Tigers Experience at Le Bistro Du Parc - Defence Colony , New Delhi

Wonder why I never visited the Bistro earlier - was scared of eating with fork and knife hehehehe - fine dinning style , did i find the whole def col corner shady , was i scared to be attacked y the Italian neighbor , ws i not sure of the food , did i think i cant afford it ,did i read bad reviews about the place, no knowledge of french food ; dunno why but this was my first visit after i was convinced about that all the above was wrong and was told they have a french chef in town who is amazing . So Le Bistro Du parc here i come . 

From Naina with love ..........

Paris the most romantic city of the world .. also has a number of hidden Michelin star Bistro's .... casual , owner driven ,where the personality of the owner reflects on everything in the bistro ... casual comforting affordable food... and here evolves a new cult "bistronomie" - which is beautifully translated by Naina in one of the upcoming areas of Defence colony . This part of def col was and is primarily known for banks , booze shop , nizams and me natalonis Flavors ... this particular place where the Bistro is has seen a number of business but the most promising one seems to be Le bistro du parc. If the authorities clean up this beautiful corner it would be a prime hangout every evening ample parking space ,loads of greenery and a perfect location .ring road on side , the metro on the other side . Well things will happen once people start walking in their more often ... you can witness a lot of expats dinning all days .. its time for the indian consumer to taste the flavors and experiences from France brought to you By naina and ad singh at the Le Bistro Du Parc.

Bistronomy -  French Blend of a Bistro and Gastronomy Casual fine dining - Casual Interiors, high Quality Food.

Here you can see it all .. Beautiful green , easy to approach , hidden , ground and first level available for dining options - every Wednesday they have Jazz Nights . check out the bottom right picture to see the beautiful huge garden in front of the bistro . The only thing missing is the sitting outside roadside cafe style - but not their fault the weather just does not permit , maybe come winters they would be able to put chairs outside and then people like Tiger can go and enjoy the Dhoop with perfect sangria or some affordable wine from the Bistro's wine collection . 

The Bistro 

Casual sitting , slightly industrial decor , a sweet bar to hangout at , a hidden well made kitchen , Blue is the color which is my favorite , tables adorned with gorgeous huge sun flowers - i live this combination of blue and deep yellow ... well this is the best naina could do with the limited space to run the bistro . "Casual".

Naina , Nick and Alexis

She is a leading model from France , she is friendly, she has style she has class , she is warm , she is a food connoisseur, elegant etc etc ... the first part was a lie she is not a model as yet lol.

And ladies and gentleman presenting to you the French Team behind the Bistro ... Naina de Bois-Juzan  - Father a French Designer - she has got the aesthetic genes from him , A Punjabi mother ,Balwinder de bois Juzan (A LSR graduate) - she has definitely got  her culinary genes - they both met years ago at connaught place fell in love and moved to Paris - do u remember the days when the bus used to come from London etc - yes yes where palika bazar used to be a place called ramble was there on a small hillock and a huge parking area for these buses to park - thats where it all happened . 

Naina is a french lad who follows politics and did her graduation from LSR in political science - she opted to come to India to absorb and understand the culture. She was mesmerized by India and decided to stay back and  definitely open a bistro in the country .Naina was fascinated by bistronomy and sensed it to be an emerging trend in Paris. The high prices of Michelin restaurants and the competition and pressure, led to a sweeping change in the culinary world of Paris. Talented young chefs and patrons started to venture out to bring forth gastronomic delights in the comfort and boisterousness of a French bistro.

As she embraced the philosophy, she travelled extensively around Paris to gain first-hand knowledge by talking to owners, observing how they brought together a cuisine and an experience that is both casual and elegant. Naina was smitten and developed a keen interest to introduce bistronomy to India. Her Belief :A small menu in a restaurant is a mark of quality is her firm belief. It shows that the products used are fresh and in season. yes she is right . She makes the menu almost daily - or seasonal would be right to say depending on the ingredient availability .. while eating i could suddenly see her standing on a table with this black board in hand with the menu and explaining to the guest what to eat .. i think it was a great thing to do . She and her Canadian manager Nick help all guest order perfect wine and food - paired together . 

I got into two dialogs with naina - i kept saying this is fine Dinning and she kept insisting it was Casual Bistro dining lol and the second one was what Indian culture has she stayed back for - i feel that India has lost all its culture and is just blindly following the west but then she made me realized that the family bonding we see in India is not seen any where in the world . Getting back to the roots is the mission of most . 

