Baked halibut at the south Bend bistro.I read an interview in the New York Times last week with celebrity chef
Tom Colicchio of the Craft restaurant family and most recently of Top
Chef fame. When asked about his cooking philosophy, he said, “Buy the
best you can find or afford and don’t overmanipulate it. If I cook a
scallop, the best praise you can give me is that it tastes like a
scallop.” Chef Lars Johnson of the South Bend Bistro in Sunriver seems
to subscribe to a similar doctrine, serving the freshest ingredients
with bright flavors and clean, considered preparations that maximize
what is inherent in the food.
The kitchen isn’t the only area where
this sophisticated simplicity and adaptability shines. The cozy dining
room situated in a little house adjacent to the Sunriver Village Mall,
plays on the residential architectural elements. Tables peer out framed
windows with parted curtains at the beautiful outdoor deck overlooking
the woods. A terra cotta tile floor is scattered with mismatched area
rugs adding warmth to the space. Lighting is intimate, and wall
treatments are alternately wood, straw weave, and textured plaster
dotted with framed photographs of nature scenes. A single purple tulip,
appropriately in season for May, adorns each table, and tablecloths are
beige, a nice departure from the usual white, indicating a slightly
different, homier take on high-end.
