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Bistro 7 1/4
Categories: Event Planning & Services Caterers Restaurants French Caterers, French [Edit]
725 Osborne StWinnipeg, MB R3L 2C1
(204) 777-2525
- Price Range:
-
$$$
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Attire:
- Casual
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Good for Kids:
- No
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
- Noise Level:
- Average
- Has TV:
- No
9 reviews for Bistro 7 1/4
9 reviews in English
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Review from Shawn B.
Winnipeg, MB
4/6/2012
This place is a great place just to drop in and enjoy some charcuterie and mussels. The Blue cheeseand Bacon is particulary delicious. Last time I was there for lunch and had La Croque 7. It had turkey, prosciutto, gruyere, béchamel sauce and topped with a poached egg. In my option more things need to be topped with soft poached eggs and it was delicious!
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Review from Liv S.
3/5/2012 1 Check-in Here
I have been wanting to go to this little spot for awhile and finally made it out on this visit to the 'peg. Started with sweetbreads appetizer. Fabulous! Not gummy, super tender and subtle flavor. The mussels were great. I loved the tequila flavored ones. I think they were better than the beer, bacon and cheese. The duck dish was fabulous. Not as heavy as you think it would be after reading the menu. To end the meal we shared a chocolate banana bread with caramel sauce...to die for!! Best dessert I have had in a long time.
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Review from Dee K.
3/21/2012
Like it a lot. I am basically from US so for me it looked like a high priced small quantity place. Small bites are really small, but the Italian sausage stuffed olives that I ordered with my wine were a perfect choice. Wine and salty olives wow a dynamite combination which I had rarely had before. The clams were great and salmon looked good. Also my bread pudding was amazing. A tad bit too sweet with no rum or bourbon after taste which I an used to since I eat so much in New Orleans. But it was still a nice French fusion with interesting takes on European food. Liked it and will visit it again. Next time I promised Alex (chef) that I will try the cheese platter. According to him it is great.
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Review from Shawn C.
Vancouver, BC
12/29/2010
Second time here, I find there aren't a lot of options when visiting Winnipeg (tho' I have yet to try Sidney's in the Forks). Service was slow as was the food, but the quality was exceptional and in the end it was a satisfying, though just, experience. Enjoyed the beets with horseradish (side), the baked polenta (almost like mac 'n' cheese), and the rainbow trout (delicious with the fennel and tomatoes). My dinner companion tucked into the duck confit, an appetizer and a meal in itself, then struggled with the coq au vin, nearly a full chicken on a bed of pasta with bacon. We got sucked into dessert, which was okay but unnecessary.
I'll probably be back, as I enjoy the unpretentious atmosphere and the menu selection. I hope service will be better - if the food can't come any faster, at least give us a drink. -
Review from Jeremy P.
Toronto, ON
3/28/2010
Last night I went with my girlfriend and a few friends to Bistro 7 1/4. The following are my thoughts on our dining experience:
Pluses:
1. The food.
2. The service.
Minuses:
1. The noise.
2. The smell.
I'll elaborate on each point in turn:
The food: The menu is quite extensive and there were many items which piqued my interest. At first there were the moules frites (I thought to myself, we're in a French restaurant, so this should be the thing to order), but then my attention was drawn to a few other items. First there was the meatloaf, then there was pumpkin ravioli. I was torn over what item to order. I wasn't the only one at our table that was having trouble making a choice. In the end I went with the autumn vegetarian tagine with dried fruit. It was a very filling dish, which I would heartily recommend. It was served on a large plate and came on a bed of cous-cous. The dessert menu looked exceptional; however, due to the large portion that was provided, there was little room for anything more for my stomach to handle.
The service: The waiter was very attentive and patient and stopped by our table on a number of occasions and answered numerous questions about specific menu items. There were other staff that were also very attentive in terms of re-filling our water glasses and clearing our table.
The noise: what happens when you combine the following ingredients: hardwood floors, open kitchen, many people, tables positioned closely together. You get a very noisy experience. In short, this is not a place to take your grandparents, that is if you want to have an in depth conversation with them. Even with my 33 year old ears, I found that I had to strain a few times to hear conversation at the table.
The smell: Here's a tip. Do not wear your finest duds. As a result of poor ventilation, you will find that when leaving the Bistro, your clothes will smell of grease. So, if this is something that is a pet peeve of yours, you may want to give the Bistro a pass. My friend pointed out that this is likely due to the fact that the restaurant has an open kitchen set-up, something which he preferred. He provided the viewpoint that an open kitchen was better than one behind the scenes because he could see what was going on and did not have to worry about any funny business taking place behind closed doors. I feel differently in that the costs (noise & smell) outweigh the benefits.
