The classic set-up inspired by Parisian architecture offers an experiential meal at Bonne Bouche, says Karan Bhardwaj
The classic French interiors comprising some vintage chairs, old portraits and lamps on the decorated wall… Welcome to Bonne Bouche, a new outlet in the bustling market area of Defence Colony. The place offers authentic Italian and French cuisines, with Indian continental, to cater to a larger audience. Barely a month-old outlet, it is brainchild of 27-year-old Manish lakra, a young enthusiast of food and cinema. He went to the UK for MBA and New York Academy to hone his acting skills. He even tried his luck in Mumbai for some six months but food was the ultimate call. “I love travelling and eating out. I had a good exposure to authentic Mexican and Italian cuisines in the US and Thai food in Bangkok. I knew I would never get the same taste in Delhi. So I was determined to start something on my own,” he shared.
Bonne Bouche is not his first. He established Rara Avis in GK couple of years ago but the locality didn’t impress him much. So he sold it off and designed a similar sort of concept in Defence Colony. What impressed us as we entered the place was distinctions at every floor. The first floor is a fine dine area with formal atmosphere. The second floor boasts of a bar and lounge where a few youngsters were having fun. Finally, the terrace offers Indian kebabs served with hukkah.
“There are lots of antiques in the interior. My wife, Sonal Verma, and I have done the interiors. I like to buy antiques. Chairs are also vintage. We bought it from somebody in the French Embassy. I got leather furniture from Rajasthan,” said the owner. After a walk, we settled down on the first floor, wanting not to disturb the informal crowd at the other areas.
The staff, which appears to be well-trained, not only serves with glee but also explains the composition of the dishes. Angel hair pasta mashed with burnt garlic, parsley and a hint of chilly set the perfect beginning. It’s more than noodles and less than regular pasta. In one word, great! Ditto for ricotta and pumpkin ravioli.
In French menu, there are minced duck pate, duck magret in mixed berry sauce, grilled juicy tenderloin steak with red wine rosemary and creamy mashed potatoes, hot morel mushroom sauce with bread croutons, stuffed chicken breast with ham, mushroom and cheese topped with peppercorn sauce.
Our take away is chicken breast with morel mushroom sauce. “Actually morel mushrooms are really expensive. It is not available in regular restaurants. We make it with thick white sauce and put it on chicken breast before serving with vegetables and mashed potatoes. It’s a unique dish,” said lakra. He also believed that French food is getting popular in the area with several new outlets serving the same. “There are youngsters who want to experiment with their palate. So it’s picking up. There are many foreigners in this area as well who are well-versed with this cuisine. So we expect great response in coming days,” he said.