French cuisine isn't something I tend to go for, as I feel most of the dishes are full of dairy or pork. However, it was nice to be invited to try out the newest French restaurant on the block, Bistrot Pierre, because the location and venue looked picturesque. But I wondered if the place had style AND substance. The restaurant is located on the canal-side, just a stone throws away from The Mailbox. The canal views and stunning venue are topped off with a balcony and a porch. It is the perfect place for date night or for when the weather is behaving. The restaurant encompasses what I think a sleek, modern Parisian restaurant would be like.
Now, let's get to the good bit - the food!
The day I visited, it was Bastille Day, so there was a special menu aka the Vive la Bastille Menu. Which appeared to be good value, with two courses at £19.95 and four courses at £23.95.
As we made our choices, bread was brought over and as I couldn't have the butter, they mixed balsamic vinegar and oil together, to dip the bread into. I love that mixture, so I was intrigued for what would follow. The bread, the one shown in the image at the top, was a nice baguette but I can't say it was anything special.
For my starters, I ordered Red Pepper and Anchovy Tapenade with Artisan Bread. The bread was wholemeal, warm, herby and a large portion for one person (not a bad thing, I love a food challenge). The tapenade was creamy, you could tell it was made in-house and it went really well with the bread. I feel like an egg would have complimented this dish well, but I'm addicted to egg, so I love it with everything anyway. This starter was lovely and thoroughly enjoyed by me.
The next course was Salade de Betterave et Chevre, which was a beetroot salad. It was adapted to be dairy-free because it usually includes goats cheese. I liked the two types of beetroot but I found it was missing that je ne sais quoi. I presume this was because it was dairy-free.
For my main, I went for the Filet de Loup de Mer with mixed salad and an added extra side of Pommes Frites. This was a baked fillet of seabass with sauteed asparagus, mange tout and peas. The usual light mint and lime butter was omitted to suit my dietary requirements.
The seabass was lovely, crispy on the outside but soft on the inside. It was cooked to perfection, which is easy to tell because the skin easily peels off. The heritage green vegetables were also made well, with a little bounce but no mushiness. The mixed salad included olives, which is a plus for me. The dressing was good, the cucumbers were lovely but my two worst hated vegetables were included within it, aka red onions and tomatoes. However, that is a preference that was not told to the restaurant and it was easy to pick them out, so no harm done. The fries were ace; crispy, soft and warm!
Overall, I would love to go to the restaurant for a drink with friends but I doubt I would dine here again. Although the service was great and the location is beautiful, I found the food to be mediocre. However, my dining partner thoroughly enjoyed the steak and I know they cater to the gluten-free diet quite well. So definitely one for meat-eaters and those that are gluten-free.
Would I go back to this eatery? No
Why not? The restaurant accommodated my dietary requirements but I felt like something was missing in every course.
How was the service? The waiter was friendly, nice and french (the sexiest of accents).
How did they cope with the dairy-free dietary requirement? The waiter had to ask questions to the chef for each course, which made the meal lengthy but I was happy to know that each course was dairy-free.
What are the prices like? For a good price, you are able to enjoy a number of courses, that are sizeable portions too. However, this restaurant is not suitable for my dietary requirements (dairy-free and pescatarian), especially when you compare it to what you could have for the same price at The Warehouse Cafe.
More information - http://bistrotpierre.co.uk/locations/birmingham
Have you been? What did you think?
*I was invited to try Bistrot Pierre but was not obligated to write a blog post about it, nor was I told what to say. These are all my own views, especially about the french accent being sexy*
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