Bleu Provence, Naples, FL - Great Food and an Amazing Wine List

A special friend and I recently had dinner at Bleu Provence (https://www.bleuprovencenaples.com/), a remarkable restaurant in Naples, FL. Not only are the food, atmosphere, and service terrific, but its wine selection and service are so good that, since 2015, it has been a winner of Wine Spectator's Grand Award, which is awarded to only 100 restaurants world wide.

We sat out on the back patio, with its very romantic atmosphere. It was partially bordered by trees and was covered.

We both had the three-course, $35 early dining menu, and a nice red wine.

The three-course meal consists of an appetizer, a main dish, and dessert. The dishes we had were all delicious.

When I started perusing the wine list to find a wine, I was very surprised at how lengthy it was. I had only seen wine lists so large at a few restaurants in my life. most notably at Antica Bottega del Vino in Verona, Italy, and at Bern's Steak House in Tampa.

Our superb waiter explained that Bleu Provence was a 2019 winner of Wine Spectator's Grand Award. When I checked the appropriate edition of Wine Spectator at home, I read that Bleu Provence, with nearly 4,000 wine selections, had received the Grand Award every year since 2015. There are only four Florida restaurants who received that award in 2019 - Bern's in Tampa, one in Palm Beach, and one in West Palm Beach.

The appetizer my friend chose was salmon marinated in citrus vinaigrette, and served with strawberries and vinaigrette. Not only was it tasty, but the serving size was generous.

My appetizer was Provençal Soup served with gruyère cheese, rouille sauce, and croutons.

We chose the same wonderful Duck Leg Confit as a main dish. It had an orange and Grand Marnier demi-glace, and was served with Mango Fries and Sweet Potatoes gratin.

For dessert, we both enjoyed the Lemon Tart Meringue.

The wine I chose was a 2015 Barruol Tiercerolles, Crozes-Hermitage Syrah from the northern Rhône. It was excellent.

The Early Dining Menu is only available from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday through Wednesday.

After our meal, Alex took us to visit the very impressive wine cellar.

The restaurant has been in the Crayton Cove area of Naples since 1999. The owners, Lysielle and Jacques Cariot, operate the restaurant with their three sons. They are from Provence.

During normal times, I highly recommend reservations.

Paris Bistrot, Lakewood Ranch - A Long-Time Favorite

Paris Bistrot (https://www.parisbistrotlwr.com/) on Lakewood Ranch Main St. is a long-time favorite. Not only does it offer authentic French bistro food in a pleasant atmosphere, and with excellent service, but it also provides me an opportunity to speak a few words of French. I usually eat there at least four times per year and am always very happy.

The other night, my sister, a special friend, and I shared a wonderful evening there.

The three of us chose the $28.90 "Chef's Menu" of one appetizer and one main dish. Everything we had was terrific.

The appetizer my sister and my friend chose was the Hot Brie Salad of Brie cheese on toast, with honey, lettuce, and tomatoes. I had the country paté, which I choose nearly every time I dine there.

Both ladies had the Pork Parmesan - pork tenderloin medallions in a puff pastry with a cream of parmesan cheese and shredded prosciutto.

I had Chicken Normande - diced chicken breast and mushrooms flambéed in Cognac with a cream sauce.

The Chef's Menu meals always include a vegetable plus a choice of rice or potatoes Dauphinois.

For dessert, my friend and I shared Crêpes Suzettes with orange marmelade and flambéed with Grand Marnier for $8.90.

I finished my meal with a cup of espresso.

I chose the wine I almost always have there - a St. Cosme Cotes-du-Rhone. It's always good and sells for $33 a bottle. This was a 2017.

Great Crêperie in Montmartre - Sur la Route de Plouescat

On a recent trip to Paris, friends and I enjoyed incredible crêpes at Sur la Route de Plouescat (http://surlaroutedeplouescat.fr/en), a small crêperie in Montmartre. While there are lots of eateries near the Sacré-Coeur Basilica, this one is located at 4 Rue Lamarck, in a residential area to the right of the basilica where most tourists don't go.

