Moulin Rouge offers a fantasic fusion of flavor

DINING OUT

Many restaurants have come and gone on the southeast corner of

Brookhurst Street and Adams Avenue. The recently opened Moulin Rouge

Bistro is one with a French Vietnamese cuisine that lives up to its

promise.

At the entrance is a new fish grotto with some lively koi, while

inside it’s a true 1950s dinner house with dark maroon velvet drapes,

soft carpets, a stained glass ceiling in the first dining area and a

baby grand piano that centers the way into the second dining room

ready to be played on weekends.

Moulin Rouge Bistro, owned by attorney Bill Phan and engineer

Andrew Tran, brings a new taste to Huntington Beach. Another friend,

chef Thang Hier, prepares food as it was when Vietnam was a colony of

France. His dishes have a subtle mix of French and Asian flavors most

noticeable in the sauces, some of which take three days to prepare,

said manager Phuong Truong.

After looking over the menu by the light of a tiny lantern brought

by our server, I chose Filet Mignon a la Bordelaise (6 oz. $17.95, 10

oz. $24.95), a boneless beef tenderloin grilled to a perfect medium

with dark, crusty edges and a very tender pink inside. The French

sauce made with red wine, brown stock, bone marrow, herbs and

shallots accents, rather than covers, the steak. It is served with

just-right red potatoes, a pile of al dente asparagus and one baby

carrot all arranged as if by an artist on the large white dinner

plate.

Fresh salmon ($17.95) was the evening fish selection -- a broiled,

thick and beautiful slice atop a pile of “can-can” rice. It was

accompanied by a sweetly flavored different mix of tiny rice and

couscous with herbs, capers and seedless grapes. Covering the dish

was a mild cream sauce with zesty little capers and an “edible

edifice” of baby asparagus spears forming a tee pee over the fish --

a definite French touch reflecting the “cooked-when-ordered”

approach Moulin Rouge Bistro has. Warmed plates would be helpful in

maintaining the temperature of the food which, when served, is

perfect but does cool off.

Selecting from the dessert tray of many delights is difficult, but

our choice was a homemade coconut ice cream ($6.95) served in half a

fresh coconut shell with long fragrant strips of coconut meat in the

ice cream. A simple dessert with freshness making all the difference.

Truong said the owners and chef are planning on opening for lunch

soon with a menu of sandwiches, salads and lunch entrees. It’s

certainly something to anticipate. Moulin Rouge Bistro emphasizes a

French Colonial cuisine -- the fusion of traditional French and

Vietnamese preparation that offers yet another interesting and

wonderful taste experience to Huntington Beach diners.

* MARY FURR is the Independent restaurant critic. If you have

comments or suggestions, call (562) 493-5062 or e-mail

hbindy@latimes.com.