipped cream.