Since January this year, we have not had a quiet weekend of simply doing nothing. There has been some event, a function, or an outing or just something that has us out of the house in the morning and back only late at night. Work has been hectic too and overall we have been really busy... which is a good thing and I ain't complaining. But what I really miss is a completely laidback weekend, with nothing other than lounging about on the bean bags and... well nothing.
One of these weekends we wanted to have a really long and nice lunch and headed out with the intention of going to Le Cristaal. Sudhakar said he knew the way since a colleague has been raving about the place and soon enough we landed at our destination... which I suddenly realized was not Le Cristaal, but the front doorstep of Jacques Le Brasserie. Now I for one had not heard of this place till we had our car parked in front of it that afternoon. I was all for winging it.
As we walked in, we were flanked by two wooden shelves with wine bottles on it. I silently smiled to myself. I was already liking the place. There was a choice of sitting indoors or in a very green semi-outdoors. I preferred the indoors and we got comfortable. The menus we got were extensive and almost instantly I had one of those - 'I want one of everything on the menu' moments. The menu has salad choices that are brilliant (my salad-loving mom will be so happy here), there are crocqs and pastas and pot pies and gratins and range of eggs in all forms, crepes- sweet and savoury, platters of cheese and starters, main courses galore... You can see why I was at a loss.
We ordered the potato and bacon salad along with a mocktail Beauty Spot and a Jacques Paradise. I was so happy to see a kiddie menu which offered a piece of hot or cold chicken with fries and a cold drink.
While we waited, we were brought a complimentary set of non-vegetarian starters - chicken and spinach. Nice, not greasy, with the spinach still tasting fresh despite being deep fried.
The chicken and spinach complimentary starters
The restaurant from where we sat
The Pink Beauty spot and Jacques Paradise
For the life of me now I can't remember what went into our mocktails. I really liked mine which am guessing was a berry based one and Sudhakar's, I have no clue. Come to think of it, he didn't give me a sip. Our salad arrived and all our attention I guess was focused on it. Lovely little baby potatoes with bacon. The bacon here is exceptionally good. Jacques, who always answers with a quaint "Oui" told us that it comes from Germany. Not salty at all like the ones you get here and really, really delicious.
Potato and bacon salad
Anoushka's meal came at the same time and it was just what I would be happy with. A nice grilled piece of thigh and leg, french fries and she was given a choice of a fizzy drink and a juice - she opted for apple juice. It was quite the moist chicken (yeah I snuck a bite!).
The kiddie meal
Now the hard part for us was trying to decide on the menu. We did a lot of back and forth for mains while slowly enjoying the starter, when suddenly Sudhakar put down the menu and called on Jacques. "Oui" came the reply and we told him we would leave the choice to him - we were good with anything, bland was not an issue and we were open. Instantly he suggested a "a filet mignon with gratin for the gentleman and a baked fish with bacon for the lady". Why not we said. He then added that this was best savored with a red wine for Sudhakar and a white one for me.. But of course we said. We opted to go with Indian wines - Big Banyan Limited Red for Sudhakar and a Vindiva Sauvignon Blanc for me.
Big Banyan Limited Red and a Vindiva Sauvignon Blanc
Sudhakar's filet mignon came draped with a creamy sauce and generous block of gratin. I wish we had the patience to take a photo of the filet when we sliced through. Now that was a perfect medium rare piece. But tummy won over and we dug in. Slicing through needed just a gentle nudge with the knife. The gratin was layered with a creamy white sauce and made this meal are really indulgent one. I personally would have preferred a little less of the sauce, but Sudhakar felt it went perfectly.
Beef Filet Mignon with gratin
My fish came still wrapped in foil and was opened up in front of me. Just the whiff of the bacon laden steam that emanated from it was enough to trigger a tsunami in the mouth. The filet of basa (hmmm) was quite a long one and I was confident of finishing it up before Sudhakar could be done with his. But the butter-cream sauce that it was baked with was the deceptively heavy player here. And of course there was bacon, how can you go wrong with that. There was also a zucchini-bellpepper agli olio pasta on the side which was a great main course.
Basa Fish fillet baked with bacon
We just had to have desserts. At this point Sudhakar walked away to check out their wine collection. Jacques came by and I told him we wanted just one dessert to share and something that was not coffee-based. He inquired on whether we both didn't like coffee and was pleased to hear that I was the only weird one. He told me to sit back and relax while he brought on "something special that I have in mind".
What came was the Cafe Gourmand. On this lovely platter came two long slices of banana soaked with hot toffee that was hardening into those lovely slivers just as we were digging into them. There was also a chocolate crepe that was oh so divine - the crepe was soft and the chocolate gooey, warm and not cloyingly sweet. And to freshen the mouth, a fresh fruit salad of strawberries, kiwi and banana. There was a little cup of coffee too for the Mister and he loved it.
When the bill finally came through, it was accompanied with three chocolate truffles - a taste of which I carried with me for a long time.
Cafe Gourmand
Chocolate truffles
For a restaurant that we entered by fluke, this turned out to be a fabulously wonderful meal. Jacques does breakfast as well and I am definitely going to try that out soon. The meal was close to Rs 3000, but I felt everything was worth the money. The loo was clean.
Address: 25/4, Lavelle Road.
Phone: 42107222
Cuisine: French
Wallet factor: Rs 1500 for two
Wallet factor: Rs 1500 for two
Accepts Cards: Yes
Parking: Limited space outside the restaurant
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