The concept of this popular Bratislava restaurant is built on the creativity of chef, Jakub Röder, and seasonal ingredients from local suppliers. In addition to a dynamic à la carte menu, the restaurant offers a 5-course tasting menu with wine pairings by sommelier, Matej Demčák. There is always at least one meal with fresh Tuscan truffles available. The founders of Bistronomy – Tatiana Marčeková and Denis Benek – are looking to create a gastronomic community for lovers of quality food served in a casual setting. This, too, is the new Vydrica.
Here’s a little something to whet your appetite before we start our interview with Táňa and Denis. Would you be surprised to see fried cheese paired with kimchi on the menu? Or how about fresh cow’s cheese from an artisanal cheese factory in Dolné Saliby, kimchi remoulade and roasted seeds marinated in kimchi juice with nori. Or fresh sturgeon from a fish farm in Budmerice, roasted cauliflower, fermented kohlrabi, chestnut sauce and cauliflower puree? All of this and more will be coming soon to Vydrica for you to enjoy.
What is Bistronomy?
Táňa: The name is inspired by the French word “bistronomique“, and describes a sophisticated, upmarket style of dining, but in a relaxed setting. Our emphasis is on fresh ingredients and carefully prepared food served in a refined manner in a pleasant environment without pretence.
Denis: You will find yourself in a beautiful restaurant with an open kitchen where you can be yourself, forget about conventions and enjoy a glass of natural wine from the Tekov region, or perhaps after a flute of Champagne. Our wine card is very diverse – from Blaufränkisch to Barolo, from Feteasca Regala to Chablis, from Pét-Nat to Champagne
What is your gastro business story?
Táňa: We both have a love for good food and a passion for all things gastronomic. Back in 2018, I started a distribution business for fresh truffles from Tuscany under the trufle.sk brand. At the time, I was also translating subtitles for cinema films. Two years later, Denis and I decided to open, Bistronomy, our first restaurant. By then it was clear I couldn’t continue juggling all my work commitments, so after seven years I had to quit subtitling and concentrate on running the restaurant and my truffle distribution business. I now supply truffles to customers all over Slovakia. That’s why you’ll always find at least one dish in our Bistronomy restaurant made with fresh Tuscan truffles.
Denis: I’ve been distributing wines for several years now. In the beginning, it was mainly Provance rosé and champagne wine. Later, I turned my attention to biodynamic and natural wines, which now make up a substantial part of the Bistronomy wine card. This will also be the case in Vydrica, where we plan to organise special events with tastings of authentic wine paired with delicious food.
Where do you source your ingredients from?
Táňa: Mainly from Slovak producers and farmers. Most of them are small suppliers – small-scale often family-run artisanal production. Our cheese comes from Tomáš from Dolné Saliby, herbs and vegetables from Peťo from Beladice and from Lucia and Filip who run the Vegget Microfarm, forest mushrooms from the Carpathians are collected by our own mushroom picker, Ďuri, Lucka supplies us with home-grown tomatoes, fish come from a fish farm in Budmerice and fresh Tuscan truffles from my distribution business. We don’t like to compromise, so we only choose reliable suppliers that we trust. Every single meal is an embodiment of the quality of our ingredients and the aesthetics and precision of our chef, Jakub Röder.
What’s behind the success of your restaurant, what makes your approach so unique?
Táňa: Bistronomy is a very personal business for us. Denis and I make all the decisions together. From the very beginning, we have run our restaurant from the point of view of restaurant-goers. We take our inspiration from what we like about other restaurants we visit.
Denis: We pride ourselves on having a great team of people who are relentlessly professional in what they do.
Why did you decide to open a new business in Vydrica?
Táňa: We both grew up in the Old Town. It’s where we and our nearest family still live. So, of course, Vydrica is very close to our hearts.
Denis: For some time now, we’ve been thinking about moving closer to Bratislava’s downtown. But we couldn’t find a suitable opportunity or a space to our liking until we learned about the Vydrica concept. The site next to the Danube appealed to us visually, but the main advantage is its proximity to the city centre, from where there is easy access to our new restaurant on foot.
What will the new Bistronomy in Vydrica look like and what will it have to offer?
Denis: There will be a brand-new interior design, which we are designing ourselves. More specious premises with a clean, contemporary and minimalist design will incorporate elements of old-time Bratislava. The open kitchen concept will be retained.
Táňa: We will continue to offer our dynamic à la carte menu as well as the five-course tasting menu with wine pairings. We plan to organise dinners with guest chefs, and events featuring Slovak and foreign winemakers.
What do you expect from Vydrica and what do you want to contribute to this restored neighbourhood under the castle hill?
Táňa: Without a doubt, Vydrica will add extra life to downtown Bratislava, not only with its elegant architecture, but also thanks to the new establishments and venues where its new residents, visitors and tourists will want to spend their free time and enjoy themselves.
Denis: We want Vydrica to become a place where people come to enjoy fine dining and a unique atmosphere, also thanks to our Bistronomy restaurant. We believe that our customers will enjoy the new site and we hope it will be a hit right from the start.
Find out more about Bistronomy here.
