The West Branch Restaurant in New York City

Being big fans of Chef Tom Valenti's Ouest, a nice high-end restaurant on the Upper West Side, we were eager to try West Branch, his cheaper, more casual restaurant that he opened late last year.

Billed as a neighborhood joint whose menu will be easy on the wallet, we found that West Branch was actually quite pricey for what it was. The food overall was good, not great, and we would likely save our money for a nice meal at Ouest than return to West Branch. Here was the run-down of our meal:

Cheddar Gougeres ($8): These French cheese puffs were so good! They were light and highly addictive! It was our favorite part of the meal.

Fish and Chips ($20): The fish was very crispy and overall the dish was good. However, for $20, we could venture out to many other great fish and chip shops (Chip Shop in Brooklyn, A Salt & Battery in the West Village) in New York for twice as much food and better quality.

Our friends had the Fettuccine entree (above, $18) and the Steak Frites (below, $31).

Duck Confit ($19): "Charcuterie" with house-made pork and fennel sausage over sauerkraut. The dish was a little greasy but still tasted good. We would pair this with a refreshing beer.

The West Branch is located at 2178 Broadway Ave (W 77th St).