If you leave it too long between visits to Johannesburg’s Parkhurst strip, you may not recognise the names.
Shops and restaurants vanish with alarming alacrity, and what’s hot this month can be stale and bankrupt the next. Except for a hard core of long survivors, including Bistro Vine.
The bistro survives because you get good service and great food at prices that keep the riffraff at bay and keep the owners solvent.
It keeps me happy too so I’ve been several times, most recently with a friend who arrived late. A woman on the next table also looked up expectantly every time someone walked onto the deck where the outside tables are. We joked that we’d eat together if we both got jilted.
It’s a great place for dates – or friends – being sophisticated enough to impress but too relaxed to intimidate.
The cosy bistro has dark wooden décor, crisp white tablecloths, a massive metal chandelier, a bar completely filling one wall and wines listed on a blackboard. There are five or six wines by the glass, including Haystack Chardonnay at R55.
The menu offers typical French dishes like cassoulet, duck pate, goat’s chese and bouillabaisse, although that’s no longer a poor man’s dish at R195.
I had half a roast chicken with mash for R125, and although it was tender and tasty I should have ordered a side dish of greens to add an extra taste.
I suffered food envy for my friend’s generous bowl of mussels simmered in white wine, cream, leeks, celery and herbs, and helped myself shamelessly. I nicked the excellent French fries with homemade mayonnaise too. Sam is fussiest eater I know, and the fact that the mussels received a nod of approval is a massive compliment.
I’ve had Bistro Vine’s delectable desserts before, and was looking forward to getting reacquainted with the dark chocolate tart with raspberry coulis or a white chocolate cheesecake with crème fraiche, both at R65. I was too full for either, but it’s exactly the kind of place I’ll visit alone again for wine and cheesecake.
Expert Review
If you leave it too long between visits to Johannesburg’s Parkhurst strip, you may not recognise the names. Shops and...
If you leave it too long between visits to Johannesburg’s Parkhurst strip, you may not recognise the names.
Shops and restaurants vanish with alarming alacrity, and what’s hot this month can be stale and bankrupt the next. Except for a hard core of long survivors, including Bistro Vine.
The bistro survives because you get good service and great food at prices that keep the riffraff at bay and keep the owners solvent.
It keeps me happy too so I’ve been several times, most recently with a friend who arrived late. A woman on the next table also looked up expectantly every time someone walked onto the deck where the outside tables are. We joked that we’d eat together if we both got jilted.
It’s a great place for dates – or friends – being sophisticated enough to impress but too relaxed to intimidate.
The cosy bistro has dark wooden décor, crisp white tablecloths, a massive metal chandelier, a bar completely filling one wall and wines listed on a blackboard. There are five or six wines by the glass, including Haystack Chardonnay at R55.
The menu offers typical French dishes like cassoulet, duck pate, goat’s chese and bouillabaisse, although that’s no longer a poor man’s dish at R195.
I had half a roast chicken with mash for R125, and although it was tender and tasty I should have ordered a side dish of greens to add an extra taste.
I suffered food envy for my friend’s generous bowl of mussels simmered in white wine, cream, leeks, celery and herbs, and helped myself shamelessly. I nicked the excellent French fries with homemade mayonnaise too. Sam is fussiest eater I know, and the fact that the mussels received a nod of approval is a massive compliment.
I’ve had Bistro Vine’s delectable desserts before, and was looking forward to getting reacquainted with the dark chocolate tart with raspberry coulis or a white chocolate cheesecake with crème fraiche, both at R65. I was too full for either, but it’s exactly the kind of place I’ll visit alone again for wine and cheesecake.