L'Express

L'Express was on my radar long before I made it over to Montreal so I was really excited to head here for dinner one evening during Emily's visit.  It's very popular, but not so popular that getting a table gives you a headache (ahem, Joe Beef), I was able to make an online reservation a few weeks in advance for a sensible hour.  How it should be.

We arrived a bit late because we'd spent waaaay too long rewarding ourselves for walking up Mount Royal by buying all the make up in Sephora.  I've got a problem.  I called to say we were running late and they were cool about it.  Excellent start.  We sat down and this was presented to us.

Now, I'd spent the best part of a week banging on to Em about how I've developed an addiction to cornichons.  Lots of the supermarket jars contain sweet ones which annoys me no end.  These weren't, they were perfectly pickled, and look how many there are.  Any restaurant that gives you unlimited cornichons is a winner in my eyes.  Some baguette and butter and water also arrived, very good.

For starter I opted for the fish soup ($13).  It came with little cheesy toasts and aioli.  Brilliantly salty and intensely shellfishy, as it should be. The toasts were a bit chewy yet overly crispy, in the way that toasted stale bread is.  Only gripe, they're obviously using yesterday's leftover baguette to make them.  Perhaps not the smartest dish to order on a hot August day, I was slightly overheating.

We ordered a bottle of chablis.  Their wine list is immense and very reasonably priced, starting at as low as $30 a bottle.  Which is significantly lower than anywhere else we dined throughout the week.  I knew I'd love this place.  The feel is very French, obviously, checkerboard tiled floor, waistcoated waiters (who are all lovely) and simple rustic dishes which deliver some serious flavour.  Em had the celeriac remolade ($8) to start.

I confess I wasn't too sure what to have for main.  I wanted the coq au vin but it was far too hot for soup followed by stew so I opted for the mushroom stuffed ravioli ($20.90).  These had a nice deep flavour and a rich gravy, the pasta was perfectly cooked, they're obviously home made (raviolis maison) and it was just the right amount to mean I had room for pud.  Em went for the tartare ($25.90) which looked great, it was massive and came with loads of fries.

We wanted a cheese course, we got a hunk of Brie de Meaux with crispbreads and walnuts ($7.20).  Loved the nuts coming with it, a tad hard to prize out of the shells with your bare hands but we persisted.  What we were really waiting for though, was this beast.

The Ile Flottante ($8.40).  The size of it was literally drawing gasps from diners each time one emerged from the kitchen.  I'd seen pictures of it before, but had no idea it was such a behemoth.  The thick layer of caramel contained a light meringue, all sat on a bed of creme Anglaise with a few bits of almond brittle sticking out.  It's not the daintiest of desserts, but it was amazing. 

This rounded off the meal nicely and we head off, full and happy for drinks elsewhere in the Plateau.  Everywhere is open til 3am, it's incredible.  I'll definitely be back to L'Express to try more, it's a real gem and is certainly in my top 10 meals here so far.  I need that chicken stew in my life the minute the cold weather hits.

L'Express
3927 Rue St Denis
Plateau
H2W
9/10

Le Comptoir Charcuterie et Vins

Le Comptoir has been on my Montreal restaurant list since my Feb visit.  I managed to scope it out in the snow and have been meaning to return since I made the move in March.  We sat at the bar arriving just before 8 and stayed pretty much til close.

I instantly liked the vibe of the place, there's a main bar area with stool and a few smaller tables, the place was full on both Monday and Tuesday nights, it's quite difficult to find restaurants that open Sunday and Monday, which is very annoying.  Will Travel for Food blog has a list of places opening, though it's a couple of years old....

We had a look at the wines by the glasses, the list is pretty impressive, we opted for fizz and had the Cremant d'Alsace, Andre Durrmann which was so smooth and almost creamy in taste that we stuck to it all night.

We began with the charcuterie board, all made in house.  I'm not going to pretend I listened and took in what each was, there was a smoked duck 'ham' a pate type one and 3 similar ish sausages.  All very good.  Came with little crisp breads, I was expecting the baguette I could see on the bread board on the bar.  This was the small platter $10, also available in large, $15.

First actual main dish to arrive was the shrimp ceviche with lardon and shallot confit ravioli with pine nuts, these were served on squash ricotta puree $16.  Liked the textures here, the pine nuts were really crunchy,  Really nice ceviche, they like their purees.  We were eating annoyingly slowly.

