What is a bistro?
(Amy Davis/Sun Photographer)
Good question. Here's the e-mail I got:
DEAR MS. LARGE:
IN TODAY'S WORLD WHAT DOES THE TERM BISTRO MEAN?
WOULD YOU SAY IT HAS THE SAME MEANING AS CAFE?
HOW DOES IT DIFFER FROM A RESTAURANT OR TAVERN?
AND SO ON & SO ON ...
THANKING YOU IN ADVANCE,
JOHN BECK
ELLICOTT CITY
In other words, what do Timothy Dean Bistro, b Bistro, P. F. Chang's China Bistro and Petit Louis Bistro have in common? ...
The answer is, not much. Petit Louis tried to duplicate a real French bistro when it first opened (it tries less and less as it matures into its own restaurant). The other three use the term loosely to suggest that they are hip, fun and you can come dressed casually.
A bistro isn't as serious, whatever that means, as a restaurant, although the food can be just as elaborate and costly. For sure, you won't get formal service.
I don't expect much more than a sandwich, salad or pastry in a cafe, and I don't expect a wine list.
As for a tavern, it's either "historical" as in the former King of France Tavern in Annapolis, in which case all bets are off, or it's down-home, casual and serving food to eat with a beer.
Anybody have any other thoughts?
Comments
I think words like, "bistro" and "cafe" are batted around so much as to become meaningless as far as identification goes. As a former Los Angeles resident I've come to the simple conclusion that "bistro" means higher prices and smaller portions whereas "cafe" has come to mean sandwiches, soups and less formal dining.
Posted by: Richard Crystal | May 22, 2007 11:30 AM
I'll tell you what it means from our perspective as owners of AIDA Bistro. We chose the name based on our experience dining at Bistros in the US and abroad. We wanted to focus on three things; fresh ingredients, reasonable prices and wine as a part of the entire dining experience. If we had labeled the restaurant a Tratorria or Ristorante, it would have limited the Chef(s) to one type of regional cuisine, and a wine list focused on the same. Even though we have a core of fresh pasta on the menu, the Chef(s) are free to explore other cuisines. Our customers appreciate the chance to eat many different types of cuisine under one roof. It also allowed us to develop a growing small plate menu so customers could create courses and tastes of wine based on the Chef's daily creations.
Posted by: Joe Barbera | May 23, 2007 8:30 AM
So then, what is a Gastro Cafe, like Smedlys?
Posted by: bubba | May 24, 2007 12:11 AM