OB真人视讯

Wander down the cobblestones of Saint Patrick’s Square and you might happen upon the luxurious first floor of newly-built Hotel Indigo, housed in a restored heritage building. You can enter through the other side too—the Albert Street entrance blending into the concrete jungle as if it was always there (just look for the elegant Bistro Saine font out front).

Walk through the warm golden lights and earthy clay tones of the Hotel Indigo Lobby and appears. A feast for the senses with mocha leather banquette seating, brushed gold accents and an extensive wine list—literally a floor-to-ceiling selection of bottles just steps from your table—set the scene. The hospo A-Team deliver: Sommelier Pierre Bernardeau (Le Gourmet de Sèze, Prism Berlin), General Manager Joey Hickman (Bossi, Pasture, The Conservatory), Restaurant Manager Pierre Guillot (The Grove), Executive Chef Yutak Son (Orphan’s Kitchen, Sidart, Black Estate, Te Motu, Daily Bread), Head Chef Stevan Bailey (Saint Tropez Georgia), Sous Chef Zach Duxfield (Paris Butter), Sous Chef Aditya Medon (Inca, The Grove) and many other talented chefs, too. 

Which brings us to the menu itself—eat with me as I relish in the memories of opening night. 

With champagne in hand (none other than Billecart-Salmon), freshly shucked oysters served on antique silver platters are passed around the table. Linseed crackers are piled high with silky leeks and clouds of Comté shavings, anchovy en croǔte (a.k.a. the most delicious bit of pastry stuffed with creamy confit garlic and drizzled with browned butter), and ultra-tender braised Farmgate pork in croquette form with a swipe of umami wakame ketchup. 

Steak tartare with crispy potato chips hot off the fryer follow for the first entrée—served by Chef Yutak himself—with a kiwifruit hot sauce kick that’s so good my guest asks for a secret pottle to take home. Silky chicken liver parfait with crunchy pops of cornichons on baguette follow, plus kingfish crudo, dressed in tangy crème fraiche and split with basil oil. (Side note: Food snobs may throw shade at a crudo but when it’s done well to accentuate the natural sweetness of fresh fish then there’s some clever balance and technique there.)

It’s an absolute feast to start, matched with a lemon-lime Chablis Chardonnay, and a light berry Hawkes Bay Sangiovese from talented winemakers Amy and Olly of Halcyon Days (fun fact: their ‘Vermillion’ Sangiovese is actually finished with a splash of Chardonnay to bring it all together).

Kingfish appears for our mains, as a fillet cooked to melt-like-butter tenderness and cloaked in a lemon-scented beurre blanc sauce. Grain-finished Lake Ohau Wagyu cooked medium-rare comes next—tender slices of sirloin finished with a sauce made with allll the pan juices (a.k.a. sauce Diane). The vegetable sides aren’t an afterthought on this menu, but essential accompaniments to lift the key players: herbaceous cos with crispy breadcrumbs, salt-baked beets folded in tangy plum and golden walnuts, and the frites of dreams—insanely crunchy on the outside and the softest potato innards. I tip my frites into the remaining Diane sauce on the steak plate for an extra saucy hit, wash it down with a sip of 2020 vintage Ambroise ‘Lettre d’Eloise’ Burgundy Pinot Noir—it’s juicy and savoury, just like the steak.

We finish with pear tarte tatin, a French classic among vanilla ice cream and a nod to the sample menu Yutak cooked for the Bistro Saine team when he was being interviewed. Petite bites of choux appear as an encore, encased in a signature craquelin made with Dutch cocoa and pumped full of hazelnut and white chocolate, served with a boozy and hot Amaro latte. Like an Italian digestif, the Amaro adds to the dark chocolate. Spiced with amaretto as well, it only means one thing—I dunk the choux in and regret nothing.  

Full from feasting, we sit around after dinner with the restaurant team, reflecting on our favourite dishes and pours over yet another glass of wine. Dishes that were passed around between strangers earlier have become dishes passed between friends. 

Open 7 days: 07:00 – 10:30  | 12:00 – 15:00  | 17:00 – 21:00

Words: Vicki Young | Image credit: Babiche Martens and Jonny Valiant. 

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