The crêperie has an extensive crêpe menu with at least seventeen main-course, gluten-free, buckwheat crêpes and thirteen dessert wheat flour crêpes. In French, the buckwheat crêpes are known as galettes de sarrasin and the wheat flour crêpes as crêpes de froment. The galettes are originally from Upper Brittany and the crêpes – from Lower Brittany. (The name of the restaurant means, “On the Route to Plouescat.” Plouescat is a seaside resort town in Brittany.)

I had a crêpe complète (fried egg, ham, and cheese) plus onions for €8.80 ($10.30) and a glass of rosé from Provence for €4 ($4.68). My crêpe was fantastic and filling. 

The service was friendly and efficient.

The crêperie is fairly small. We found seats when we arrived around noon, but it quickly filled up. 

You can find pictures of the crêpes and reviews on TripAdvisor.

Dinner with Alexis - A Wonderful Parisian Chef

Two friends and I recently had a great experience dining at the home of a terrific Parisian chef – Alexis. We arranged a dinner through EatWith (https://www.eatwith.com/ ), which facilitates local dining experiences in over 130 countries.

We chose Alexis for several reasons – the menu he offered, his reviews, and his location in Paris. We could not have made a better choice. He prepared a menu of French-style dishes with his own special touches. The food was terrific and Alexis was a marvelous host, with a great sense of humor. His residence was very spacious. My friends and I were joined by a delightful British couple.

Alexis served an incredible dinner of:

- Gougères – cheese puff pastries with Comté and Emmental cheeses

- Quenelles – a soup-like dish of goat cheese whipped with cream, with fresh tarragon and parsley, shallots, a hint of white burgundy, crispy chestnuts, and parsnips

- Roasted pork from Brittany, over potato galette (a savory potato pancake with garlic, nutmeg, and dried Provençal herbs), with roasted mushrooms, gravy infused with tarragon, and red wine sauce.

- Chocolate Ganache dessert with Jivara milk chocolate, infused with  coffee beans, with fresh pears, purée of pear with cardamom, meringue, and almond streusel.

The wines Alexis served were a 2017 Château de la Presle Sauvignon Blanc from the Touraine area and a 2015 Château Colbert Côtes de Bourg  Merlot – Cabernet Sauvignon – Cabernet Franc.

The cost of the meal was about $71 per person. I first set up an EatWith account, After that, I requested a specific evening. When that was confirmed, I paid in advance by credit card. One could cancel up to two days in advance and receive a refund.

The EatWith web site shows the locations of the chefs, the types of food they offer, the reviews, and the prices.

I highly recommend Alexis and the EatWith experience.

Armand's Place French Tavern, Sarasota - Must Try

In recent weeks, I've been remiss in posting about our great restaurant experiences because I've been tied up in the publication of my novel, Team Triad. However, I have to write about the great lunch we had today at Armand's Place (http://armandsplace.com/) on St. Armand's Circle in Sarasota. Our meal was terrific. It is authentic and offers a selection of dishes that is different than other Sarasota French restaurants. The owner/chef Alexandre, a recent Parisian arrival, is warm, friendly, and talented.

My wife and I both had the three-course "Light Menu" which offers an appetizer, entrée and dessert for $19. There is an extra $2 charge for certain appetizers and desserts. There is a nice number of selections for each course. There is also a two-course "Light Menu" for $16. There are also many à la carte choices.

My wife and I both had the pâté et cornichons appetizer (country pâté, French pickles, and baguette slices). This was one of the extra charge appetizers. It was superb.

My wife's main course was Crepe Strasbourg - with cheese, fried egg, and sausage. Mine was the Crepe Bordeaux - with cheese, fried egg, ground lamb, and mushrooms. Both crepes were terrific.

We both had the same dessert - Crepe Sucre Citron - lemon and sugar crepe. They were delicious.

