Bistro Des Copains - French, Occidental

3782 Bohemian Hwy, Occidental CA 95465
(707) 874-2436
Parking: in parking lot
Hours: Sun-Thurs 5-9pm, Fri-Sat 5-10pm
http://bistrodescopains.com

Last Visited: August 5, 2006

Food: 4 stars
Atmosphere: 4 stars
Service:2 to 3 stars
Price: $$ to $$$

The earthy and friendly colors of their Bistro sign against the forest green building drew me in. Copains means buddies in French, so that was an even more welcoming thought. As you enter the restaurant, you’re greeted by an open bar, fresh flowers, and warmth from the delightful yellow and burgundy reds. The tables have white paper over dark red tablecloths with olives displayed on them. The back wall contains pictures of farmland (photos from Michel Augsburger’s ancestral farm back in France). The open kitchen allows the aromas to permeate into the dining area. White cloth napkins sit between a fork and knife and the bread plate. A bouquet of lavender is tied with a ribbon and each table contains one laid on its side at the center of the table. We received water upon our arrival.

Food from Provence is known for its use of local foods. The food is fresh at Bistro des Copains and quite light. This was a lunch visit, and the windows brought in lots of sunlight and gave us a view of the happenings in Occidental. At first glance, their menu is quite high priced – they were serving the same menu as dinner for lunch, with a few exceptions.

- Souffle au Chevre – Goat Cheese souffle with mixed greens – A goat cheese soufflé is placed on top of a bed of mixed greens. Let’s start with the greens – the vinaigrette was wake you up sour. What does this mean? If you didn’t know it was going to be very sour, you would wake up at first bite. When I took the first bite, I was so surprised. After follow on bites or after being warned, it’s still more on the acidic side, but more than bearable. Fresh greens – I think only one piece had a little rust, but overall, good. The soufflé was white, light, and fluffy. The top had been browned and just lightly crisp, but the center of the soufflé was still a bit cold. Warming closer to room temperature would have made it perfect, but it melted in my mouth. Great dish. $7.50

- Salade de Betteraves – Roasted beet and walnut salad – There were about eight beets – four of regular red beet variety and four of a smaller red beet variety – served on a small white plate. The smaller one was more dense. It was topped with an herb leaf and crushed walnuts were sprinkled around it. A drizzle of olive oil over the beets completed the salad. Sweet, fresh, and simple. Good. $6.75

- La Pissaladiere – Caramelized onions, goat cheese, and black olives pizza (with anchovies optional). Served on a white plate, this thin crusted pizza was topped with anchovies, then caramelized onions acted as the cheese, covering the entire dough, then goat cheese chunks and black olives. The pizza toppings are on the sweet side due to the caramelized onions, but the anchovies really balance out the sweetness well. Good. $10

Other offerings included risotto, roasted chicken, duck, oysters, roasted fish, and raviolis. The general sense of the menu is that the food is simply made, but the essence of each dish is filled with local flavor.

There were a few things that were uncomfortable about my visit. Besides waiting forever to get water (and trying to be subtle by putting the glass near the edge of the table) and then still having to ask for additional water despite being only one of two tables in the dining room for lunch, my glass had lipstick on it. When I looked behind to see if I could find another glass, the table behind me also had a glass with lipstick on it. I noticed that the server was wiping all of the wine glasses. I’m not sure they wipe all of water glasses. I am fairly certain that the silverware doesn’t get a good wiping since mine had spots. The other item was the bread plate. When I have a bread plate that is sitting on the table upon arrival, I make the assumption that bread will be served, but no bread was in sight. I’m not sure why they bother with bread plates if each table doesn’t receive bread. If I hadn’t shared the salad and pizza, I don’t think I would have used the bread plate at all – bizarre.

Overall, the service was friendly, but it wasn’t very good in terms of coming to check on how we were doing with our food, or filling water. There were four people working in the restaurant while I was there, but only one attending to the dining room. However, with only two tables of two each, I felt the server should have been more prompt and alert about water glasses being filled. Good simple and fresh food, but so-so service; however, the food may still get you to go check it out.