Alexis Gielbaum 

Alexis - 2002 til 2014 what a journey this chef has had and is stil on it  - He comes from France where he has spent over ten years cooking in  France and in that time explored many different styles of French cuisine. Over the course of his career he has had the opportunity to work from five star hotels to small little bistros to large brasseries. He has also worked for a year in Tokyo and another year out of Venice on The Orient Express. He now continues his culinary adventure with the journey to India given the opportunity that came his way by patronne Naina.  I specifically asked him about his experience on The Orient Express - all he said was - perfection and nothing less than perfection and yes a special mention the toughest part of working in a kitchen on a moving table is Plating - they used to waste a lot many dishes before the y got it right for the exclusive clientele of the orient express train . Tokyo was another memorable experience for Alexis - language barrier , cultural differences, palate confusion etc etc but he said it was great learning in the big kitchen .  

The concept of "Bistronomie" is dear to his heart and given the Le Bistro du Parc focus on introducing bistronomy in India, he is excited with the opportunity to showcase contemporary Parisienne cuisine. And guess what his favorite desi food place is Swagat heheheeh, he is slowly learning more and more about the Indian culture and how to cater to it . He was very impressed by the awareness of the wines in Delhi ... he said it was better than being in Paris . I agree with him .  I thoroughly enjoyed sitting with Alexis - his English is good but is a bit shy like most of the chefs .. he has talent and experience behind to impress you . 

With Alexis also , I kept saying this is fine dinning they kept sayin no its bistro food - the fight kep ton til they convinced me that it was certainly the concept of Bistronmy ...  What  i gather from chatting with Alexis and also seeing him cook in the kitchen - he has the ability to scale the restaurant up for sure =  from a Bistro to a fine dining experience , that is if Naina ever want s to.

Soupe Bio poireaux et pommes de terre

Potato and Leek Soup goat cheese and dil. On top of it : row mushroom, dil, red spinach roquette, red radish and Parmesan tuile. 

This dish reminds me of the movie The lion king - specially the scene when simba goes to meet his old flame - the water hole with patches of greens floating , the colorful flowers of a virgin lustrous jungle  the trees the greenery .. beautiful shot and similarly beautiful crafted soup dish ... the green so the side rested on a lump of Goat cheese which blended beautifully with the soup . A great combo of a soup and salad  , you can see the french touch in the dish - on it sown is a homey - perfect dish where each ingredient compliments the other .

A dish  " Better than it needs to be ".

Parfait de Foie de Volaille

As told by Alexis - A parfait is made by slowly cooking eggs and cream. So we bake and blend the chicken livers add red wine and onions, then add the cream and the eggs and slowly cook it on the oven. The chutney is made one from onions vinagre, white wine pistachio and almonds, the other, onions, vinagre red wine and cacao liquor.
Smooth as silk was the pate and the chutney made it like heaven on earth - i loved putting it on the crisp bread and enjoying. BTW im stil in research mode to find out the difference between a Parfait and a Pate. There is something about a pate which makes drool .. cant get to he bottom of it .. mean s i need to go back yet again and figure out .

"Ambitious Dish"

Tagliatelles de légumes

I'm so embarrassed - when i saw this dish i asked alexis what all pasta are these - he smirked and said pardon me hehehehehehehe the dish was all veggies cut like pasta - OMG it could fool anyone - I quietly looked down and started praising the dish lol . 
As told by Alexis : Veg tagliatelle are simply carrot, leek, white radish, zucchini, and yellow sqach  cut like tagliatelles. Then à la minute, we pan fry it in a special infused basil oile and plate with some carrot purée and fried basil leaf.


Beautiful home style healthy option ... loved it to the core .Fresh simple flavored and colorful. The carrot puree makes the whole experience so amazing.

"A Homey Dish"

Taboulé de Quinoa et Gambas

As told by Chef Alexis: the prawns are pan fried à la minute on olive oile, garlic and Espelette, then we put a lemon and tomatoe sauce on it and reduce it on the pan, The quinoa is made as tabbouleh,with cucumber, red peper, red onions, mint, coriander and lemon juice.
What could simpler than this...Pan fried large prawns on a bed of the healthiest of all quinoa with lemon juice and tomato sauce . Just so light and yum . I ate all separately first to gauge the flavors ,enjoyed the salad - very nice , then i merged and fused the food to derive at a combo flavor which was even better. Very light dish just perfect for a starter with finesseand apt for the summers and also all you dieters.

