What to do if you don’t quite have the dough for a full meal at Le Gourmand? Easy. Go to Sambar, the smaller, cheaper, just-as-wonderful neighbor to Ballard’s best French restaurant. Stylish Sambar is known primarily for cocktails: Try the Pear Sour, made with Clear Creek pear brandy and pear nectar, plus a little something sweet and a little something sour. Standards like the French 75 (gin, Cointreau, lemon juice, and champagne) are executed perfectly, but Sambar’s signature drinks are divine, so this is the perfect place to ditch your usual order and have something new. You should also be sure to try something from their minimalist menu, which mimics Le Gourmand’s. Belgian-style frites and croque monsieurs are a refreshing sight in old Ballard—then again, in this pop-art setting, almost nothing seems out of place. A few words on what not to do: Don’t bring a big group of friends (the space is quite small), don’t be in a hurry (the service sure ain’t), and don’t mistake Sambar for a discount sister shop. The fancy drinks start at 10 bucks, and they’re so good that before you know it, you’ve run up quite a bill. LAURA CASSIDY 425 N.W. Market St., 206-781-4883. BALLARD