Bistrot B Nails the French Apéro in Their New Menu

One of the things I miss the most about Paris is apéro. The early evening tradition of enjoying a glass (or six) of wine while nibbling on an assortment of cheeses, charcuterie, pâté's and bread was one of my favorite pastimes while I lived in the French capital. Although it's technically supposed to be a pre-dinner bite, in my experience, l'apéro often extends for hours and hours as you get lost chatting, opening more bottles, slicing more sausages, and forgetting to eat a "proper" dinner altogether.

I'm yet to discover a Chinese equivalent to this tradition (though chuan'r and beer may come close), so I was quite excited when I was invited to taste some of Bistrot B's new "Gourmet Quartet" menu, specifically the fait maison charcuterie. Perhaps in response to the cessation of their popular Sunday brunch, head chef Jarrod Verbiak has given the menu of the Rosewood's upscale French bistrot a couple of updates, focussing on four different elements: homemade charcuterie, fresh seafood, steaks, and fresh pasta.

The charcuterie boards (RMB 230 small, RMB 360 large) vary slightly depending on what the has taken Verbiak's fancy to make, and we were served tender mushroomy terrine de campagne; ridiculously creamy foie gras with and sweet, toasted brioche; pâté maison; smoked garlic sausage; a thick slice of layered pâté en croute (pâté baked in a flaky crust and served chilled), with a surprise layer of rich pistachio-topped fois gras; and hunks of  sharp and crumbly 36-month Comté cheese. It was all spot on. Perfect apéro material. I could have sat there eating slices of sausage and smearing pâté and terrine onto my bread all day. The only letdown was the mediocre bottle of Les Deux Clos 2016 Côtes du Rhône served alongside the charcuterie, which sadly didn't stand up to the quality of the food. 

Next up, the freshly made pasta, specifically the spaghettini with smoked bacon, egg, and pepper (RMB 160); the thick pappadelle with red wine braised beef cheek and meaty trumpet mushroom (RMB 220); tagliatelli with hunks of Boston lobster (RMB 280) and the ricotta cavatelli with duck ragout (RMB 180).

The pasta is all made fresh at a dedicated station in the open kitchen – so you can watch, for example, the dough being painstakingly pressed through the strings of the chitarra to produce the fine strands of spaghettini – and they're damn good. My personal favorites were the spaghettini and indulgent lobster tagliatelli, but when you're eating pasta as fresh as this, it's pretty hard to go wrong.

After our detour via Italy, we swung back to France for dessert (all RMB 70). Vanilla creme brulée with the exact right ratio of hard, crackly shell and creamy custard; tender, wibble-wobble poached meringue floating island; cream-filled profiteroles with hot chocolate sauce; and my favorite of all, a rich, springy, booze-soaked brioche baba au rhum with berry compote, just the way Louis XV would have liked it. If only they'd serve 'café gourmand' (an espresso served with an assortment of desserts from the menu, in cute miniature portions, and totally genius), then I'd be really happy.

In addition to the charcuterie and pasta, the new menu also includes all-Australian steak (either wagyu or Black Angus); and some very interesting looking seafood dishes including the so-called “king of seafood,” Lobster Thermidor. 

For giving me a slice of Parisian bistrot atmosphere, and letting me relive my former life and habits a little, I say to Mr. Verbiak and the kitchen team "chapeau."

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Photos: Bistrot B, Anna Pellegrin-Hartley