My wife's drink was a Raspberry Bellini - raspberry purée and champagne - $7.50.

I had two different glasses of wine. The first was a 2010 Chateau le Monge Côtes de Bourg for $8. It was past its prime. The second was a 2015 Raymond Fabre Côtes du Rhône for $8. It was very tasty.

The decor of Armand's Place is light and airy.

Alexandre kindly spoke French slowly and clearly to me so I could practice my French.

If we lived closer to Armand's Place, I could easily become addicted.

Rick's French Bistro, Sarasota - Magnifique!

Last night, we enjoyed a terrific dinner with friends at Rick's French Bistro (http://www.ricksfrenchbistro.com/) in Sarasota.We are grateful to our friends for suggesting this terrific restaurant. Every bite was wonderful.

My wife and I share an appetizer of Cognac Country Pâté (Pâté de Campagne au Cognac) for $10.95. It was wonderful.

For her main course, my wife enjoyed Grilled Lamb Chops with Provençal Herbs (Cotes d'Agneau aux Fines Herbes de Provence) for $27.50. They were perfect.

My main course was Chef Michele's Duck Cassoulet (Le Canard du Chef Michele) with sausage, white beans, onions, cognac, and white wine sauce for $30.50. It was magnificent!!!!!

For dessert, my wife had chocolate mousse for $7 and I had Crêpes à l'Orange for $7.50. Both were delicious.

Our wine was a nice Paul Bouchard Côtes du Rhône for $33.95.

As is often the case with bistros, the menu and wine list are relatively short, but they cover a variety of types.

The owners of Rick's are Michele and Richard who are from Amiens, north of Paris. Michele is the chef.

Rick's is very popular, so reservations are very important.

Rendez-Vous - Terrific French Bakery and Deli in Sarasota

My wife and I recently enjoyed delicious sandwiches and pastries from Rendez-Vous French Bakery and Delicatessen (http://www.rendezvoussarasota.com/) on Clark Road in Sarasota. 

We each had a sandwich for lunch and took home some pastries for breakfast. They were all delicious.

Her sandwich was La Riviera, with chicken, sun-dried tomatoes, romaine lettuce, mayonnaise, and chives on a French baguette for $7.75

Mine was Le Campagnard, with French paté, French pickles, and romaine lettuce on a French baguette for $7.95.

The sandwiches were not only delicious, but the size was generous. We could probably have split a single sandwich.

The breakfast pastries we chose were:
- Almond
- Almond and chocolate
- Apple

In addition to sandwiches and pastries, Rendez-Vous serves omelettes, quiches, salads, and soups. 

They're open from 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday through Saturday; and 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. on Sunday. They're closed on Monday.

Can't wait to go back.

A French Dinner at Home with Friends

We recently enjoyed a French dinner at home with two other couples with whom we share an appreciation for French food and France. The emphasis was on Provençal cuisine, but not all of the dishes were unique to Provence. Each of the other couples brought dishes, and I prepared dishes.

The menu was:

Appetizer: Baguette with a Provençal tapenade, which one couple had brought from Provence. The baguette was a Fresh Market artisanal baguette

Soup: Soupe au Pistou, a Provençal soup, which I made with an excellent Ina Garten recipe.

Main Dish: Daube, a Provençal stew, which one friend made. His was much tastier than the daubes I have tried in Provence.

Side Dishes:
1. Pâté de Campagne (country pate), a terrific Epicurious.com recipe, which I made.
2. Champignons à la Grecque (Greek mushroom salad - a French recipe. I made it, but thought it was nothing special.)

