Colette restaurant in Bratislava. (source: Mark Taylor)
Some restaurants offer a menu with so many options that you might struggle to choose. They will attempt to cross an entire continent of national styles, or combine each type of sauce with every possible meat until the possibilities become like a maths lesson. Other venues will focus on producing just a few dishes but doing them well. This French-style restaurant, on a busy street in the Blumentál area, is very much of the second type. At the time of my visit, there were fewer than 10 dishes on offer even if you add the starters and mains together, but each one has a Parisian accent and is strong on presentation and classic flavours.
The manager on duty this evening chats to me a little about the time he has spent in France, and his contacts in the wine business there. All of the staff seem to be at least tri-lingual, slipping easily between English, French and Slovak as they move from one table to the next. They smile and nod approvingly at the dishes I choose - perhaps they actually do this to everyone no matter what you order, but it still feels like a nice friendly touch.
My starter waspoisson cru Tahiti, and it was a dish that I will remember for some time. To begin with it was a work of art to look at. Delicate pieces of raw fish floating on a smooth coconut foam, flecked with fine slices of paprika, pickled red onions and dill; all things bright and beautiful. The fish tasted wonderfully fresh and the lightly pickled vegetables prevented the coconut from becoming too sweet. For customers wanting something more stereotypically French, they also offer escargots in herb butter, or a foie gras preparation with figs.