"Perfecto Dish "

Lentilles, Oeuf mollet et bacon

As told by Chef Alexis:lentils are cooked the french way, with brunoise of white onions, carrots ans celery swet in butter, then we add the ray lentils, vegetable stock garlic, bay leaves and clovs. When they are cooked, we prepare it like a salade, with olive oile, balsamic vinagre, and truffle oil. 

Beautiful plating , was waiting and dying to cut the egg open to see the yellow flow out and engage with  all the other friends on the plate ... simple , rustic ,homey, bacon adds to the flavor and the bite - a must try dish . The combination of egg , lentils mushrooms and bacon - was divine. The Dash of trufle made me a pig , scrapped it off and cherished them ... chee chee how can you tiger .

"Homey + Ambitious"

Agneau confit de 6 heures

As told by Chef Alexis: the confit lamb is a traditional french dish. We roast the whole lamb's leg in a pan. then add a garnish composed with carrots, white onions garlic, rosemary and anchois. We add white wine and slowly cook it for at least 6 hours on the oven. We remove the meat from the bones and plate with a red onion jam on top some glazed vegetable and the reduced lam jus. 
Boy or Boy what a dish totally intoxicating - so well cured , amazingly soaked in wine cooked with major patience - loved the overall construct and texture of the lamb . The onion jam did the magic to over powering the meaty flavor, pulled lamb is my way of eating a lamb roast .no fuss food . - i would 100% go back for this one . 6 hours in the oven ,collection of Jus , Pulled and plated in Jus and veggies - Amazing dish .he largest seller ,im told.

"Challenging Dish -  to get the Lamb Done Well "

Sole Meunière et courgettes

As told by Chef Alexis:The sole "meuniere" is also a typical french dish. the fish is pan fried  in clarified butter then in the same pan we add lemon juice, chop parsley capers and bread croutons.We serve it with a piperade( white onions, red, green and yellow peppers garlic  anchois and zuchinies sautés). 

My translation - Beautiful or rather perfectly cooked fish - no fishy smell ,pan fried in  loads of butter topped with crispy zucchini .. the dish melts in the mouth . The perfect combination of the fish with the veggies supported by the crouton amazed me . Im not a very fish loving person but yes this one went down in a jiffy asking for more heheheheehe greedy tiger.

"Homey "

Rocher au Chocolat Valrhona

The chocolate Rocher is made with a soft valrona chocolate ganache, covered with a black chocolate and grilled almond topping. 
My My total killer chocolaty dish - a bit of the chocolate , touch the jam , put a grape on it and bite the tuile - oh wow. Ecstasy.

"A crowd Pleaser"

Tarte au citron du bistro

The lemon tart is deconstructed in a sablé  (French Butter Cookies) topped with a quenelle of lemon mousse and crispy meringues sticks. Served with a chocolate couli.  
The lemon mouse so fresh is a lick of the spoon, i found the sable a bit hard but that the way its supposed to be - my mistake was trying to be stylish - its supposed to be eaten by the hand and not fork knife. The mouse had a great texture , the meringue was well made - i dipped them in the lemon mouse and topped them with chocolate sauce to enjoy the fun of a deconstructed lemon tart.I love lemon Tarts .hehehhehehe

"A dish better than it needs to be "

Nick , Alexis and Naina

Overall Tigers Experience :

Excepts of a conversation between Naina and Me 

Naina can you give me the French Words for the folowing

"Fantastique / Incroyable/ Superbe Brillant

Are you writing your article in French ? :) this is what naina replied when i asked her for the french translation of Fantastic ,Amazing,Awesome,Out of this world,Brilliant food hhahahahahahahaa.

Excellent Experience overall - Ambiance has the buzz of a Bistro , i would like to hang out here more often - since the menu keeps changing you can always be on the look out for new dishes by the chef , ample parking all around,easy to access, no beggars ,super greenery, clean , cosy, colorful . very casual setting with outstanding food .

Food: with the french designer connection beautifully plated dishes - nothing unusual than the ones available in the Bistro's back home in France so dont get worried . Easy to understand food , not too many flavors to juggle between, loads of wine soaked food .. well cured meats .. a must do place. Listen its no fuss food, dont let the french Names confuse you, they are simple comfort dishes .

Ambiance- Blues and yellows , open bar ,nice jazz music , a piano to greet you ,wooden chairs and tables , buzzing , the terrace wil be divine in the winters .it good sell off beautifully for a Blues club. Wish they are allowed to use the lawn infront . 

Service - Not too many from the service team hanging around , naina and Nick make sure u r spoken to an are wel taken care off.