Aubergine

Set in a grand old villa, Aubergine is all about atmosphere. The building itself, with its hardwood floors, doors and bar, high ceilings, “backyard” patio (perfect for smokers) is impressive. Service is brisk and professional; the classically dressed waiters in black and white know how to decant a bottle of wine and come armed with the right tool to brush crumbs off the tablecloth. (Alas, they do play the “water game” and will attempt to serve B95 Evian without giving Minere, at B35, as an option.) And the décor, while borderline tacky with its flea market paintings and headache-inducing bright yellow walls, is at least authentic in a “best restaurant in a French provincial town two decades ago.” Unfortunately, Aubergine doesn’t score such high marks in the value for money category, nor for the quality of the food. A look at the menu, which is full of clichéd French (onion soup, pan-fried foie gras, frog legs in garlic butter and tableside crepes suzette) and “classic” Italian (rocket salad, beef carpaccio and even spaghetti carbonara) with nods to local tastes, suggests the chef has lost his way trying to please too many people. A seared scallops starter combines several mouthwateringly delicious elements—sweet, US diver scallops topped with chopped pistachio nuts served on a duxelle (chopped mushrooms and shallots cooked in wine) bed with sliced fennel and a smoky beurre blanc sauce—but together they are just too much. The roasted pigeon with foie gras and madeira sauce is also on the busy side, but the different flavors are a better match; at this price, however, we expect a bigger bird or at least that it not be overcooked. A far better choice if you’re in the mood for hearty and heavy are beef cheeks with mashed potatoes and the ubiquitous (on this menu) asparagus. All in all, Aubergine has improved significantly since it re-opened with a different chef, but there’s still a lot of work to do. So while the seven-course degustation menu is intriguing, for now we’ll stick to the occasional lunch visit to take advantage of their set menus. Corkage charge B500 for wines, B800 for champagne.