Winnipeg Sun November 7, 2002
Provence Bistro. Perfection on a platter
5 out of 5 stars

How do I love thee? asked Elizabeth Barrett Browning and then answered her own question. Let me count the ways, she said. While Liz may have been addressing her Q and A to hubbie Robert B., rather than Provence Bistro at the Niakwa golf course, the principle is the same.
It's the attention to detail. No, it's the food. It's the service. It's the decor. It's the atmosphere. OK, so it's everything about Provence that the Discreet Diner likes ... nay, loves. So will you, to the point where you will cease sobbing over the demise of Le Beaujolais and rejoice that Valerie and Shawn Brandson have reappeared as the proprietors of Provence.
And speaking of detail -- it is noticeable from the moment you sit down at your table to the moment you leave. Sometimes it's apparent in something small -- such as the small dish of black and green olives in olive oil and garlic which arrives magically and immediately at your table. Sometimes it is in something more obvious -- such as our server's extensive knowledge of wines. With his assistance, we chose a glass of Vineland Riesling which we found exactly right for our mood.
Provence sports two dining rooms, one large, one considerably smaller -- both overlooking the golf course and both comfortably elegant. In fact, everything about this restaurant speaks of quiet elegance -- the understated decor, the graciousness of the servers, the tasteful background music.
The menu is focused, comprising a clever offering of a few dishes in each category -- fish, meat, pasta, poultry. Even so, each one sounds so sumptuous, it's still difficult to choose. The Friend and the DD decided to share a couple of appetizers and settled upon the crab cakes ($11) and the goat cheese ($9) and we found that them a tasty and attractive beginning to what was to become a fine dining experience.
For an entree the DD chose the rack of lamb ($33), while TF decided on the beef tenderloin ($34). To say that the meat was tender does not do either the lamb or the beef justice. Particularly the sauce accompanying the tenderloin was scrumptious and the vegetables were crisply tender.
And yes, we had to have dessert. After all, when did you last see floating island on the dessert menu? And the chocolate mousse was divine.
A word here about presentation. Provence is determined to satisfy both your palate and your eyes -- each dish (appetizer, entree, dessert) is arranged artistically upon the plate with obvious attention to colour and placement.
Note that on the first Thursday of every month, Provence presents a "taste great food and wine pairings" dinner which allows patrons to express their knowledge and learn more about which wines accompany which dishes.
Do yourself a favour and go to Provence.
The bill, including tip, came to $150.38.

Ciao Magazine
January 1, 2003
Provence Bistro. Gourmet Provençal
Great meals are prepared in the privileged confines of the city’s private clubs, where talented chefs toil ceaselessly behind members-only signs. With the opening of Provence Bistro at Niakwa (620 Niakwa Rd, 254-3500, Map 2: D-5) anyone can now cozy up to the country club set. 

Partners Valerie Anne-Owen and Shawn Brandson, both formerly of Le Beaujolais (once ranked as one of Canada’s top 100 restaurants), have turned a window-lined space in the Niakwa clubhouse into an elegant evening-only restaurant. Chef Lau Young, who spent six years at prestigious St. Charles County Club, has created an exciting menu for the new room. Just as French provençale cooking combines the best of the Mediterranean with the best of French cuisine, this bistro recaptures some of the classic tastes of Le Beaujolais, and merges them with the influences of the sea. The Mediterranean contributes seafood risotto, mussels, jumbo prawns, and a signature bouillabaisse. Chef Lau creates hearty, gourmet versions of this casual fishermen’s fare. He also pays homage to the terroir with red wine richly accenting dishes like oven-roasted rack of lamb and the stellar escargots en croûte. This latter is one of the best starters around. It beautifully summarizes the vision for this restaurant. The strong, earthy flavour of snails and mushrooms is accented with wine, and topped with a black truffle oil that playfully releases its aroma when the pastry cap is opened. It is like walking in a damp forest after a warm summer’s rain. Almond-crusted goat cheese salad, with its finely matched flavours, draws you out of the forest into the sun-drenched fields of the south of France. 