Dessert: A delicious home-made vanilla ice cream, which one of our friends made. She brought delicious two provençal toppings - chestnut (marrons) and cassis (blackcurrant)

The wines I served were:
- Parallele 45, a Grenache-Syrah Côtes du Rhône by Paul Jaboutlet Aîné - with the appetizer
- 2009 Domaine du Vieux Télégraphe "La Crau" Châteauneuf-du-Pape with the soup and main dishes. This elegant wine is a mixture of Grenache, Mourvedre, Syrah, and Cinsault. It deserves its 94 point rating from Wine Spectator.
- 2005 Tablas Creek Esprit de Beaucastel - with the main dishes (This outstanding wine is from Paso Robles, Ca from a winery with roots in the southern Rhone area of France. The grapes are all French types - Mourvedre, Syrah, Grenache, and Counoise. California wineries that produce such wines are known as, "Rhone Rangers." I strongly recommend visiting this winery if you are in the Paso Robles area. The winery is great and the countryside where it is situated is beautiful.)

Soupe au Pistou - A Wonderful Provençal Soup

Soupe au Pistou is a delicious Provençal vegetable soup. "Pistou" is the French word for Pesto alla Genovese, a basil sauce which originated in Genoa, Italy. The pistou is made separately from the soup and mixed in with the soup when it is served. The main difference between Genoan pesto and the Provençal pistou is that the latter does not have pine nuts.

We served this dish as one course in a French meal we had with friends. 

The recipe I used was an Ina Garten recipe which I found on Food Network (http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/provencal-vegetable-soup-recipe.html) It is very easy to make, but takes a bit of time. The original recipe states that it yields 6 - 8 servings. I followed the original recipe closely, and it yielded 10 generous servings.

The recipe below is divided into two parts - one for the soup and one for the pistou.

Soup Ingredients

- 2 tablespoons good olive oil
- 2 cups chopped onions - 2 onions (One large onion did the trick for me.)
- 2 cups chopped leeks, white and light green parts - 2 to 4 leeks (I only need 1 & 1/2 large leeks. It is important to wash leeks carefully because they can easily hold sand. There are on-line videos showing how to do this.)
- 3 cups of 1/2-inch-diced, unpeeled boiling potatoes - 1 pound (Boiling potatoes are potatoes such as red potatoes or Yukon gold. It took me 3 medium potatoes)
- 3 cups of 1/2-inch diced carrots - 1 pound (about 13-14 ounces was what I needed for 3 cups.)
- 1 & 1/2 tablespoons kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 3 quarts homemade chicken stock or canned broth (I used the canned.)
- 1 teaspoon saffron threads (I omitted this ingredient.)
- 1/2 pound haricots verts, with ends removed and cut in 1/2 (I used regular fresh green beans.)
- 4 ounces spaghetti, broken into pieces
- 1 cup pistou 
- Freshly grated Parmesan cheese, for serving

Soup Directions

Heat the olive oil in a large stockpot. Add the onions and sauté over low heat for 10 minutes, or until the onions are translucent.

Add the leeks, potatoes, carrots, salt, and pepper; and sauté over medium heat for another 5 minutes.

Add the chicken stock/broth; bring to a boil; then simmer uncovered for 30 minutes, or until all the vegetables are tender.

Add the haricots verts and spaghetti; and bring to a simmer. Cook for 15 minutes.

To serve, whisk 1/4 cup of the pistou into the hot soup; then season to taste. Depending on the saltiness of your chicken stock, you may need to add up to another tablespoon of salt. (Mine needed no additional salt.) Serve with grated Parmesan cheese and more pistou.

Pistou Ingredients

- 4 large garlic cloves
- 1/4 cup tomato paste
- 24 large basil leaves
- 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- 1/2 cup of good olive oil

Pistou Directions

Place the garlic, tomato paste, basil, and Parmesan cheese in a food processor, and purée.

With the food processor motor running, slowly pour the olive oil down the feed tube to make a paste.

Pack into a container; pour a film of olive oil on top; and close the lid.

Refrigerate if not using immediately.

Pâté de Campagne - a Terrific French Dish

I recently decided to make Pâté de Campagne for a French dinner with friends. The name means, "country pâté." It is different from pâté de foie gras - goose liver pâté. I was delighted with the results.

