Smooth jazz floated through the establishment to my delight and chef boyfriend’s dismay. He thinks jazz is overplayed in restaurants and the genre should be removed from all restaurant playlists. I like jazz. It makes you feel like you’re in a movie scene when it’s played in the background.
I might have asked another patron for a third opinion but the dining room was surprisingly empty. “Summer is the busiest season for restaurants, no?” I asked chef boyfriend. Not for BiBo’s. Summer is Portland Stage Company’s off-season. Now is probably the only time of year you can get in the place without a reservation.
While the wine menu was elaborate enough to please any wino (glasses are placed on tables to encourage consumption), the dinner menu was minuscule. This isn’t necessarily a complaint, as I loathe a menu that has more than two pages — too many choices means less painstaking care goes into individual menu items. I assume, if a menu has just seven entrees, like BiBo’s, the chef is confident his food is divine.
We tested Chef Bill’s talents with fried portabella, artichoke and apple wood smoked goat cheese spring rolls (appetizer $7.95), vegetable risotto ($15.95) and roasted stuffed breast of chicken with gnocchi ($16.95). Before our order came out, we were treated to “fresh-made bread” and dukka. While the dukka was tasty, the bread was, well — I’m almost positive — store bought.
The spring rolls came with greens and roasted onion dipping sauce. There were just two, but they were worth the price. Fried in clean oil, the wrap was flaky and delicious. Not long after the rolls came our entrees. Chef boyfriend’s gnocchi was a little chewy, but the chicken breast, stuffed with goat cheese and artichoke heart over roasted tomato basil broth, was an unlikely combination that proved perfect.
I would have ordered the pan roasted haddock had it not been cooked with white wine. Can anyone make a palatable haddock without white wine? I challenge you, since it seems as though no chef can! The risotto (with criss-crossing grilled zucchini spears that were a bit peppery) was quite good, especially with the sharp cheese shredded over the dish.
We were too stuffed to order from the dessert menu (which looked so savory I could eat the page) or down an after-dinner beverage and left satiated and ready for an after-dinner nap. Next visit, I plan to try grilled lemon mint marinated salmon and chef boyfriend the sweet Italian sausage, basil, tomato and parmesan risotto.
BiBo’s Madd Apple Cafe is at 23 Forest Ave. in Portland and is open for lunch Wednesday through Friday 11:30 a.m.-2 p.m., Sunday brunch 11 a.m.-2 p.m., and dinner Wednesday through Saturday starting at 5:30, and Sundays from 4-8 p.m. Call 774-9698 for reservations.