French Bistro in Singapore : Dinner at Bistro Du Vin

Which French Bistro in Singapore to have a nice cosy dinner? The familiar Bistro Du Vin at Shaw Centre usually comes to mind. And so that was where we headed for a family get-together recently.

What is French Bistro Dining?

According to Wikipedia, a French Bistro is typically characterised as“… a neighborhood restaurant where one can partake of French home cooking, typically robust, earthy dishes such as cassoulet …. Bistros are not temples of haute cuisine, but places for affordable and simple country food.”

This French Bistro Singapore at Shaw Centre is a member of the Les Amis group. It has undergone several face lifts in the past several years. It is significantly brighter and less cluttered now as compared to many years ago, but its appearance has remained largely unchanged. Appearance wise, it certainly fits what we visualise a French bistro in Singapore to be.

French Bistro Singapore Menu

Like many authentic French bistros, seasonal food and special dishes are written on a chalk board. The regular menu is printed on paper place mats on the table – a simple and low cost way that ensures that everyone gets a menu very quickly. Here are pictures of the Bistro du Vin menu at the time of our visit in April 2023.

Bread & Starters

Being served with some warm toasty bread is always a good start to our meal at any French bistro in Singapore. Our chosen starters were Escargots de Bourgogne ($19), Cuisses de Grenouiles (Crispy frog legs, $28) and Encornets grilles (Grilled Japanese squid, $26).

Consistent with the statement that ” …. Bistros are not temples of haute cuisine, but places for affordable and simple country food.” The food presentation at Bistro du Vin may be described as “no frills”. Aesthetics was clearly not a priority at this French bistro in Singapore.

The Burgundy snails baked with garlic herbs butter (picture above) tasted great. The snail contents were very small and the buttery oil left in the cups should not go to waste. They go very well with the bread.

Even more simply presented were the frog legs (picture below). Appearing like fried chicken drumsticks, they also tasted like chicken. The garlic parsley aioli and fresh lemon enhanced the taste marginally. This was the least favoured dish of the day.

Looking better than the other starters, the grilled squid appeared more appetising. The garlic, herb and pepper seasoning made it a tasty dish.

Main Courses : French Classics

The starters were ok but not very impressive. Fortunately Bistro du Vin redeemed themselves with the main courses. Our selected dishes were coq au vin ($40) , duck leg confit ($39), 12 hour braised beef cheek ($44) and ragout of beef, lamb & pork, topped with gratinated mash potato ($38). I guess that these are the dishes that fall within the Wikipedia description of “…French home cooking, typically robust, earthy dishes such as cassoulet .‘

**Confit de canard**
Crispy French duck leg confit, Sarladaise potatoes, baby romaine, red wine sauce

It would appear that substance prevailed over form at this French bistro in Singapore. Not much to look at, but all the main courses were very delicious.

*Ragout of beef, lamb & pork, topped with gratinated mash potato, mixed salad*

The best dishes were those slowly cooked and presented in heavy metal pots. The stewed chicken and braised beef cheek were the best dishes of the day.

**Coq au vin**
Traditonal chicken leg stewed with smoked bacon, mushroom, onion & red wine, mash potatoes

French Bistro in Singapore : Desserts

These were our desserts at Bistro du Vin: Apple & caramel puff-pastry tart with vanilla ice-cream ($18), Grand Marnier Soufflé ($20) and French strawberries & crème diplomat tart with chocolate ice-cream ($18). All were good. The soufflé was the best.

French Bistro in Singapore : French Wines & BYO

Good food needs some good wine for company. Like its sister restaurants in the same building, Les Amis and Elan, Bistro du Vin has a “one-for-one” BYO policy. Buy a bottle from the restaurant and BYO one from home without any corkage fee. Our selection from the Bistro wine list was a 2020 Trimbach Riesling white wine from the Alsace region of France. Our bottle of red from home was a 2008 Château Pontet-Canet. They certainly helped in the merry-making at the French Bistro in Singapore.