Past Issues  |  Subscribe  |  Advertise  |  About Us  |  Log In  |  My Account

  26.0F  |  Weather & Snow Report »

Blogs / A Walk In The Park / April 2009 / Bistro on a Blustery Day

Bistro on a Blustery Day

Before we truly sink our teeth into editing each issue of Park City Magazine, my copy editor Carolyn and I have made a habit of having lunch to discuss our pile of articles, and the stories behind them, and to indulge our grammar geek selves by laughing at the funny typos we have already discovered and discussing the merits and pitfalls of things like em dashes and modifiers (Carolyn was an English teacher for 25 years). Then we plot how we're going to edit and proofread (over and over again) 60-or-so stories within a six-week period.

To kick off our 2009 summer issue, we lunched recently on a grey, snowy and blustery Friday afternoon (it's always so hard to get your head into "summer" in March). Luckily, the door at Main Street's Bistro 412 was swung open invitingly by owner Steve McComb himself, a longtime Park City restaurant fixture. The breezy French country colors of the décor - the cornflower blues and the mustard yellows - cheered up our weather doldrums right away. The ghosts of Mileti's past, too, (Mileti's was the bar/restaurant that lived in this building long ago) brought back happy memories of old times in Old Town, running up the narrow little staircase to the cozy old bar where many locals were weaned on Park City life.

We were the first people seated at noon, but within 15 minutes, the place was bustling and happily busy, with a few couples, a few families, a few groups of girlfriends celebrating birthdays and divorces, and two tables of people dining on their own. It always impresses me when people have the self confidence (I usually don't) to walk into a restaurant solo with their book, order a glass of wine and settle in contentedly. Bravo.

Since it was chilly outside, the snow falling down on Main Street - we craved warm comfort food. Consequently, we ended up sort of, uh, overachieving on lunch. Oh, well. We started with a glass of chardonnay and the wild mushroom strudel appetizer, which was warm, gooey and delicious … a perfect combination of forest mushrooms and goat cheese wrapped in crispy filo dough with a balsamic reduction. We ordered two entrées. One was the Croque St. Jacques Panini, because it stirred fond memories of my living in Paris junior year of college and ordering buttery Croque Monsieurs from streetside vendors on so many grey winter days in that city. Bistro 412's version is simple - as it should be - with ham, gruyere, Dijon mustard and grilled asparagus all on thinly sliced and grilled sourdough bread. We ordered it with pommes frites, of course, instead of salad - the delicate little original "French fry."

Our second choice was the quiche du jour, which that day included tomato, ham and provolone. The slice was beefy - its insides were creamy smooth and I loved the bulky crust on it. Instead of a salad, we ordered a cup of the soup du jour to go with it - a sundried tomato and asiago that was smoky and full of great flavor.

Should we have ordered a salad? Yes. Owner Steve McComb teased us when we complained about our cheese-laden stomachs and reminded us, "we do have salads on the menu, you know ladies …" To taunt us even further, he then offered to buy us dessert (only after he saw us groaning and holding our distended bellies). Thanks, Steve. Haha.

Bistro 412 was a big hit on this Friday afternoon - the food hit the spot, the service was wonderful, the cute French décor bright and comforting, and all of our fellow lunchers seemed to be very much enjoying themselves. This is a great season in Park City to get some hang time at our local lunch spots - the ski season is nearly over - the tourists are gone - the mud season is definitely here - and while you're waiting for the trails to dry out and the warm temps to take hold, grab a friend and some lunch, reconnect with your fellow locals and enjoy. Just go easy on the cheese.

---