Chef Lau’s commitment to sensory experiences comes through in the way ordinary things are cooked, and presented, in extraordinary ways. Orchiette pasta is baked with bits of red pepper in phyllo pastry and served with grilled chicken and mascarpone beurre blanc sauce. Though not as intensely flavoured as it could be, the whimsy of the presentation is enjoyable. Also light hearted is a pairing of jumbo prawns with cooked seaweed and grapefruit juice. It works well as the sweet citrus accents the succulent shellfish. Dessert features baked Alaska, along with Le Beaujolais’s signature floating island. Service is informed yet relaxed.

Marion Warhaft - Winnipeg Free Press January 2003
5 out of 5 stars

Feed me foie gras and I’ll follow you anywhere. In this case, to the clubhouse of the Niakwa Country Club, where the newest star in our culinary firmament is located and foie gras is an almost permanent special.

            …First about Provence Bistro… It’s an intimate and elegant room, reminiscent, if not of Provence (or of a bistro either, for that matter), then of many classic country inns in France . The décor is subtle, almost monochromatic, with pale beige walls and blond woods… The view is lovely too, through a wall of windows that overlooks a terrace where tiny lights delineate tables that, presumably, will be used in summer, and spot lighting gives the bare trees a dream-like, other-worldly appearance.

            In other words, it looks first class, and the food, under the direction of executive chef Lau Young, is a match for the setting – also not particularly Provencal, but mostly quite French. Here it appears (foie gras), not as a pate, but gloriously sautéed with braised apple, a touch of truffle oil and a wee champagne sorbet on the side… If even shared foie gras is beyond your budget, a good, if less exciting but more affordable appetizer is a medley of pates ($10).

            One must among the entrees is the terrific double leg of duck confit ($30), which (unlike many so-called confits elsewhere) actually has the wonderfully rich flavour of meat that has actually first been preserved, and then slow-roasted…. The relatively short menu is augmented by a number of specials, two of which were excellent… Nor does the kitchen lose steam when it comes to desserts ($5.50-$6), among them a delicate tart of pears in custard and a gossamer dream of caramel-drizzled floating island.

            The wine list is long and impressive, but choices under $30 are few… Still the setting is lovely, the food is excellent and the service is impeccable.

December 19, 2003
Dining Out (Best of 2003) – It was a good year for dining

            … This year’s other five-star debut, Provence Bistro, may be new in name and location, but it’s co-owned, with Shawn Brandson, by Valerie-Anne Owen, of the late (and also five-star) Beaujolais – and the food is every bit as delicious.

            There’s foie gras, sautéed with braised apple and paired with a wee champagne sorbet, as well as a flavourful double leg of duck confit. One night’s special was hazelnut-encrusted pork chops in calvados sauce, and there are such desserts as pear-custard tart and caramel-drizzled floating island.

  Winnipeg Restaurant Guide – Taste 2003
Titled: Hot New Restaurants, the Greatest of the Latest Eateries

  “Located in a country club setting, Provence Bistro at Niakwa offers classic French Provençal cooking with a view of the 18^th green. Combining the flavours of France with the fruits of the Mediterranean , the menu here includes extraordinary dishes like seafood risotto and escargots en croûte.”

Golf Guide 2003
Titled: A delectable taste of Provence

            You may not expect gourmet French cuisine at a golf course, but Niakwa Golf and Country Club is now offering its members and the public a delectable taste of Provence .

            The dinner menu has already drawn rave reviews from diners and critics. Offerings range from seared foie gras and sautéed chicken livers on a grilled baguette with Stilton cheese, fried herbs and red wine to roasted pheasant breast and a double leg of duck confit, slow roasted with white bean and mushroom sauce. Anne-Owen says she’s building up a superb young kitchen staff who are showing great enthusiasm and creativity. 

