Even before Ha’s Snack Bar cemented itself as the place to be seen eating oeufs mayo on the Lower East Side, rumors of a follow-up were swirling: The couple behind the snack bar, which is one of our highest-rated restaurants, would open another restaurant right around the corner from their first. It would be bigger, better, and more fun, with a larger menu, a full liquor license, and every single type of Coke on offer. There would be steak frites, but kind of Vietnamese, with fish sauce in the au poivre. (The other French bistros could never.) Bistrot Ha is bigger, but not by much. There are more seats, and real tables, but it’s still small enough that you’ll have to apologize for knocking into someone at least once. They do have every kind of Coke (and steak frites, sometimes). The menu is longer, and less consistent, than the chalkboard at the snack bar, but Bistrot Ha is more fun. It’s a cramped, boisterous, New York City version of the Parisian bistro—better suited to a night out than an in-depth analysis of every dish. The kind of night out where, after a couple of lychee cosmos, you head outside to use the smoker’s pole and find a chef doing the exact same thing. If you want to know why everyone’s talking about these two restaurants where fish sauce is as crucial as butter, we’d prioritize a visit to Ha’s Snack Bar. Especially because it’s now far easier to get a table there. Bistrot Ha is hot, in-demand, and a little bit annoying. If it feels like you got stuck on a waiting list because the person behind you knows the host’s last name, you’re probably onto something. The Bistrot’s lower points are also more obvious because there are things to compare them to so nearby. Their version of leeks vinaigrette, for example, is good—heavy on the Maggi seasoning, with a commendable amount of mayo—but not as exceptional as the oeufs mayo at Ha’s Snack Bar. And though these people have never made a boring crudo, the ones here have never measured up to the thick slices of pounded tuna we ate around the corner. If you do secure a coveted four-person table at Bistrot Ha, take three people who live for one more round of cosmos, plus a table full of pork trotters and pate and boudin noir. Focus on things they can’t do around the corner, like hefty cuts of meat and the flambéd ice cream bombe. As long as it's still available, the daily special is also a requirement—especially if it's the steak frites. Whatever you get, it’s nearly impossible to leave without feeling very full. Sure there’s salad on the menu, but who’s ordering that when you could eat beef hearts? Take the opportunity to drink fish sauce-spiked martinis until they politely but efficiently bring you the check. And rest assured, they will. This isn’t Paris, after all. It's New York, and you're taking up one of the hottest tables in town.