/ Reviews / French
Mini Bistro
by Tom Lee
on Friday, April 22, 2011 12:00 AM
"If it ain't broke, don't fix it." Originally, this idiom may have applied to politics but it's a phrase that has strong reverberations in the restaurant business - and, after all, isn't the restaurant business full of the same intrigue and plotting that permeates governments worldwide?
Alexandre Daune has closed a few concepts over the past year but the project that hasn't failed to get bums on seats is Le Saleya. With a faithful French crowd behind it, there seems no danger of it running out of steam anytime soon. So, what's the logical next step? Open another one! But, perhaps, just a little smaller.
That, in a nut shell, is what Le Petit Saleya is: it has an identical color scheme, the same style of furnishings and similar menu items, but fewer tables and cheaper prices. Accoutered with French-style posters and maps of French wine regions, it's even begun pulling in the nearby French nationals - and that was opening day!
All starters are just RMB48, while mains are RMB62 and desserts are RMB38. The lunch set further diminishes the price, with two courses for RMB78 or three for an additional RMB10.
Everything is simply plated with copious salad, giving the feel of rural wholesomeness, even if the dishes themselves aren't all soup and cassoulet. Though there is a fair Leek Tart, the Baked Goat's Cheese, topped with olive oil, spring onion and a few herbs, is far more palatable; gently warmed, it is served on crunchy crusts of baguette.
Crispy-skinned but a tad try, the Duck Leg Confit is tough to slice into, so do a few preparatory dead lifts with a nearby salt shaker before getting stuck in. Easier on the arm is the Sea Bass en Papillotte, which is served, juicy and moist, in a wrapping of aluminum foil.
Efficiently arranged, there are numerous chairs crammed into the space, particularly on the outside decking. From here, diners can watch passers-by stroll along, promenading their way down TaiAn Road.
The name says it all: it's the bistro-style food of Le Saleya, just more "petit".
