Readers may recall (or not) that some years ago we had a fantastic dining experience with delectable French fare. Sometime during the pandemic, it unfortunately closed down and in its place sprang La Belle Vie Bistro & Bar. Celebrating Queen V's birthday this year, we decided to see if we could recreate our last experience and made a reservation for dinner.
The place was conspicuously empty when we arrived and only filled up about half way at most during our meal. The menu was definitely French inspired and arranged by way of course. It did not take too long for us to decide on our order.
Starting with beverages, I had a rose, one companion had some champagne and the other a white. These were chilled and appetizing, however the pressure we were given to continuously order drinks through the night was decidedly unappetizing. Despite my glass still not being empty, I was asked at least on four occasions through out the meal to order another drink, which was very excessive.
We were also provided with complimentary bread, when the waitress put the bread down she asked if we wanted butter to go with the bread. Assuming it was also complimentary, we said yes. The butter was very delicious but it would have been better to inform us that it did come with a charge rather than having it just show up on the bill after.
It didn't take too long for our starters to come, first up was the Chevre, a aaked Crottin d'Antan cheese, Provençal herbs infused honey. The cheese was rich and decadent, it was lucky we had the honey to cut through the creaminess. I was surprised that it wasn't served with a biscotti or the like, but instead a side salad. We ended up enjoying it with the complementary bread.
Our second starter was the Thon which was a seared cajun spiced tuna with szechuan pepper infused mayonnaise. Coincidentally, it was three pieces which was just right for the three of us. Having said that, the portion was small for an entree. The tuna wasn't too fresh, and the szechuan pepper wasn't too spicy either. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't anything special.
Not too long after our entrees, but after several offers for more drinks, our mains came. One of our table wanted a lighter option, so went for the Gnocchi, pan fried with mushrooms, pine nuts and gruyere cheese. Although the menu stated it to be pan fried, what we were served was almost certainly deep fried, very crispy but also very greasy, which detracted from it being the 'light' option. The mushrooms were also a bit overcooked and burnt, whilst the cheese was cold and un-melted on top. Overall a surprisingly disappointing dish which I could have done better at home.
My pick of the evening was the Caille, a mustard glazed Brisbane Valley Quail served with honey and spice sauce, swede puree and sautéed broccolini. I am a huge fan of Brisbane Valley Quail, having had them numerous times at Regional Flavours as well as Nota, but this iteration fell short of the mark. It was overcooked, quite dry and a bit burnt in places like the wing. The sauce covered up a bit but not all that much and the side of swede puree and brocolini were average but overall the portion wasn't really big for a main.
No French restaurant is really complete without its own take on Steak Frites. This was the Tournedos, a pasture- fed eye fillet topped with beurre café de Paris, red wine jus and served with a side of French fries. The fries were fine, they were fresh and crispy, which is all you really need. Some extra sauce would have been nice, but we were able to dip it in the steak juices. The steak itself was very small, however also very thick, making up for it. The sauce was fine, nothing particularly special.
We had two desserts to share, this was the Citron, a lemon and meringue tart with red berries compote. The tart base was quite thick and hard which I didn't enjoy, but the filling was tart and not too rich, providing a good contrast for our second dessert.
Our second dessert was the decadent Chocolat. It comprised of a dark chocolate dome, raspberry heart, mint & raspberry soup with candied almond. This was very rich and sweet, luckily we shared it rather than having to enjoy a whole portion by myself.
To sum up, I couldn't say that I had a good time at La Belle Vie. With the competitive nature of the restaurant industry, there are many better French restaurants in town and I see no reason to come back to this one.
Taste: 4/10
Value: 4/10
Service: 3/10
Environment: 7/10
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