“I have found a real home in Vysochina, and when I die they will bury me under this tree,” laughs chef Remy Decroix. In the small village of Horní Dubenky, he runs his French restaurant, whose name was coined by his daughter. Dad’s Bistro, or Bistro de Papa, is a popular culinary destination in a part of France amid highland forests and meadows.
Before settling in the Highlands, he cooked in many Michelin-starred restaurants around the world. Remi Decroix is a chef from Northern France, but at home in the Czech countryside.
He is French at heart. The smiling 50-year-old has lived in the Czech Republic for many years, but he prefers speaking French to his broken Czech, and Josephine is a French named Bonaparte. hanging in his hometown of Lille. Hang in the restroom, at least the women’s restroom.
Thanks to him, I suddenly feel like I’m on French soil. The king of regional cuisine skillfully combines French and Czech flavors and skillfully puts together recipes. He prepares his meals entirely by himself and changes his menu regularly monthly according to the season. That’s why gourmets head to Vysochina. Open Thursday through Sunday, Bistro de Papa is always full.
Rémi Decroix bought the Horni Dubenky homestead as a cottage many years ago with his wife Eva and quickly converted it into a home for themselves and their two daughters. He opened a bistro in nearby Pochatsky. More precisely, Bistro de Papa, or Dad’s Bistro. “It’s the name my eldest daughter Rhea came up with when we decided on the business name. At first I was worried it wouldn’t be funny, but now I like it,” he says. They then moved the business directly to their home. People discouraged him from doing so, but this is their favorite method.
“Thanks to that, I can spend time with my family even when the shops are closed. But I am not idle from Monday to Wednesday. I try to source from.Vegetables,” he adds.
In August, gingerbread-crusted cherry duck is on the menu. “This one is a particular favorite of mine. It’s a little Czech, a little French,” he explains. The menu includes signature tartare and French onions. “And of course snails, the Czechs eat much more than the French,” he laughs. I often call him in advance saying that I would like to prepare other French dishes such as frog legs.
He also likes Czech food quite a bit. “Jame Bientenderloin,” he dreams. The only thing he lacks here in Vysochina is seafood. “In Brittany we used to eat some pretty strange sea monsters, which we don’t see very often here.”
I can’t explain what he loves doing in the kitchen. And most of all, she loves sweets, so her glass showcase is always full of delicious-looking sweets.
But Remi likes talking about cars as well as food. He admits that French people generally like cars and he is no exception. “After working for two years, I bought my first car with my savings. It was a Renault 5 and I loved it. I went shopping at EQA., I went to Prague and it was really exciting,” he explains.
He likes to lean on veterans. “I loved the Alpinas when I was a kid. I want to drive the Renault 5 again. And the still affordable Skoda. He regrets not buying the Felicia,” he laments. . At the same time, he admits that he doesn’t have time for them anyway.
“I’m definitely not a mechanic. That’s beyond me. So I don’t fix anything in the car. Besides, I have absolutely no time for that. I’m always in the kitchen. I have a little free time.” Time, I take care of the garden. Someday I’d like to put together a cookbook. Hopefully I’ll make one.
He has no big plans for his old age. He wants to live here in Vysochyna until his death. “Here I am. I always tell my girls that when I die, I want to bury myself under this tree, that tree, or that tree.” Papa to Luzick’s Pond. Here, at the edge of the world, in the middle of highland forests and meadows, is an island where French chefs know what savoir vivre is.
Mr. Cook’s car
Photo: Matei Slavik
He started with a Renault 5, but changed many cars over the course of 30 years. “In consideration of the changes in our lives, we sometimes replaced it every two years. When our daughters were little, we had a Citroën Berlingo, and it had a large interior space and a large trunk. I couldn’t praise it enough, all of it, even a C4 Picasso to remember,” he says.
Citroen is French car. “When I was little, the streets of my house were full of them. My grandfather had a beautiful GS. The editor of Aktuálně.cz brought one Citroën to Bistro de Papa. It was the new C5 X with a plug-in hybrid drive.” The spaciousness of the interior is surprising, and the height can be a problem. I like the interior design, quiet operation in electric mode and above all comfort while driving. No wonder Citroën is called the Mercedes of France, ”he assesses.
Remy now owns more cars, but personally drives a Mercedes-Benz EQA. “I don’t drive far. Easy to charge in my garage. Driving is great, comfortable, quiet and spacious. It’s my first time owning an electric car and I’m really excited. Exactly. This car is perfect for my needs.”
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