| I truly felt like one of the ladies who lunch when I met a good friend on a recent lazy Tuesday at the new Pastis Bistro in Marda Loop (2215 - 33rd Ave. S.W.; phone 246-0082).
Morocco-born Mohamed Guelli, who is also the chef and owner of JoJo Bistro Parisien on 17th Avenue S.W., recently opened Le Pastis as his second restaurant. The new bistro is named after the Mediterranean drink of choice – a licorice-flavoured liqueur that you can try at Le Pastis for $6 a glass.
The paint on the walls may still be drying, but the bistro’s quiet elegance gives the impression of it being a long-established business. Le Pastis features Mediterranean cuisine – paella Valentiana, frog legs, Spanish omelette, couscous – but the prevailing influence in both food and décor is French. With its cheery French musique, pink-and-red-plush velvet bench and black- and gold-framed posters from La Belle Époque, Le Pastis resembles JoJo. And even though the two restaurants serve both lunch and dinner, I like to think of Le Pastis as being the day version of JoJo Bistro, the former’s warm yellow interior basking in natural light.
Le Pastis’s menu of seasonal comfort foods definitely helped ease the harsh transition from summer to winter. I chose both daily specials. The Moroccan lentil soup ($5) was a clear broth with a generous serving of lentils, although a little on the hard side, with a sprinkling of carrots and celery. For my entrée, I enjoyed the succulent lamb chops, presented in teepee formation, in a salsa-esque tomato and herbs de Provence sauce, accompanied by scalloped potatoes and vegetables juliennes ($15).
My friend started with the spinach salad with goat cheese and pancetta with a mustard dressing ($9), and moved on to the tenderly cooked veal scaloppine in a mild curry sauce, topped with a nice contrast of sweet apple cubes, also served with potatoes and vegetables ($14). We both remarked that our lunch tasted like a lovingly prepared home-cooked meal; it also leaned toward the light side of rich, rather than heavy, as French cuisine often tends to be.
Since the majority of patrons that day were women, it felt like we were Guelli’s personal fan club. And what a lovely fanfare it was. Le Pastis’s warm, intimate room is perfect for either a classy lunch or a romantic evening. Bravo!
Calgary chefs go international
Seven chefs from Calgary have been inducted into The International Who’s Who of Chefs book, 2004-2005. The Calgary chefs are among almost 3,000 of the best chefs from 70 countries selected for induction after a rigorous screening process.
The Calgary inductees are: Andrew Hewson, Catch Restaurant & Oyster Bar; Michael Noble, Catch Restaurant & Oyster Bar; Melinda Alexander, Hotel Sheraton Cavalier; John Skinner, McQueens Upstairs and Cannery Row; Martin Heuser, Owl’s Nest; Dominique Moussu, Teatro Restaurant and Thierry Meret, La Petite Table, Okotoks.
The recently published 800-page hardcover contains the chefs' personal and family biographies, education and professional backgrounds, employment histories, awards, recognitions and citations, media critiques and publications. In addition, most of the chefs contribute their signature recipes. |
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