Restaurant Name: Bistro 501
Location: 501 Main Street, Lafayette, IN (map it)
Phone: 765-423-4501
Cuisine: French
Review: Finally, time to write my much overdue review of Bistro 501. I’ve been wanting to write a review for some time, but haven’t had the opportunity to go there and enjoy a meal. This week, I finally got that opportunity to go eat a meal with some great friends at this eatery. (We had actually set out to try out Sharma’s Kitchen, but apparently all the Indian restaurants are closed on Mondays. Who knew?)
Bistro 501 is located right downtown on the corner of 5th and Main. You can’t miss it. Reservations are recommended, but since it was a Monday night, we chanced it and didn’t have any trouble getting seated right away. The restaurant is beautiful. It’s clean, the decor is lovely, the lighting is really nice. It was a very pleasant atmosphere for a meal.
Our water was brought out right away with a promise of a waiter to take our drink order. We ordered a bottle of wine and perused the menu for a while.
I was surprised at how small the menu was. Just a handful of items in each category. Appetizers, salads, entrees, and desserts. We placed our orders and enjoyed the bread and the butter that came with our drinks. The bread was good, but I really want to know what they put in that butter, it was just heavenly! I wanted to coat my whole meal in it.
The soups and salads came next and I can say that I have not found a better bowl of French Onion Soup in Lafayette. I’ve had plenty of really bad bowls of French Onion Soup for sure. This was great.
For the main course, I ordered a chicken dish served with potatoes and asparagus. I can’t remember the name of it right now, but it was the only chicken item on the menu. My friends had two different kinds of steak, one with potatoes and green beans, the other with fries.
The food came beautifully prepared and it was clear that thought had been put into the arrangement of food on the plate. I was pretty excited about the chicken, because it’s not everyday that I dine in a restaurant where the main course alone costs $24. (And I got the cheaper item!) I was pretty sure it was going to be heaven on a plate.
It was good. Would I classify it as heaven on a plate? No. Perhaps chicken is not their specialty or perhaps it was an off night. The chicken was fine, but it didn’t blow my mind and for the price, I was kind of hoping to have my mind blown. The potatoes were excellent and my friends loved their steak.
We were offered dessert menus and I knew that tonight would be a night that dessert was key. They dessert menu nearly did blow my mind. So many tasty choices, but as soon as I saw the crème brûlée, I knew it had to be mine. And it did not disappoint! A most excellent dessert indeed.
Cost: Pretty Pricey – my meal alone was $50, but this is about it for “fine dining” in Lafayette.
Kid friendly: No
Recent Comments