Enroute Magazine 2003-Top 25 new Restaurants in Canada
Gorgeous Views "the sweeping greens and tees of Provence Bistro at Niakwa Country Club"

Where Magazine-Top 6 new restaurants in Winnipeg 2003(front cover)

Ciao Magazine
August 2007
Top Tables
The entry road winds down a tunnel of elms that follows the rolling banks of the Seine River. A castle looms on the opposite shore. It’s a setting evocative of the French countryside, but its actually the magical drive that leads to the secluded Provence Bistro at Niakwa Country Club—the only private club in the city to open its elite doors to public dining (evenings only). The backdrop is stunningly picturesque, from gleaming Ferraris and BMWs in the parking lot, to rabbits hopping across the manicured greens.
Provence Bistro opened in 2003 under the guidance of powerhouse restaurateurs Valerie Anne-Owen and Shawn Brandson (both formerly of La Beaujolais). The duo converted the under-used club dining and trophy rooms into two elegant window-lined dining rooms overlooking the verdant 18th hole. Twenty-seven-year-old chef prodigy Simon Resch has presided over the kitchen for merely a year, yet his precocious culinary skills bring the restaurant’s sophisticated French cuisine to new heights.
Savoir vivre is the mandate at Provence, as is apparent when the suited host promptly greets you upon entering the cozy clubhouse foyer. The elegant decor of the dining rooms—beige walls, blonde woods, vineyard oil paintings and dusted gold chandeliers—combines with candle light and comforting background music to recreate the atmosphere of a French country inn. It’s the relaxed kind of setting that beckons indulgence, and guests are relentlessly pampered throughout the evening with gracious service, first-class food and fine wine.
It starts with an amuse bouche, a chilled slice of marinated duck breast one night and a mini caprese salad on a different night. The subsequent bread basket is packed with three outstanding varieties-—flax, cheese and garlic and ultra-moist pumpernickel.
The country club’s affluent atmosphere provides the perfect excuse to start with foie gras poele, a heavenly version of this French delicacy. Two tiny seared pieces are served on top of a roasted plum swimming in port and verjus. The stunning smoky-sweet-tart flavour of the sauce mingles with the delicate texture of the foie gras and leaves you speechless.
The mussels are ocean fresh—as though they were collected from the sea that day—bathed in an elegant white wine sauce with garlic and onion. The simple French onion soup is also prepared to perfection, emitting a subtle onion aroma. A swirl of port on top helps cool the soup, while providing that extra touch of finesse.
Although the two-page menu regularly changes, it hinges mostly on gourmet provençale cuisine. The characteristic Mediterranean influence is evidenced by hearty vegetables and a diverse selection of seafood. Ratatouille, that quintessential peasant dish, appears twice on the menu: once in a vegetarian dish and again with giant scallops. The latter pairing is precisely executed: a tower of earthy vegetable stew encircled by pillow-soft scallops. The kitchen’s affinity for stylish seafood continues with a brilliant grilled salmon decorated with a colourful kiwi, cantaloupe and pineapple salsa. The sweet fruit adds a bright zing to the subtlety of the fish. A side of rustic sweet potato helps to ground the flavour.
Herbes de Provence, which characteristically includes thyme, rosemary, bay leaves, basil and lavender, provides the core seasoning to a lot of the dishes including the decadent veal tenderloin. Delectable slices of the meat are so tender that little effort is required in devouring them. An accompanying raspberry gastric sauce adds a tangy and fresh summer taste. Regular evening specials provide the talented kitchen an opportunity to suss out local flavours, such as an expertly delivered prairie-inspired dish of bison with a sweet saskatoon sauce, served on a bed of fluffy barley pilaf.
Dessert is the exclamation point to the meal. Crème brûlée infused with lavender conjures up the image of Provence’s fragrant fields. A pint-size key lime pie is sinful, with its lippuckering centre and rich whipped topping.
Provence Bistro at Niakwa Country Club is open Mon-Sat from 5 pm. Reservations recommended.