Next we had the calamari with tomato, olive and coriander $13.  The calamari was nicely cooked and the sauce was full of flavor.

 

My fave dish of the night came next, the pan fried cod with fennel and potato mouselline (basically mash) with clams, pepperone, pickled shallot and paprika oil.  The cod was brilliant, a nice mellow combination of flavours and a nice looking dish.  Some might be perturbed by the oil, but I like a bit of paprika oil.

Last main dish to arrive, about 3 hours after our arrival (good thing, we wanted to graze and gossip) was not actually one we ordered but we were happy enough with it.  The eggplant (oh god, what have I become) and ground pork mezza luna ($14), so named because their half moon shape resembles the chopping implement of the same name.

Looking at this pic - it actually looks nothing like a half moon, it was good though and probably the prettiest plating of the night.  A nice crispy onion ring, pine nuts, miso buffalo yoghurt and basil all combining, sounds a little all over the place, but it worked.

Then we had the cheese plate.  Obviously very nice!  This came with more of the crunchy slices of bread which I thought was odd, given that they serve the baguette with some of the mains.

Still liked this place a lot though, the main reason being the atmosphere, the music was brilliant, the service was relaxed and unstuffy and we never felt at all rushed.  Will definitely be back.

Le Comptoir Charcuterie et Vins
4807 Saint Laurent Boulevard
Plateau
H2T 1R6
7.5/10

May Round Up

Eeeeek, I’ve neglected my blog.  Apologies.  It’s been all go.  A whirlwind trip to London during which I was Maid of Honour at my sister’s wedding, it was one of the best days of my life, it, and the trip, when far too quickly. 

So, here’s a quick round up of things I ate in May before I head off.

Biiru

Love love loved Biiru, went for an impromptu dinner on one of the first really hot summer days in Montreal.  I am beginning to see what people meant when they spoke of a seasonal transformation.  It has really come alive now the snow has gone, and I’m falling for the charm of the place.  Anyway. 

Biiru is a recent opening in the Downtown area and it’s great.  An Izakaya, it’s the kind of menu that’s really difficult to pick from, they have ramen, yakitori, sushi, japadogs etc. etc.  In London these things are generally offered at separate restaurants.  I like to know where I am with a menu. 

I opted for the mushroom and truffle okonomiyaki ($14) and chicken thigh yakitori ($6) and both were brilliantly done.  I wish I’d been braver with the yakitori and had hearts or livers, next time.   

I also got to try the agedashi tofu and the sesame edamame, always winners.

Biiru

1433 Rue City Councillors

Latin Quarter

H3A

8/10

Restaurant Helena

Had a speedy 3 courser here with a work buddy.  Lovely corn soup with chunks of chorizo inside to start and paella for main.  Some weird fruity thing for pud which I didn’t like but for $22 it’s an after thought. 

I blagged my way onto a table in the heaving dining room with no booking.  It’s really popular here, solid unfussy cooking.  Better for lunch than dinner due to the excellent value of the offer.  It's round the corner from my office, I'll definitely be back, vibe is workers with clients on lunchbreak. 

Restaurant Helena

438 McGill Ave

Old Montreal

H2Y

7/10

Kaza Maza

I tried this place with Grace, Patrick and Margharita one Sunday.  Really enjoyable ‘middle Eastern’ mezze type menu with small sharing plate.  Cold dishes only early in the day and a fuller menu available for dinner.  Hummus was as good as expected.  

Cheese plate with rose water jam and the mouhammara, a dip containing ground walnuts with pomegranate molasses, were the highlights.

There are olives and unlimited flat breads.  The beetroot dip was excellent too.  Cheap lunch, I think we paid around $30 each and outstayed our welcome.  Everything is well spiced and fragrant.  The earthenware dishes are nice, the service lovely and the room open and airy.  I think they have belly dancing nights, too so I’ll obviously be back.

Kaza Maza

4629 Park Avenue

Plateau

H2V

7.5/10

Trius Winery

A few of us took a holiday weekend road trip to the Ontario wine region.  I did a bit of research and found Trius Winery to be the most lauded eatery in and around Niagara-on-the-Lake.  I booked us in for the tasting menu with wine pairings on the Saturday night.  The gewurtztramier was the stand out wine of the night, surprise surprise, always a fave of mine.  The size of their wine glasses was astonishing, one used to serve a red fit an entire bottle, we made them test it.  Some of the dishes I had.

