I still recall the shagpile carpet, considered oh so groovy in the ’70s. It covered the floor at La Plume de Ma Soeur, a French restaurant in the fabled Pink Poodle Motel on the Gold Coast Highway.

In the kitchen, a Frenchwoman named Arlette roasted ducks, steamed prawns and baked exquisite crème brulee for visiting “honeymooners” who often stayed just one night (wink, wink). A young Linton Smith went to work for Arlette and fell under the spell of classical French cuisine.

Fast forward to Albion in Brisbane’s inner north where Smith, now a seasoned chef, has opened another Arlette’s Kitchen in memory of his mentor. Our friendly waitress told us the story of La Plume but did not know what had become of Arlette. Her name alone suggests a menu with a French influence.

There were some culinary interlopers, however, such as jungle curry ($25) and five-spice squid with lime and ginger aioli ($16.90). I went for the crumbed brains with celeriac remoulade ($18.90), revealing a lovely, gentle riff of garlic and paprika making it was one of the best entrees I have devoured recently.

A duck and cognac pate ($17.90) also worked well; an ensemble of well-balanced flavours and textures. Next came figs wrapped in prosciutto with melted brie and a pomegranate dressing ($18.90), another entree showing a deft hand in the kitchen.

The restaurant is in a lovely corner shop in the old quarter of Albion below the overpass. It has been decorated handsomely. Everything, including the service, radiates an easy charm, and it has ambience to burn. But you can’t eat ambience.

Lamentably, our mains did not reflect the same panache as the starters. My vegetable jungle curry ($25) was a lacklustre stir-fry and the blonde was disappointed with her slow roasted duck ($32) that came with rudimentary colcannon and a cherry compote. Her chief grievance was that the bird did not have a crispy skin. She had a point, although I did notice she had picked the bones clean by the end of the affair.

A younger diner was disappointed with her chilli prawn linguine in tomato sauce ($27) and said she could do better at home. It was almost as if the mains had come from a different kitchen.

However, no one was complaining about the classical crème brulee, ($10.90), or the deliciously decadent crepes, awash with berries and berry juice and vanilla bean ice cream ($10.90).

Arlette’s Kitchen has something else going for it. Although it is licensed and has a modest wine list, it is also a BYO. Corkage is $6 a head.

Originally published on couriermail.com.au