The last Chez Iza Supper Club…and a date for the next!

It was time, last week, for me to try supper club number five. Montpelier Basement, Southville (now The Blue Door), Bishopston and Full As An Egg Suppers had already been ticked off the list, and now it was time to head to Clifton for an evening at the Chez Iza Supper Club…

With four tables each seating multiple diners in a large room on the top floor of her Clifton flat, French chef Iza Redon is aiming to create a “French bistro style supper club”. The room was intimate and comfortable, with music playing gently in the background, leading to a very relaxed evening.

My friend Laura and I were among the first to arrive, and were seated at a table for four with a lovely couple who were new to the supper club scene – hopefully it will have inspired them to try more! Hosting dinners at 15 minute intervals meant that Iza and her partner, who was helping out on the evening, could stagger serving times, adding to the bistro feel.

Our amuse-bouche of gougères – choux pastry filled with Gruyère cheese and poppy seeds, were light and full of flavour, and certainly whetted my appetite for the courses to come…

The starter of individual goats’ cheese and shallot tartes tatin proved to be a fantastic combination of flavours, the tangy savoury goats’ cheese combining well with the sweetness of the shallots…

For the main course, Iza served a traditional spring dish of Navarin of lamb. This rustic French stew combines lamb (on the bone, in this case), and spring vegetables including turnip, carrots and roasted baby potatoes. The whole thing was served in a delicious, thick sauce – my only grumble would be that there was no bread available to mop it up with!

The meal ended as it began – savoury choux pastry gougères for the amuse-bouche, sweet choux pastry profiteroles for the dessert. These prompted much discussion about good and bad profiteroles at our table, with one diner saying that she normally avoided this particular dessert because of bad experiences with cheap “squirty cream” fillings in the past. These, however, were definitely good profiteroles: light and fluffy, filled with good quality (French branded!) vanilla ice cream and doused in a rich, slightly bitter chocolate sauce. Delicious!

The portion sizes were perfect for me – I left Iza’s flat feeling comfortably full. At only £25 (suggested donation) per head, and with drinks on a BYO basis, it was a very reasonably priced evening meal. It’s just a shame that I’m not around for the next of Iza’s supper clubs on Saturday, April 2nd, as the menu looks fantastic! There are still places available if you’re interested in the following menu (vegetarian option also available)…

Surprise canapé

Individual blue cheese cake, beetroot coulis, roasted hazelnut

Daube of beef, new potatoes, spring greens

Rhubarb frangipane tart

To book, or simply to register for the mailing list, click on this link to visit Iza’s website.

Find Chez Iza on the Bristol Bites Directory…