Bibou is a small neighborhood gem well hidden at the Little Saigon side of the Bella Vista neighborhood. It is a French BYOB place that has a $45 Four Course Prix Fixe menu on Sunday. All these BYOB and affordable Prix-Fixe, yup, that’s why I love Philly. Even though the owner and chef are French and it’s an authentic French Bistro, the name is Japanese (it means “beauty”), I wonder why…
The space is small but they manage to fit in as much table as they can without feeling cramp. It did gave me a bit of a illusion that I was in some alley in Paris.
The butter, OH MY the butter!!! It’s SO GOOD! The Echire butter has a subtle flavor and was incredibly soft and light. The little baguette are very good too. We couldn’t help but got a second serving.
We can choose from three choices from each course. My friend and I ordered different things so we can sample as much as we could.
White Coco Bean Soup with Sauteed Baby Shrimp. The soup is delicate and tasty, and not heavy at all. It is perfect for winter.
One of the choices for 2nd course is Rabbit and Garlic Terrine. Nice, fresh clean taste with a nutty flavor.
Another 2nd course choice was Pan-seared Foie Gras, Poached Secket Pear in Red Wine, Duck Jus. Hmm…so good! It’s cooked perfectly and the sauce has the light, fruity sweetness that really made every bite a joy to eat.
2nd course: Saint-Jacques: Pan-seared scallops, barley risotto, candied hazelnut with honey emulsion. The sauce might be sweet but it enhance the fresh flavor of scallop by 200%! This is so GOOD!
Ris de Veau: Seared Veal Sweetbreads, Crushed Potato, Yellowfoot Mushroom and Carrot Fricassee and Veal Jus. Very soft and tender. The mushroom that absorb the sauce are so yummy.
The dessert are more classic flair. Lemon Meringue Pie. The lemon curd are a bit too sour for my likings.
Vanilla Creme Brulee and complimentary Meringue
Their menu is limited, hence keeping the quality tight. I enjoyed the meal a lot and would love to come back.
We called for a taxi pickup but it never showed up. We waited and waited, so we ended up being the last customer. At one point I thought I’ll be stuck here forever (that I wouldn’t mind…)
Bibou (215) 965-8290
1009 South 8th Street. Philadelphia, PA 19135
[…] last visit to Bibou, a small French BYOB tucked in the Little Saigon area of Philly, was unforgettable. I brought Joan […]
Hi Freda! I’ve been reading your blog a lot, today! I love everything!
After years of eating out, I still regularly go to places in Tokyo that Seat tried years ago. Imagine my dismay at finding that this is sort of one of them. You guys cast a wide net.
to Jon:
huh? I’m not sure what you mean by “sort of one of them” or “you guys cast a wide net”. Seat is our personal friend who used to live in Tokyo and she blogged about her culinary adventure there. At that time she didn’t know how to start a blog so we created it for her. It’s really two seperate blogs. How is that a “dismay for you”?