In the end, I'd give the Bistro a 4 star review (just don't wear your Sunday's finest ;-)). -
Review from DineoutGal A.
Winnipeg, MB
12/12/2010
I've eaten here on and off since they first opened, my 3 stars is probably an average of the many dining experiences I've had here. Some were amazing and some were just absolutely disappointing. This place is very popular and has a great menu but to me, it is also very inconsistent in its food quality.
The menu was closer to bistro pricing when it first opened but it's evolved to a more complex menu with more offerings so entrees are in the $25-$36 range. The dinner prices have crept into the city's finer dining prices as opposed to casual bistro so for me, it's difficult to give them a high rating when I have to wait a long time for food and I leave the restaurant smelling like I've been cooking in the kitchen all night.
It's a French bistro with a tiny open kitchen in the middle. The problem with this set up is that there's like 2 chefs working frantically there to serve up an almost always busy dining room so it's always quite a wait for food. So, this is definitely a place where patience and ample time is needed.
When the food is good, it is very yummy. Like the amazing Berkshire pork I had once that was indescribable in it's flavour and juiciness. I don't think I've had such an amazing pork chop anywhere else. I've had great moule et frites here and at times there have been times where I've had mussels that were "off," as they just didn't taste fresh. Salmon is not something I would order here as I've always received over cooked fish, like to the point of dry even though I asked for them to be cooked "medium".
Lunch is delicious here but once again, it's a long wait as one time my table of 4 had to wait over 40 mins for burgers and sandwiches (no starters). Granted they were 100% full but that's a really long wait. The lunch portions are massive as I barely ate half of my dish. They have a massive gourmet burger selection with 9 burgers that range from $11 for your basic burger to $25 as more gourmet toppings like foie gras are available. The "forest burger" ($18) is a massive well flavoured beef burger on a soft and buttery brioche bun filled with wild mushrooms, prosciutto and goat cheese. I enjoyed the burger patty but the toppings didn't seem to meld as well as I thought so I'd order another burger next time. A very rich and filling sandwich is the braised boneless short rib sandwich with bacon, arugula and blue cheese ($13). I'm not a huge fan of blue cheese but in this sandwich it went really well with the rich and savoury short rib.
Service is always very warm and friendly and the place always had a great vibe, though it can get quite loud. Reservations are a very good idea for this place. -
Review from Laura A.
Winnipeg, MB
4/1/2011
The ingenious crew I used to work with in Victoria secretly did some research and bought be a gift certificate for Bistro 7 1/4 as a going away gift, knowing my love of good food and small intimate dining experiences. Even from the on line presence they could tell this would be right up my alley, and sure enough it was!
Imagine if you can, walking into a warm dimly lit room a buzz with the kind of chatter only happy diners can create....fresh out from the snowy Thursday evening in question, the experience could not have started on a better note. Add in a charming and extremely attentive host and as you can probably imagine, promise fills the air.
The menu was a treat to read and ponder, and my husband and I quickly decided that tapas would be the route to go to truly get a good feel for the variety it offered.
Our feast ended up including the olive plate, the dip plate, the beef scraps, a cheese plate ( which we ended up having packed for take home because we were so full!) and the little gnocchi like pasta things with tomato sauce and sausage.
We were equally impressed by the ginormous steak that was delivered to the table next to us, a pure spectacle that created camaraderie amongst the diners at our end of the room and just enhanced the great feelings of a night spent in excellent company in a well appointed room.
Everything was excellent and at the end of it all we did say we could hardly wait to come back for a long leisurely lunch on a Sunday afternoon when we were feeling somewhat decedent and in the mood for a real treat.
The only thing that keeps this form being a 5 Star review is the fact that I had to strip at the door when I got home and put my clothes in the basement. The open kitchen, although upon first blush could be a foodies dream come true, was not really vented adequately enough to detract from an otherwise overall beyond pleasure-able experience.
Until next visit,
PJ xoxoxoxo -
Review from John R.
Winnipeg, MB
1/3/2011
Been here off and on over the last year and food and the service was OK. Last time I tried the cheese platter from his last buying trip, and although I ask for no blue-cheese type cheese I was served some. I find the price a little high for what I feel I am getting. Overall a good place, but I not somewhere I would go to as a first choice.
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Review from Dallas H.
9/5/2008
The food here is first-rate as is the service. The moules et frites are a must. Décor is nicely done. Great place for a date or for a birthday, or a satisfying lunch.
