Back at Bistro Provence in Slovakia - and Still Happy!

When travelling to a familiar place, it's always nice to revisit restaurants where you've had good meals and where you know you'll be satisfied.  Bistro Petite Provence in Bratislava, Slovakia is one of these for me, and today was the third time I've been there, visiting it each time I come.  And although the service isn't worth its salt, the quality of the food always makes me happy.

You must be thinking it's a little strange to be visiting a French restaurant when in Slovakia, but if you're familiar with Slovak cuisine, you'll know it's pretty heavy and saucy, so it's nice to take a break with something a little different.  I continue to like Petite Provence because it offers lighter food options such as fresh salads, crepes, open faced sandwiches, good wine and such.  Here are some of the new items we tried:

Spinach and Zucchini Crepe - I was excited by their hefty crepe selection, boasting both savory and sweet ones.  Gravitating to the savory, I chose the spinach and zucchini crepe, which was thin and delicious and stuffed with good quality fresh spinach, crescents of soft, roasted garlic, blue cheese and zucchini.  The mix of flavors was lovely, mild spinach juxtaposed with sharp garlic, salty blue cheese compared to the sweet zucchini - it was all very delicious and not too heavy.  I also enjoyed the generous side of mixed green salad, coupled also with diced beets, sweet corn, slivered carrots, all glazed with a light balsamic vinaigrette.

Sandwich and Salad Combos - My brother and dad both got sandwich and salad combos, my dad going for an open faced variety, while my brother choosing a traditional closed ciabatta.  Comparatively speaking, my dad's looked better and he said he really enjoyed it.  It looked gorgeous, decked generously with bright tomato slices, covered with melted stringy mozzarella cheese, and then sprinkled with fresh basil.  And the salad was the same as mine.

Peter's sandwich also looked good, but he was disappointed that it wasn't warmed up.  We encouraged him to send it back, but he was pretty hungry so he had it anyway, and sadly wasn't enthused.

Wine - Peter and I ordered 1 deci of red wine, served in Bistro's beautiful tall stemmed wine glasses.  Even though I always enjoy the wine here, I have to admit that a tiny reason I get it is to drink out of those gorgeous glasses.  We both ordered a glass of the jagnet, a dry red local wine that comes from the Southern part of Slovakia.  It's smooth and dry, with notes of plums and cinnamon.

Service and Cost:
As I already hinted above, the service at Bistro Provence isn't the best, but I always come back for the quality of the food. The waiters are slow to approach you and you don't really feel like they pay that much attention overall.  This of course warrants a poor tip, which is more customary in this part of the world.  And as I always say, you work for your tips, they don't come without effort.

Prices are moderate for Americans but a bit pricey for Slovaks:

Crepes: 5.99 Euro
Sandwiches: 5.99 Euro
Wine: 1.99 Euro/Glass

Bistro Petite Provence - Hviezdoslavovo Namestie 25, Bratislava, Slovakia

02 5441 0340

http://www.petiteprovence.sk/

My Parisian Food Tour...Sa Bonne

As you all know, my recent travels to France, Germany and the UK have certainly brought on some exciting food adventures.  One particular one I wanted to highlight here was the Gourmet French Food tour I took of the Latin Quarter.  It stands as one of the big highlights of my weekend there, as I got a glimpse of the local food scene from the perspective of a local.  

Tour Structure:
When I arrived in Paris for work, I knew I had to get business out of the way during the week, but the weekend was for fun and exploration.  I craved to uncover the amazing eats this city had to offer, but very much like in NY, you have to know where to find the good stuff.

I perused the web for interesting (and last minute) food programs and found this really neat sounding walking tour on Classic French Food on viator.com.  This site offers many other tours besides food related ones, and I ended up booking another bike tour of the city later that weekend.  But back to the food...

Easy instructions led me to the Latin Quarter in Paris, not far from the St. Germain neighborhood where we met our tour guide, Yves.  We took a few minutes to get acquainted with the group, which consisted of a healthy mix of Europeans and Americans.  You could pick the latter out without much effort, and even though they played up the stereotype pretty well, they were a sweet, older couple who seemed to be genuinely enjoying themselves.

After the pleasantries, we were off to explore the amazing world of French food, starting with the open food market near the Maubert/Mutualite metro stop.  After that, we strolled to about 4 or 5 different places of interest for food and also saw some really cool architectural sights and a few secret hidden gems that only our tour guide knew about.  The whole thing was quite cool, and I'd highly suggest it if you're curious about not only French food but also culture.

Our Guide:
I couldn't be happier with our guide, Yves.  He was charismatic, intelligent and so so passionate about Paris and all the amazing things it had to offer.  It was obvious he had a deep appreciation for food, but I think he also genuinely enjoyed showing us those secret little nuggets of Paris that only a true Parisian would know about.  

In fact, I liked the tour so much that I joined him later that day for another tour of Montmartre, a beautiful part of Paris known for the breathtaking Sacre Coeur church and the Moulin Rouge of course.

The Food:
The star ingredient of this tour was no doubt the food.  We hit up the open market, which was small yet lovely, with tons of fresh produce, some of which you see showcased in the above pictures.  Yves explained that while some of the produce was locally grown, not all of it fell into this category, and it was obvious by looking at the prices.  The fact that Yves paid about 6 Euro for a pint of gorgeous (but not local) raspberries was astounding.  $8 for raspberries...you gotta be kidding me!

