PROFILED BY DE GROOTSBelle Epoque is a well-loved bistro in the ritzy Emporium Hotel complex and it certainly has the style and class to match the Emporium’s plush and exotic interior. The design of the restaurant is typically French, with antique smoked mirrors lining the walls and reflecting the classic red leather booth seating and moulded ceilings. The restaurant is quite large and is bustling on a Saturday night with hotel guests and glamorous Brisbanites. The impressive bar completely lines one wall and offers an all-French wine list, as well as aperitifs and digestifs which should be taken before eating to stimulate the appetite.
Not that it needs any help, as the smell of fresh bread wafting from the kitchen is enough to do this alone. I started with the ocean trout rillettes with marinated crab meat, a divine combination. The French goat’s cheese tartlet was superb with a delicate, crisp pastry accentuating the flavours. The chicken chasseur of organic spring chicken in a mushroom, white wine and tarragon sauce with fresh vegetables was moist and tender, but far too large to finish after so much delicious bread. Similarly the canard a l’orange (duck to us laymen) had perfectly contrasting flavours when served with crisp cheese-filled gnocchi.
Meagan Hepworth, November 2007