Bistro 7¼

Bistro 7¼
725 Osborne Street
204-777-2525
http://www.alexanderskitchen.com/ 

March, 2006



South Osborne Street features a number of dining establishments including Lux Solé and Sawatdee Thai. Although South Osborne doesn’t have the glitter and the notoriety of The Village, it quietly boasts some of the finer foods that Winnipeg offers. The newest addition plays on its address and calls itself Bistro 7¼. You notice that the number comes up frequently, appearing in menu prices, telephone number, etc. I guess they really want you to remember where they are. It’s not a bad idea as the entrance-way is unpretentiously plain so it’s quite easy to miss if you just happen to be strolling by.

Inside, the restaurant appears as it does on the outside, nice but plain and unassuming. Three walls show off a bold, sky-blue hue which I personally would not have chosen but I’m told that it follows a French theme. All right, I’ll go with that. I’m not sure about the blackboard where guests are welcome to add their touch. I suppose that some people simply must leave their mark wherever they go.

The serving staff greets us immediately as we enter the door. Our server beams with friendly enthusiasm that he maintains throughout the evening—no small task as the dining public can impose hectic demands. I survey the other attendants; they all make great efforts to make the diner feel welcome. I guess that they don’t want to parody the French too closely.

Like many Parisian cafés, 7¼ is quite small and has its tables nuzzled cosily together. Despite the proximity of the tables and the conservative size of the establishment, the ambient noise level doesn’t overwhelm. In fact, most of the noise emanates from the kitchen island that sits in the middle of the restaurant. Today’s trend finds many restaurants leaving the kitchen undivided, thus providing a view of the food preparation. Bistro 7¼ takes it a step further by featuring a grill smack in the foreground of the dining room. With this kind of scrutiny, you can rest assured that the chef will never spit in your food if he/she doesn’t like you. It’s not like the kitschy Ichiban where the chefs double as entertainers. The chef simply wants you to see the care and consideration that’s put into every meal. If you’re not out for an evening of intimate conversation, I recommend booking a table fronting the island where you get an unobstructed view of how they create your food.

Like the restaurant, the food comes simply, not overly ornate. The duck confit salad features more meat than salad but if you eat carnivorously like I do, you have no complaints. Confit cooking involves slow simmering a meat in its own fat; this can sometimes be a challenge. Even though stewing something in fat almost necessitates that it cannot taste dry, very often the dish can emerge overcooked. Not here. The medium-rare duck oozes its flavourful juices as you cut into the tender meat. The salad portion of the dish comes in the form of sliced Brussels sprouts. If you’re anything like me, you don’t particularly care for Brussels sprouts but they manage to make it flavourful and delicious. Well done.

Unlike most places, 7¼ allows you to order your steaks to your personal size and they charge you at a very reasonable $2.00 an ounce for beautiful rib-eye. The steak comes perfectly prepared to your palette’s preferred wellness and features a side of delicious fries. The golden slivers taste well seasoned and crunchy. Much like in France, they come with a side of mayonnaise. The mayo, while nice, isn’t outstanding. Skip it and go directly to the country-Dijon mustard that sits at every table. The zing of the whole-grain mustard adds a kick to any dish.
The fries also appear with the French staple: moules et frites (mussels and fries). They offer five different servings of mussels at a very conservative price of $7.25 (of course). Many restaurants don’t pay enough attention to their mussels and the result finds them dry and overcooked. Here, I suspect that the chef hovers by the boiling pot, ready to furiously flush them from the heat as soon as the shells open. Consequently, the mussel meat comes plump and juicy, perfectly done and ready to carry the wonderful garlic-wine sauce. Be sure to have some bread on hand for sopping up the wonderful broth.

If you like plain, simple, unadulterated sweets, then that’s exactly what you get—dessert comes lightly adorned and plainly delicious. If your idea of the perfect dessert is something that boasts floral, ornamental arrangements, then you should just skip this course and search for an alternative. Although they only offer one cognac (Courvoisier), several ports stand waiting to take the place of dessert.

The ports sit at the bottom of an impressive wine list. Most establishments charge double the shelf-cost of wine. At 7¼, their policy is to add $15 over their cost of a bottle of wine. So if you’re in the mood to celebrate with a bottle of Joseph Phelps, you wouldn’t be obligated to part with $80 for the privilege of having someone open and pour the wine for you. Nice touch. Our bottle of grand cru gewürztraminer, which came to $40, blended wonderfully with the moules et frites.

Finally, it’s always a nice gesture when the owner stops by to ensure that you enjoy your evening…and enjoy we did as we let him know that the beautifully prepared meal was welcomingly devoured. We can’t wait to be back; the rosemary roasted leg of lamb already calls my name. Next time, we’ll perch at the bar and watch the chefs ply their art.

**** /5


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