I found this recipe on Epicurious.com, one of my favorite recipe sites (http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/country-pate-em-pate-de-campagne-em-350966). There are a couple of things to keep in mind about this recipe:

1. It serves 20, so it would be great to take to a party. If you serve it to a small group, you can freeze what you don't use or you can give your guests some to take home. I did not try to scale it down for our dinner because I was afraid I might miscalculate.
2. It can be made up to 4 days in advance. I would suggest making it at least a day in advance.
3. It involves a fair amount of work, but is fairly easy to follow.
4. The volume of ingredients is probably about 30% larger than the baking dish called for. However, you can use the leftovers to make burger patties.
5. There is A LOT of PORK involved - ground pork, bacon, and ham.

The slices above represent less than half the amount produced by this recipe.

The pâté is best served with a baguette, cornichons (small French pickles), and Dijon mustard.

I recommend reading the reviews on Epicurious before preparing.

Below is the original recipe, modified with my comments and edited to reflect my experience and preferences.

Ingredients
- 3/4 cup of cognac (or something similar - I used Napoleon brandy.)
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 cup minced onion
- 2 & 1/2 pounds ground pork
- 22 slices of bacon (8 -10 slices to be finely chopped and mixed with the pork, and 14 slices for lining the baking dish to wrap the meat mixture)
- 3 garlic cloves pressed
- 2 & 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 2 & 1/2 teaspoons dried thyme
- 1 & 1/2 teaspoons allspice
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
- 1/3 cup whipping cream
- one 6-oz ham steak, cut crosswise into 1/4-inch-thick strips. (Some reviewers suggested omitting this ingredient. I kept it and liked it.)
- coarse sea salt (I omitted this ingredient.)
- 1/4 cup sliced/chopped pistachios (This was not in the original recipe. Some reviewers suggested adding these. I did and thought they were a nice addition.)

Accompaniments
- cornichons
- Dijon mustard
- baguette

Directions

1. Set oven rack to lowest position in oven, and preheat to 350°F.

2. Boil cognac until reduced to 1/2 cup - about 1 & 1/2 minutes. Let cool.

3. Melt butter in heavy medium skillet over medium heat. Add onion and sauté until soft and translucent, but not brown.

4. Combine ground pork and chopped bacon in large bowl. Using fork or fingertips, mix together until well blended.

5. Add sautéed onion, garlic, 2 & 1/2 teaspoons salt, thyme, allspice, and pepper to bowl with pork mixture, and stir until well blended. Add pistachios, eggs, cream, and reduced cognac, and stir until well blended.

6. Line a 9x5x3 metal loaf pan with the bacon slices, arranging 8 slices across the width of the pan and 3 slices on each short side of the pan and overlapping the pan on all sides. (You want to arrange the bacon slices in a way that allows you to cover the top with the bacon once you have put the meat mixture into the pan. In other words, you should be able to wrap the entire meat mixture with the bacon slices. I did not have a metal pan, so I used a glass baking dish with the same dimensions. Although items in metal normally cook faster than in glass, I did not change the baking temperature or time, and everything worked fine.)

7. Once you have lined the bottom and sides of the baking dish with the bacon slices, use your hands to lightly press half of the meat mixture (about 3&1/4 cups) into the pan. Arrange the ham strips in a single layer over this half of the meat mixture. Then add the remainder of the meat mixture over the ham.

8. Once the meat mixture fills the pan, fold the bacon slices over the top, covering the pâté. Then cover the pan tightly with foil.

9. Place the pan in a 13x9x2-inch metal baking pan and transfer to the oven. Pour boiling water into this larger baking pan to come halfway up the sides of the loaf pan. (I did not have that size metal baking pan, so I used a ceramic baking dish that was about an inch larger in all dimensions. I also found it easier to pour the boiling water into the pan before I put it in the oven.)

10. Bake the pâté until a thermometer inserted through the foil into the center registers 155°F - about 2 hours 15 minutes.

