Back in 2011, Euan McGregor and Eva Green starred in a little-remembered movie called Perfect Sense, a science fiction movie in which people gradually lost their senses, starting with smell and taste (sound familiar?).
Euan played a chef who became an overnight success by adapting to the loss of these senses by evolving his cooking. When smell went he upped the flavour and the visual appeal; when taste went he upped the textures, creating alternative experiences to keep the diners coming.
Sitting in Bistrot Bagatelle at the Fairmont Hotel this movie swam back to mind. Why? Because this restaurant, known for its party atmosphere, with glamorous guests regularly known to end up dancing on tables as the music played, has had to adapt and evolve due to the pandemic.
While the party may have, for now, had to be toned down, this French eatery has adapted by moving the live entertainment to the taste buds with its BagaEton menu.
The décor of Bagatelle was already fairly eclectic but on BagaEton nights they dial it up, with a South American takeover with exotic plants and exotic prints sported by the stylish serving crew.
But it’s the ‘drunch’ menu that continues to entice in this well-heeled mix of oligarchs, entrepreneurs and influencers. Depending on your appetite you can order as much as you want from a set offering of Les Entrées Froides, Les Entrées Chaudes and Les Plats (plus Les Desserts if you’ve the room).
We ambitiously tackled most of the dishes, but what stood out from the Les Entrées Froides was the Salade Monaco, a fresh combination of lobster, crayfish, wagyu beef, avocado and lettuce blended with a buttermilk sauce. The creamy Burrata, with roasted apple and plums gives an extra layer of texture to the dish enhanced by truffle dressing, also impressed.
This being a French restaurant you can access truffle in almost every course, and the Les Entrées Chaudes is no exception with an almost too tasty black truffle pizza. A word of warning as you will be tempted to over indulge at this stage, but remember BagaEton is a marathon not a sprint, with more courses yet to tackle.
Two dishes climbed over stiff competition in Les Plats to truly standout. The first being the Steak au Poivre, with the juicy US prime striploin cooked perfectly to balance the delicate mess of crispy shredded ‘haystack potatoes’ and the zing of the peppercorn sauce. In fact, of all the dishes on Les Plats, I feared this might be the most pedestrian, but it proved to be a real treat (one I’m sure Euan would have approved of). Also worthy of mention is the Linguini au Homard Épice, the spicy lobster linguine that really packs a punch in terms of flavour, and compliments to the chef for nailing the al dente texture of the pasta.
While it is a question of time before the DJs can spin again and the party return in earnest to Bistrot Bagatelle, in the meantime, the venue is doing a fantastic job of keeping the palate entertained.
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