Tersiguel's French Country Restaurant in Ellicott City has always been a family affair. Fernand and Odette Tersiguel, who hail from Brittany, France, opened the first version as Chez Fernand in 1975. Their son, Michel, now runs the business and is the chef.

But they faced challenges along the way. In the early days, there was a flood, a fire and a move to Baltimore. The family settled back into Ellicott City in 1990 as Tersiguel's, continuing to serve delicious French country cuisine until disaster struck this summer.

During a severe storm in July, 9-foot-high floodwaters destroyed equipment, wine, food and utilities in the restaurant's basement. There was no flood insurance.

But family, staff and friends pitched in to help restore the late-19th-century building on Main Street.

Money was raised on a GoFundMe page. A waiter painted the upstairs floors. Michel Tersiguel's mother-in-law sewed window treatments.

The charming restaurant with the deep-blue awnings and romantic dining rooms reopened its doors in late October. It hasn't missed a beat in the kitchen.

The menu has changed, though. It's smaller, with eight appetizers, a soup and eight entrees, not quite half of what was offered previously.

“It's really seasonal now,” said Michel Tersiguel, who is a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America. “I'm going to the market and preparing food every day or two days.”

Tersiguel's isn't necessarily a special-occasion restaurant, but it feels special with its homey setting, cabinet of pretty Breton dishes, crisp white tablecloths, weighty flatware and soft lighting.

French wines by the glass or bottle rule at the restaurant. Our waiter, who told us he had been in the service industry for three decades, was an affable guide to the wines, offering us sample tastes.

We started with a fabulous country pate made with pork butt and jowl meat accompanied by cornichons and spicy seeded mustard.

The dill-marinated bluefish was a delightful surprise, with slivers of fish delivered in a charred-onion vinaigrette and adorned with ruby-red grapefruit sections.

We also enjoyed the potato-leek soup, dramatically finished at the table. A tennis ball-size mound of potatoes, garlic and calamari poutine sat alone in the center of a large bowl until a server surrounded it with broth.

We are not sure what happened with the crab appetizer. But it was a disaster—though the only one of the evening. The crust was baked to a worrisome dark brown with black tinges, and inside was a gloppy mess of crab claw meat overpowered by garlic. We couldn't even taste the seafood.

But greater dishes were awaiting us. The filet mignon was magnificent. The fat steak was butterflied and coated with Dijon mustard before being reassembled to its original shape and grilled. It arrived at the table sporting a wonderful green peppercorn sauce, attended by a potato Dauphinoise sidekick. The rich potato dish was creamy, garlicky and addictive.

We also tucked into double-loin lamb chops from Pennsylvania's Elysian Fields Farm that were tender and juicy, befitting their provenance. It was a magnificent dish with a Roquefort sauce, roasted sweet potatoes, Bosc pears and wilted greens.

The organic salmon was a success with a Jerusalem artichoke sauce, roasted rutabagas and portobello mushrooms.

The classic French dish, coquilles St. Jacques, gets a modern update in Tersiguel's kitchen. The pan-seared scallops were set like compass points around a red-beet risotto with a passion-fruit vinaigrette base. It was a clever combination of flavors, but we thought the $38 price tag warranted more than four scallops.

If you order one dessert, make it the tart lemon curd with Chantilly cream and a cascade of blueberries, raspberries and blackberries.

A floating island is a traditional French dessert. In Tersiguel's polished interpretation, a pillow of pistachio mousse and a poached whipped egg white drift on a pond of cardamom saffron creme anglaise for regal effect.

The flourless chocolate cake was a luxurious wedge, paired with chocolate mousse, whipped cream and, the piece de resistance, a dark-cherry compote.

Keeping a family treasure like Tersiguel's in business is important. The owners have worked hard to make a culinary impact on Howard County and the rest of the metropolitan area.

Vive la France in Ellicott City.