11. Remove the loaf pan from the larger baking pan and transfer it to a rimmed baking sheet. (The reason for having a rimmed baking sheet is that a fair amount of liquid fat will seep out of the loaf pan during the next step. The rim will keep this liquid fat on the baking sheet.)

12. Place a heavy  skillet or 2 - 3 heavy cans atop the pâté to weigh it down. (That will compact the pâté and force out the excess fat.) The approach I took was to cut a piece of heavy cardboard to a size slightly smaller than the top of the loaf pan. I then put two heavy tomato cans atop the cardboard.) Put this weighted-down loaf pan and baking sheet in the refrigerator and chill overnight.

13. When preparing to serve, place the loaf pan in a larger pan with hot water for about 3 minutes to loosen the pâté from the sides and bottom of the baking pan. (It took about 5 minutes in my case. I also had to use a spatula to separate the pâté from the sides of the baking dish. Do not unwrap the bacon. This remains part of the pâté.)

14. Invert the pâté onto a platter; discard the fat from the platter and wipe clean. (I did this step differently. I inverted the pâté onto a cutting board. Then I wiped the excess fat from the cutting board and the outsides of the pâté. Then I slice the pâté per directions in the next step.)

15. Cut the pâté crosswise into 1/2-inch slices and place on serving platter. Serve with baguette slices, cornichons, and Dijon mustard.

Antoine's Restaurant, Sarasota - Very Nice Flavors of France and Belgium

The other night, my wife and I enjoyed a delightful dinner at Antoine's (http://www.antoinessarasota.com/), a restaurant which offers delicious French cuisine and terrific mussels. The owners, Olivier Georges and his wife Angela, were originally recruited from Belgium to work at Brasserie Belge, which we loved. The owner of Brasserie Belge (Belgian Brasserie) decided to close the brasserie and return to Belgium, but Olivier and Angela loved it here and decided to open their own restaurant. They first opened it on Fruitville, and then moved to the current location, in the small shopping center across from Ed Smith Stadium.

My wife and I went for a special they were offering - a three-course dinner for two, plus a bottle of wine, plus amuse-bouche for $69. All of the food was delicious, and the wine was decent.

The amuse-bouche was Gougeres - two small pastries made with dough and Swiss cheese.

My wife's appetizer was broccoli bisque, and mine was Mussels Marinières (Moules Marinières). I love mussels, and these were terrific. Antoine's serves seven types of mussels, and on Monday nights, they offer an all-you-can-eat mussels special for $22.

My wife and I had the same main dish - a pork roulade au jus stuffed with spinach and apples. The pork was served with a mix of vegetables perfectly cooked - asparagus, broccoli, cauliflower, and potatoes.

For dessert, we both had the Belgian chocolate mousse. It was fantastic.

After dinner, we both enjoyed a cup of very nice espresso.

The butter served with the bread was an elegant creation carved by Olivier.

The bottle of wine offered with the special was Patriarche Pinot Noir or Chardonnay. Both are from the Pays d'Oc area of France. It was decent, and I was not expecting more for the price.

Olivier is the host and server, and Angela is the chef. She makes everything from scratch. Olivier has a warm and welcoming personality. He is very attentive.

For those who like special beers, they offer 12 beers, which I believe are all Belgian.

Olivier and Angela created the decor themselves. It has resulted in a very cozy atmosphere.

They are currently only open for dinner 6 days per week, and closed on Sunday. Olivier said they might open for lunch during the winter season.

62 Bistrot - An Excellent Savor Sarasota Lunch

Yesterday, my wife and I joined friends for a delicious, 3-course Savor Sarasota lunch for $15 each (excluding tax and tip) at 62 Bistrot, an authentic French Bistrot on Hillview St. in Sarasota (http://www.62bistrot.com/).

My wife's first course was a cold soup of cucumber and peaches. It was good, but not fantastic. I had a very nice French onion soup with melted cheese croutons.

