Le Grand Bistro and Oyster Bar is Robert Thompson's version of a "grand brasserie"

Restaurateur Robert Thompson made his name in this town with Brasserie Rouge, a much-lauded, now-defunct French restaurant in the IceHouse that won our Best New Restaurant Award, then closed not long after. Thompson left town for a while, then made a strong comeback with Argyll, a basement gastropub in Cherry...

By Laura Shunk

November 22, 2011

Audio By Carbonatix

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Restaurateur Robert Thompson made his name in this town with Brasserie Rouge, a much-lauded, now-defunct French restaurant in the IceHouse that won our Best New Restaurant Award, then closed not long after. Thompson left town for a while, then made a strong comeback with Argyll, a basement gastropub in Cherry Creek that won another Best New restaurant award, and now is in the process of relocating. He's also planning to open Punch Bowl, a a bowling alley meets '60s diner concept in the former Big Lots in the Baker neighborhood sometime in the next month or so.

In the midst of those projects, Thompson added another restaurant to his portfolio, taking over the former Baur's Ristorante space downtown and drawing on his Brasserie Rouge experience to create another culinary homage to the country famous for foie gras, mussels and frites, and duck confit.

"Every city should have a grand brasserie," Thompson told Lori Midson when he announced his plans. And at the very August, he gave Denver Le Grand Bistro and Oyster Bar to fill that void.

I went there for this week's review, eating through the menu that Sergio Romero -- who was also behind the burners at Argyll -- has created. It's a board of classic French bistro fare, with dishes like roasted chicken, Alsatian sausage and crepes supplemented by charcuterie, oysters and profiteroles, as well as a French wine list and a serious cocktail program.

And is Le Grand grand? Find out tomorrow, when the review is posted here.

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Laura Shunk was Westword's restaurant critic from 2010 to 2012; she's also been food editor at the Village Voice and a dining columnist in Beijing. Her toughest assignment had her drinking ten martinis and eating ten Caesar salads over the course of 48 hours. She still drinks martinis, but remains lukewarm on Caesar salads.

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