A very cool food artisan that Yves introduced us to was the saucisson man - yep, that would be the sausage man.  The variety of cured sausages he displayed in his booth was just amazing, and we got to taste a lot of different varieties.  One in particular that stole my tastebuds was the fig thyme that had a little hint of sweetness at the finish and an overall sophisticated flavor.  I've never tasted anything like it and was only regretful I couldn't bring some home.

We also visited a beautiful little coffee shop that brews their own coffee and grinds the beans in this big, old fashioned pressure grinder.  It was just wild to see, and the end result was fantastic.  I had a cafe Americano, which smelled and tasted divine - it was strong and fragrant and really didn't need much of anything including milk, because the intense flavor was just too good to dilute.

The main highlight of the tour however was at the end, when we got to do a cheese and foie gras tasting.  Yves took us to Pierre Champion, a foie gras shop, where we got to taste wonderful duck foie on some really amazing crusty dark bread that we picked up along the way.  As for the cheese, we got this just a few doors down at Androuet, where we helped ourselves to a sampling of both hard and soft cheeses out of which the comte (a hard cheese with a slightly sweet finish), and the goat (tangy, creamy and earthy) were some my favorites.

Cost:
Considering how rich in taste, culture and fulfillment this tour was, the price of 90 Euro was more than worth it.  I met some lovely people, tasted amazing food and immersed myself in French culture. Tres magnifique!

To try this tour our on your own next time you're in Paris, visit Viator.com

L'Ecole's Delicious Bar Bites

It's been exactly a month since the French Culinary Institute's L'Ecole rolled out their bar menu. I'm always in the mood to dine at this modern (but not stuffy) French restaurant, run by the Institute's students and supervised by their instructors. The couple of times I've been so far has always proven to be a professional and gastronomically fulfilling experience, and this time was no different. My co-worker and friend, Leann accompanied me to sample this menu, which surpassed our expectations.

After a long work day, we sat down in the airy, open bar area to the right of the restaurant's entrance. Starting with a beer and then working our way through the menu, we tried the following items:

Escargot - A classically prepared version of this dish was a most welcome way to start things off. Resting in shallot, parsley-butter sauce, the escargot was an incredibly decadent prelude to our meal. The escargot was tender and not chewy or fishy tasting, which can sometimes plague this specialty. After we gobbled up the main parts of this dish, we continued to dip the freshly made French baguettes into the sauce. Pure yumminess!

Goat Cheese Croquette and Salad - Our second appetizer was a must, as we both have a love affair with goat cheese. The croquette was warm and crispy on the outside, yet perfectly soft and melty on the inside. Its tanginess was offset by slightly bitter leafy greens, roasted Bermuda onions and sweet beets. I love beets in anything and a combination with the goat cheese was a match made in heaven.

Moules Frites - What better way to enjoy timeless French cuisine than with an order of mussels and frites? I liked that L'Ecole's version was uncomplicated and familiar, the mussels floating in a traditional garlic, white wine, shallots and parsley sauce. The mussels themselves were meaty and flavored by this fragrant sauce. It goes without saying that we lunged for the frites and kept dipping them in the concoction even after the mussels were demolished.

Gruyere Bacon Burger - Appreciating a nice, hearty burger, this one came on a beautifully grilled brioche bun. The meat was cooked to a perfect medium texture, leaving you with one juicy bite after another. Further dressed with thick-cut bacon that had a nice smoky essence and some tangy gruyere cheese, it was yet another item that hit the spot. Since the burger was substantial in size, Leann and I split it, creating the perfect portion.

Dessert - Even though we were running out of room, we just couldn't ignore dessert and ordered the two things on the menu - a creme brulee and chocolate bread pudding. Both were delicious and very rich - the creme brulee was actually on the lighter side with a nicely solidified sugar crust that was fun to break. The interior custard was light and clean on the palate with a distinct vanilla aftertaste.

The chocolate bread pudding was a heavier dish, but given that Leann and I are both chocoholics, we didn't have a problem with it. Topped with a crunchy almond cookie and a scoop of simple, vanilla ice cream that added a nice juxtaposition in texture, this dessert presented a dramatic finish to the meal.

Drinks - As I mentioned, Leann and I paired our food with beer. I chose the Rogue Mocha Porter that had a lot of body and a bittersweet malty flavor - it was a great winter beer - while Leann went with the Fire Island Frozen Tail that was also on the darker, richer side.

Service and Cost:
Dutifully served by our bartender, we didn't feel neglected at all and our food was brought out in good time. We liked the casual feel of the bar, and loved observing the goings-on of the restaurant in between.

Bar menu prices are very affordable and include the following:

Starters - $8 - $11
Entrees - $12 - $15
Sides - $5
Desserts - $8

Also, remember that you have another week to take advantage of a free cocktail deal, when you mention "The Foodista" at the bar with any order. This offer expires on March 15th.

3 Mmmms

L'Ecole - 462 Broadway, New York NY 10013
212.219.3300
6 Train to Spring Street
www.frenchculinary.com/lecole