Indochine

These restaurants are indeed very scarce and so when the beep of the email inbox heralded the arrival of the opening of Indochine (The Mansion, Sayan, Ubud T: 0361 972 616) and its French influenced Indochinese menu I was up the hill to Ubud in a flash, knife and fork at the ready.

Here, ladies and gentleman, if you will excuse the cliché, is something completely different.

So different in fact that it warrants a good couple of hours researching exactly what Indochine is and more importantly where it is. Historically the entire Southeast Asian region drew cultural inspiration from China and India with the predominant influence stemming from the Indian region. Vietnam (owing to its proximity to China) reverses this theory and is unique in its direct Chinese influence with a smaller degree of input from the Indian contingent. The former colonial French Indochina comprised of Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam whilst the rest of the mainland Southeast Asia is now commonly included in the wider Indochinese definition encompassing the Malay Peninsula, Myanmar (formerly Burma), Thailand and Singapore.

Of course all of this sounds a little distant in the 21st century considering the formation of French Indochina took place in October 1887. The federation lasted for 58 years until the close of the Second World War, by which time the Japanese had seized control of the French Indochina territories and only released their grip when forced to surrender in 1945. What is interesting is that the Japanese had kept the French bureaucracy and leadership throughout their governing of the Second French Indochina Campaign, cuisine and all.

Although Indonesia is not mentioned in any reference to Indochine one cannot deny the influences of Indian and Chinese food on the archipelago. A menu such as that available at Indochine is perfectly in tune with local Balinese produce and tropical climate, with an emphasis on light, spicy and wholly absorbing dishes that remain faithful to original Vietnamese recipes but are presented with a modern day twist.

Executive Chef David Cailleba is no stranger to classical French fine dining having been a long-term fixture in many luxury resorts around the Asia Pacific. His particular culinary expertise is matched perfectly with Vietnamese/Australian restaurateur (now Food and Beverage Director of Indochine) Anna Kellett who has transported the winning Indochine formula to Bali from her successful cooking school of the same name in Sydney.

The fusion of Vietnamese and French cuisine is complimented by the eclectic collection of art and design objects that take pride of place in the spacious and very stately dining room. Blink twice and you might be forgiven for thinking that you'd stumbled onto the set of a tropical remake of 'Gosford Park'.

Vietnamese lacquer paintings adorn the walls whilst a central glass display case houses vintage headdresses originally from members of the Balinese royalty. The dining room opens out onto an al fresco dining area and terrace swimming pool with a neighbouring gazebo tucked away to the right – perfect for a cool summer evening in the hilly climes of Ubud. The soft candlelight and warm, welcoming ambience make the colonial style grand dining room seem almost surreal, a contradiction of itself as the style is very formal but the mood very relaxing. Dress shoes and a collar would not look out of place here.

The wait staff has a nervous energy to them - understandable given the fact that the restaurant has just thrown its doors open - and are a rather rigid service ensemble. I'm frightened that their demeanour might not bode well when it comes to discretion (they outwardly exhibited every telltale sign of the dreaded 'over service' syndrome) but in reality hovered at the perfect distance from the table, occasionally swooping in with a refill of breads and a top up of water but never demanding your attention in the process. Discretion, thankfully, is definitely part of the vocabulary at Indochine and it is a blessed relief not to have to endure a protracted three-way dinner conversation with your waiter and dining companion.

Now onto the reason we're here in the first place - the food.

The Oeufs de Caille (quail eggs) are the choice from the entrée selection. First boiled then gently fried to give a crispy exterior and served with a drizzled chili sauce, the presentation is point perfect but the portion a little small for a man with a ravenous appetite. I regret not heading in the direction of the French Duck Liver entrée as the accompanying grape and red apple sauce sounded so intriguing and besides, I wanted to see what Vietnamese influence might find it's way onto a very French Foie Gras dish. Equally as tempting is the Tasmanian Salmon with choufleur and Daikon (mild flavoured East Asian giant white radish) served Tataki style. I note these two for further visits and move onto the second entrée and the best dish that is to find its way to our table this evening – the Goi Cuon. The presentation of this dish is deceptive. From the outset it looks very simple, a translucent crepe of rice paper filled with fresh herbs, prawns and chicken and served with a Vietnamese chili sauce, but to taste there is clearly a lot going on behind the scenes.

There are no less than 18 different ingredients in the Goi Cuon that, collectively, manage not to overpower the palate but instead are light, extremely refreshing and would not look at all out of place on a wellness retreat menu. The invigorating and lively flavours are typical of Vietnamese cuisine and are carried over to the main course – the Pan Seared South Sea Snapper.

I'm not the biggest fan of a risotto at the best of times, it's a dish that should, by rights, be easy to knock out on demand, a hundred portions at a time yet almost every risotto I've had in Bali has been butchered mercilessly by chefs who do not take the time to nurture the cooking process correctly and inevitably cook the life out of the rice and/or end up using inferior ingredients in the stock resulting in what could be best described as a savoury rice pudding.No such worries with the main course tonight, the risotto is ever so slightly well cooked but is saved by the stunningly clear preserved lemon and basil stock which relieves the Arborio grains of their heaviness and elevates the dish back into the realms of 'light and bright' Vietnam. The seared snapper was never going to be a miraculous discovery but is happy to occupy the same plate as the sweet pea sauce, is prepared well and best of all it's complimented perfectly by the risotto.

Other main courses on the menu include a nod towards the Bebek Betutu (traditional Balinese slow roasted spiced duck) with the Divine Mansion Duck (the jury is still out on just how a duck achieves divinity) and the Bo Kho (slow cooked beef in Vietnamese spices) both dishes served with fragrant turmeric infused yellow rice. Dessert is a hit and miss affair; the imported chocolate in the Gateau au Chocolat à la Mansion (the name's a mouthful) is most certainly not Valhorna and it should be at this standard of dining.

With a little more focus in the dessert department Indochine will be a very worthy addition to Ubud's upper echelons of dining but in truth it's pretty much already there. It's hard to be too critical of a few cocoa beans gone astray when you look at the prices being charged. Indochine could so easily have fallen into the overpricing trap that many of its peers haplessly indulge in but most courses hesitate to topple the twenty US$ mark and a meal for two including a small but cost conscious wine selection (predominantly new world offerings from Australia and Chile) won't exceed a hundred dollars. As our host admits "we wanted to have a fine dining ambience without implying ridiculously high prices on guests".

And for that rationale alone Indochine has our vote. The cuisine on offer makes it a dining destination in its own very original right.

Indochine is open from 6pm daily.