Trip to Provence is worth the expense

By DISCREET DINER
May 2008
It's hard to go wrong at the Provence Bistro at Niakwa Country Club. (C. Procaylo, Sun Media)
It's not very often that your Discreet Diner finds the time for a full round of golf these days.
OK, truth be told, your Discreet Diner has never found time for a full round of golf -- not the grownup kind that doesn't involve windmills and clown faces, anyway.
But we're always looking for an excuse to hang out in the clubhouse, which helps explain a recent return trip to Provence Bistro at Niakwa Country Club.
Nestled among the pristinely manicured greens just north of St. Anne's Road, Provence's dual dining rooms both boast a breathtaking view of the 18th hole, which was all but deserted by the time we took our seats in the smaller of the two rooms.
Though it bills itself as a bistro, Provence's decor is more in line with a French inn -- lots of airy white linens and serene blond-wood trim, with leafy stencils vying for attention with pastoral oil paintings on the eggshell walls.
Once we'd become acclimatized to all the first-class finery, we enlisted our garcon (who was friendly and helpful, without ever being obtrusive) to bring us a round of drinks while we perused the menu, which has changed somewhat since our last visit, ever since prodigious chef Simon Resch took over in the kitchen.
While noshing on the heavenly basket of warm bread (white and multi-grain on our visit, though we've heard pumpernickel is sometimes served, too), we did our best to come up with a dining strategy that would cover as many bases as possible.
Having already tried -- and failed -- to convince our dining companion of the wonders of foie gras, we instead opted for the sauteed chicken livers with copollini onions, blue cheese mashed potatoes and thyme red wine reduction. Though our friend still isn't a convert, even she had to admit the smoky blue cheese-infused spuds provided a perfect accompaniment to the equally robust flavours of the liver.
And both of us took turns scarfing down the second starter -- a smoked fish plate of cold Nova Scotia salmon and hot Manitoba Arctic char, served with a tarragon piperade and lovely crostini squares for scooping.
We sampled both of the soups available: The first, a mouthwatering wild mushroom consomme with duck confit ravioli and truffle oil; the second, a deluxe version of that bistro classic -- French onion -- that came topped with a layer of pungent gruyere cheese, and a slightly overpowering shot of port.
The salads are big enough to share, so we stuck with a single serving of the "D'Epinards" -- fragrant spinach served with a Granny Smith apple compote, plus a light dusting of candied pecans, blue goat cheese and Manitoba honey-lavendar vinaigrette.
After that, it was time for the big guns -- or as the French say, the plats principals.
We sprung for one of the daily specials, the pan-seared duck with roasted potatoes, red wine reduction and truffle oil. And while we're normally crazy for duck in all its incarnations (Provence also serves a duck confit plate that's rave-worthy), the slices we sampled on this particular night were a smidge on the tough side, though the accompanying potatoes, cubed carrots and asparagus -- was that a hint of maple we tasted? -- again set our tastebuds dancing.
Our friend fared even better with the New York steak -- a huge slab of perfectly cooked beef served with dauphinnoise potatoes, arugula, red onion crisps and chausseur sauce. And while neither of us ordered any vino, you'd better believe Provence has a wine list that's to die for, plus a wine locker program that ensures your favourite varieties will always be waiting for you.
It was with heavy hearts that we left without sampling some of the other scrumptious-sounding menu items, among them the countless seafood dishes (salmon, shrimp, scallops and monkfish), the pork tenderloin, free-range chicken, rack of lamb or two different varieties of ratatouile.
We did, however, save room for a sinfully sweet slice of flan -- which, like the rest of the meal, proved nearly too good to be true.
The constantly changing (but always hole-in-one-worthy) menu at Provence stands as a real testament to the skills possessed by Resch, who was hired by owner Shawn Brandson (formerly of La Beaujolais) about a year and a half back.
It's also worth pointing out that Niakwa is the only private country club in Winnipeg that opens its dining room doors to members of the public.
But even if you're not among the well-heeled elite, you can still look forward to paying upper-crust prices: Dinner for two -- with taxes, tip, and a couple of cocktails -- came to just shy of $175.
--- Provence Bistro Address: Niakwa County Club, 620 Niakwa Rd. Phone: 254-3500 Hours: 5 p.m. - close, Mon. - Sat.
Sun Rating 4 1/2 out of 5 stars

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620 Niakwa Road Winnipeg, Manitoba Canada | R2J 2X3 ph. (204) 254-3500  (204) 256-7326 | fax. (204) 256-7320 email: Manager | Events | Accounting

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