Food, service are excellent at Joel's Bistro

The restaurant, which is in an old casita in Geronimo Plaza on East University Boulevard, features little extras you don't notice at first. Like the free Wi-Fi and the outdoor seating area, which is dog-friendly and perfect for people-watching. Or the extensive dinner specials that include roasted duck, seafood and lamb. Or that the restaurant doesn't serve alcohol but has a BYOB policy. And unlike most places, there's no corking fee.

Chef and owner Joel Suire is from Cognac, France, but has lived in the States about 25 years. Suire, 46, moved to Tucson from Chicago about 10 years ago. A few years later, he opened his first Tucson restaurant, a small place called the Old Wagon Cafe. He opened Joel's in August 2003.

The bistro isn't without a couple of glitches. Sometimes it's not open at night, even though its listed hours are from 5 to 9 p.m. Wednesdays-Saturdays. Suire suggests calling ahead if planning to eat dinner, especially during the slower summer months.

The breakfast menu includes omelettes, French toast and crepes, and the lunch and dinner menus list a variety of salads, sandwiches and main courses.

The descriptions of the dishes, however, beg for more details. Two different salads never mentioned the word "olive," but both arrived sprinkled with them. That's a sad day for people who detest olives, and their salty flavor remained in the food long after being picked off the plate.

But overall, the food is excellent and the service friendly.

One recent morning we started with a large fruit plate ($4.95) of pineapple, cantaloupe, oranges, apple, honeydew melon and watermelon.

Fearing the fruit alone was too healthy, we moved on to the sweet crepes ($5.50). Of the two per order, we chose one strawberry and one blueberry. Peach and cherry are the other options. Topped with powdered sugar and butter, the paper-thin crepes wrapped around hearty portions of juicy fruit.

The bowl of French onion soup ($5.50) was overflowing with Swiss and provolone cheese and loaded with onions. Its dark broth tasted just as a French onion soup should taste at a French bistro — hearty and satisfying. Two or three other soups ($4.25 cup; $4.95 bowl) are available each day and change often.

The Vegetarienne salad ($8.50) arrived bursting with vegetables on a large plate. Tomatoes, cucumbers, red onion, mushrooms, artichoke, green beans and those pesky olives mingled with a nice selection of quality greens.

Though it has a creamy consistency, no cream is used in the heavenly house dressing, a blend of ingredients that includes vinegar, oil and Dijon mustard and tastes a bit like ranch with more flavor.

A host of sandwiches, salads and crepes are on the $9.95 lunch specials list and include a cup of soup and sliced baguette. A nice choice is the prosciutto and cantaloupe salad ($9.95).

A stack of thinly sliced ribbons of prosciutto and thick cuts of cantaloupe perched on the same vegetables as the Vegetarienne salad. The flavors of the sweet fruit and the salty prosciutto contrasted nicely, and the salad's veggies made it a robust, healthy meal.

During a visit for dinner, an ultra-thick cut of sea bass meunière ($14.95) rested in a simple yet savory sauce of butter, parsley, lemon juice and white wine. The lightly fried flaky white fish was juicy and rich, and tasted fresh even a day later.

Most entrees come with a couple of sides. One of them might be a ratatouille of squash, onion, green peppers and zucchini cooked very slowly with a touch of garlic and olive oil.

A French standard, the Lamb Chops Provencale ($15.95), didn't disappoint. Three fairly lean chops sat in a smooth demi-glace. A side of pomme frites, or french fries, contained just the right crispness.

A variety of always-changing desserts comes from La Baguette Bakery. We liked the wedge of warm cherry pie sprinkled with powdered sugar and whipped cream ($4.95).

The Trio Cheesecake ($4.95) was a calorie-laden dream. The bottom layer is a chocolate cookie followed by layers of chocolate cheesecake, white chocolate mousse and chocolate ganache. Chocolate sprinkles and chocolate sauce topped the cheesecake, along with strawberry slices and whipped cream.

Thank goodness those two desserts are always available. We'd hate to miss out on them even once.

In March, Suire started a retail part of the business at the farmers market in Vail on Saturdays and also at Joel's.

Customers who can't get enough of the house dressing can purchase 12-ounce bottles of that, his barbecue sauce and several other vinaigrettes for $4.50 each.

Four of Joel's soups, including the tomato basil and lentil but not the French onion, are sold in quart jars for $8.50.

Restaurant review

joel's bistro

806 E. University Blvd., 529-7277

• Hours: 8 a.m.-3 p.m. daily and 5-9 p.m. Wednesdays-Saturdays.

• Family call: Everyone, including dogs if eating outside.

• Noise level: Low.

• Dress: Casual.

• Reservations: Accepted.

• Menus: Breakfast, lunch and dinner.

• Vegetarian options: Several.

• Wine list: No, but you can bring your own, and there's no corking fee.

• Price range: Entrees range from $4.50 to $15.95.

• Et cetera: Free Wi-Fi.