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Cest La Vie, Sarasota, FL

Cest La Vie

4.8
4.8
142 Reviews
$30 and under
French

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2 people
19:00
Booked 3 times today
  • Neighbourhood gem
  • Great for fine wines
  • Good for special occasions
C'est la Vie Downtown! Authentic French Bistrot. Serving Classic French cuisine in a rustic provençal atmosphere. Only downtown location is doing dinner.
We also offer a spacious outdoor dinning garden terrace with a beautiful shady oak tree and illuminating string lights.
Our Artisan bakery and the quality of our pastries will have you feeling like you are in the heart of Paris.
Opened since 1997 by Christophe and Geraldine Coutelle, we collected over the years many awards from Best French Restaurant to Best french bakery. Located on Main street - Downtown Sarasota.
Come and join us for a delightful evening.

Additional information

  • Dining style
    Fine Dining
  • Price
    $30 and under
  • Cuisines
    French
  • Hours of Operation
    Mon, Tue 07:30–18:00 Wed, Thu 07:30–21:00 Fri, Sat 07:30–21:30 Sun 08:30–21:00 Dinner Wed, Thu, Sun 17:00–21:00 Fri, Sat 17:00–21:30
  • Phone number
    (941) 906-9575
  • Payment Options
    AMEX, Discover, Mastercard, Visa
  • Dress code
    Casual Dress
  • Executive Chef
    Olivier Orion

What 142 people are saying

Overall ratings and reviews

Reviews can only be made by diners who have eaten at this restaurant

4.8
4.8 based on recent ratings
  • 4.7Food
  • 4.9Service
  • 4.6Ambience
  • 4.8Value

NoiseModerate

Loved For

  • Tampa / Central Florida West

    Best Value

  • Tampa / Central Florida West

    Neighbourhood gem

  • Tampa / Central Florida West

    Great for fine wines

  • Tampa / Central Florida West

    Good for special occasions

  • Tampa / Central Florida West

    French

  • Sarasota / Bradenton

    Best Value

  • Sarasota / Bradenton

    Neighbourhood gem

  • Sarasota / Bradenton

    Great for fine wines

  • Sarasota / Bradenton

    Good for special occasions

Review summary

AI-generated from verified diner reviews
C'est La Vie in Sarasota offers an authentic French dining experience with standout escargot, lamb shank, and gluten-free desserts. Highlights include "wonderful food and experience," "authentic French cuisine," and "excellent French restaurant." The cozy ambiance and attentive service enhance the experience, while the bakery offers irresistible pastries. Perfect for breakfast, lunch, or dinner.

142 Reviews
  1. susan

    Greater Boston8 reviews

    5.0

    Dined on 2 March 2025

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    So glad we found this gem while vacationing in Sarasota. Went on a Saturday night and only made the reservation that afternoon. We were given the choice of outside or in, and chose outside. It was a beautiful March evening for us Bostonians and the scene on the street was lively. Cool cars cruising Main St and lots of people strolling the sidewalk. Shared escargots with baguette. I ordered traditional buckwheat crepe with cheese, leeks, and tomato - came with crisp salad. A chilled glass of chardonnay (good pour) was perfect. Husband had lamb shank came with lentils - very healthy portions. He said it was probably the best lamb shank he ever had. They have a french bakery onsite and we bought almond croissants for Sunday morning breakfast - they were delicious!

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  2. Charl VIP

    New York City10 reviews

    4.0

    Dined on 26 February 2025

    1. Overall 4
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 3
    Wish the heat lamps were working outside Otherwise the food and service was excellent! Thank you!

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  3. Jane VIP

    Tampa46 reviews

    4.0

    Dined on 22 February 2025

    1. Overall 4
    2. Food 4
    3. Service 4
    4. Ambience 4
    Lovely inside dining. All our entrees and appetizers were delicious with generous servings. The four of us each had something different-mussels, salad, escargot, French onion soup, beef Bourgogne and Branzino! Service with just the right timing too. We will happily dine there again.

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  4. Gennadiy

    Dallas9 reviews

    5.0

    Dined on 14 February 2025

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    Piece of France in Sarasota, FL - thank you for the nice escape!

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  5. Elizabeth VIP

    Tampa40 reviews

    4.0

    Dined on 9 February 2025

    1. Overall 4
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    Really good food prep, especially the mussels special which was perfect — very fresh plump tender mussels in steaming hot delicious garlic wine broth. Only thing keeping it from 5 star overall was barely warm potatoes served with croque monsieur sandwich, which was nicely made and generous on the ingredients, and the barely lukewarm coffee. Outdoor setting on Main Streetis fun and charming but loud. Loud music from across the street, it wasn’t bad, just loud, and noisy motorcycles love trolling the main drag

    1 person found this helpful

  6. Jay VIP

    Grand Rapids8 reviews

    5.0

    Dined on 5 January 2025

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 4
    This was our second visit and it was terrific again. Food. Was delicious, our server was attentive and the wine prices r amazing. Not to mention the pastries we grabbed 4 breakfast the next morning. Great.place!

    1 person found this helpful

  7. Ritu

    New York City9 reviews

    5.0

    Dined on 3 January 2025

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 3
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    Their menu should include more vegetarian dishes.

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  8. anna

    Tampa7 reviews

    5.0

    Dined on 7 December 2024

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    Terrific spot owned by Christophe and Geraldine who have shared authentic French foods for over quarter century.

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  9. David

    Tampa3 reviews

    5.0

    Dined on 23 November 2024

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    We found the ambience and the food and wine to be excellent at this gem of a restaurant. Very French, very authentic and nice and quiet. Highly recommend it. For the quality, the prices were quite favorable.

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  10. TamaraH VIP

    Tampa16 reviews

    5.0

    Dined on 3 July 2024

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    Very nice family run restaurant with great French cuisine and good prices. Their special 3 course menu has great choices. Nice ambiance. We will come back. Thanks.

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FAQs

Cest La Vie is rated 4.8 stars by 142 OpenTable diners.

Yes, you can generally book this restaurant by choosing the date, time and party size on OpenTable.

Make a booking

2 people
19:00
Booked 3 times today
Google Map for Cest La Vie

1553 Main St, Sarasota, FL 34236

Additional information

  • Area
    Sarasota
  • Hours of Operation
    Mon, Tue 07:30–18:00 Wed, Thu 07:30–21:00 Fri, Sat 07:30–21:30 Sun 08:30–21:00 Dinner Wed, Thu, Sun 17:00–21:00 Fri, Sat 17:00–21:30
  • Price
    $30 and under
  • Cuisines
    French
  • Dining style
    Fine Dining
  • Dress code
    Casual Dress
  • Parking details
    Street Parking
  • Payment Options
    AMEX, Discover, Mastercard, Visa
  • Executive Chef
    Olivier Orion
  • Additional
    Beer, Cafe, Corkage Fee, Gluten-free Options, Non-Smoking, Wine
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use
  • Impressum
  • Cookies and Interest-Based Ads
  • Cookie Preferences
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