Our main course was a wonderful baguette sandwich with homemade country pâté (pâté de campagne) and cornichons (French pickles), with salad on the side. The sandwich was not only delicious, but very large.)

For dessert, we each had a jam crêpe with raspberry jam. They were very nice.

I also had a nice (large glass) of Pinot Noir for $5.

The normal à la carte cost for my meal at lunch is $19 - a very reasonable price.

Our waitress, who was very nice, had a French accent and spoke French.

62 Bistrot is open Monday - Saturday from 11:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. for lunch and from 5:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. for dinner.

I had thought that 62 Bistrot was owned by the same folks who own Paris Bistrot in Lakewood Ranch and Island Crêperie in Bradenton Beach. The decor of 62 Bistrot and Paris Bistrot is nearly identical. However, there is no connection indicated on their web sites. In any case, we've enjoyed both.

Paris Bistrot at LWR - Delicious as Always

Last night, we enjoyed an excellent meal with good friends at Paris Bistrot (http://www.bistrotfl.com/Island_Creperie_Paris_Bistrot_62_Bistrot/PARIS_BISTROT.html)
in Lakewood Ranch. As usual, every course was delicious. I have never been disappointed with their breakfast, lunch, or dinner.

At dinner, the main courses are part of a three-dish prix-fixe menu for $22.95. The three dishes comprise a starter, a main dish, and a side dish.There are also separate salads, and appetizers. The menu is available at  http://www.bistrotfl.com/Island_Creperie_Paris_Bistrot_62_Bistrot/Dinner_MENU.html 

For our first course, my wife and I both had home made country pâté (pâté de campagne), served with cornichons.

For her main course, my wife chose Chicken Normande - breast of chicken flambéed in Cognac with mushrooms and a white sauce.

I had Beef Bourguignon.

For a side dish, I chose potatoes dauphinois. The other two side choices were rice, or vegetables.

For dessert, my wife had Marmalade Crêpe for $5. I had Crêpe Normandie - Crêpe flambéed in Cognac and filled with pears for $7.20.

For our wine, I chose a Saint Cosme Côtes du Rhône for $31. This is always a reliable choice.

Paris Bistrot has a very nice atmosphere. The owners have two other restaurants - Island Creperie in Bradenton Beach and '62 Bistrot on Hillview St. in Sarasota.

"Bistrot" is an alternative spelling of "Bistro." This type of restaurant originated in Paris and typically served moderately priced, simple meals. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bistro)

A French Affair - Delightful Dinner with Friends

The other night, my wife and I joined four other couples for dinner at French Affair (http://www.frenchaffairsarasota.com/). My wife and I, and most of our friends, really enjoyed the dinner.

My wife and I have eaten at French Affair four or five times, and have always enjoyed it. A French neighbor described it as his favorite local place for enjoying French comfort food. The chef and owner, Alain Mons, is from a small town in the Perigord area of France. He has operated this restaurant in Sarasota for 31 years, of which 19 years has been at the current location.

One interesting feature of the restaurant is that instead of a wine list, it has rows of shelves of French wines. Diners look at the wines and select one in which they would like. The prices are much lower than at most restaurants, even after adding a corkage fee of about $5.

My wife started with a cream of mushroom soup for $4.50, and I started with Paté Forestier for $7.50. Her soup was nice and my paté delicious.

My wife's entrée was Large Scallops Provençale for $22.95, and my entrée was Moules à la Crème (Mussels in Cream Sauce) for $19.95. My wife and I loved our entrées.

For dessert, my wife had Rustic Tart (peach and raspberry pie) and I had a Very Berry Tart. Both were really delicious.
Our wine was a 2010 Mont Tauch Fitou red wine from Languedoc in southern France for $19.90 plus corkage fee. The grapes used in Fitou include Carignane, Grenache, Lledoner, Syrah, and Mourvedre. The wine was recommended by the chef and was very nice.

The bottom line is that we enjoyed our meal at French Affair, and will go back again.