 Frozen lollipop canape, beetroot and chocolate. 

Can't pretend I liked starting the meal with chocolate.

Chicken wings with scallops on a sweetcorn puree, very nice.

 Dish of the night was the beef fillet with heritage carrots.  Lovely.

Highlight of the evening was a drunken cellar tour.  They were ever so nice, and patient with us.  The food wasn’t great to be honest, some fails, including a cold hard boiled quails egg with asparagus and balsamic, and the desserts were too frozen to cut with a spoon, but this is wine country, just go there for the wine.  5 course tasting menu was $75 and the showcase (not just any old) wine pairings was $45 each.  45 DOLLARS!!  So good.

Trius Estate
1249 Niagara Stone Rd  
Niagara-on-the-Lake
Ontario
6/10

Les 400 Coups

One of the places in Montreal that I've been most keen to visit is Les 400 Coups in the Old Port area.  Fellow blogger reports of meals there promised a good evening, many claiming this to be the home of the best desserts in the city.  So, I booked Sarah and I a table there for Friday night.

Admittedly a little tipsy when we arrived, we couldn't resist a couple of kir royales to get us started, props for the use of a local cassis equivalent.   The food began with some bread, we were later served a second lot.  Nice salty butter, lot to be deduced about a place by the quality of their bread and their generosity with it.

We asked for the recommended dishes and mostly went for the waiter's suggestions.  My starter was the oyster and leeks ($20).  Dishes are described by their key ingredients, keeping things simple. I like that in a menu.

 

Like my recent meal at Story in London, the theme is delicate and pretty presentation.  The oysters, free of their shells, and served cold (the whole dish was cold actually) and sprinkled with hazelnuts, also present were slices of apple and balsam fir which google tells me is a tree.  Ha.  Must have been used in the sauce.  I was surprised that it was all cold but it was fresh and flavours were clean. 

Sarah's starter was probably the more successful of the 2, the boudin blanc ($15) with kohlrabi, tarragon and raspberry.  I went out on my own and selected the pork main course, the waiter suggesting the fish dishes are their most popular.

I was really glad I did this actually, the suckling pig ($30) from a local farm was my favourite dish of the night.  Served with cherries, radish, celeriac puree and gale jus (I don't know what this means but it was nice, bit more of it wouldn't have gone amiss) the pork was served in fillet and croquette form.  There was some kale dotted on there too.  Very good.

Sarah's artic char ($27) would have been my second choice served with rye, fennel, honey mushrooms and sea buckthorn.  So far so good, but not wow.

We'd gone with the waiter's recommended white, glass each, to accompany the mains.  Another Chardonnay blend, they like those here.  To accompany the desserts we had a glass each of Macvin du Jura, Domaine de la Renardiere ($14).  It was dark, fruity and rich, almost like a sherry.  We had a couple of glasses each.  

I have to confess, I was disappointed with dessert.  I had super high hopes, which is always setting myself up for disappointment and I ordered badly.   I was blindsided by the mention of pistachio which was actually barely discernible.  I ordered the kalingo dark chocolate and cocoa meringue ($10).

The green bits were tarragon heavy and fresh tasting, the rhubarb sorbet was lovely, but I don't like fruit and chocolate in combination, idiot!  Sarah's Lemon cream ($10) with almonds, honey, ginger foam and lemon sorbet was more up my street.

I do really like their style though, the vibe in the room is nice, there's a long bar running down one side with the kitchen at the rear.  I would definitely come back.  I still haven't had any cheese in a restaurant here yet, madness!  Keen to try some local ones.  Service was also lovely, very knowledgeable.  Best meal I've had here so far, we paid about $170/£90 each.

Les 400 Coups
400 Notre Dame Est
Old Montreal
8.5/10



p.s we had a front window table and there were loads of cats and dogs lurking about outside the place, at one point we engaged in a lengthy stare out with one of the cats, we won. 

Boo in Paris - Septime la Cave

One of the most hyped restaurants in Paris right now is Septime.  Having not planned ahead we stood no chance of getting a table during our 4 day trip, so didn’t even attempt it, but we were lucky enough to have lunch on our last day at the newly opened Septime Cave.

The Cave, just across the road from the main restaurant is a little wine cellar with 3 stools at a bar, offering a small menu of wines by the glass and a few bar snacks.  We propped up the bar for a few hours ahead of our train back to London and were so impressed with the wines (bringing plenty home with us) and the food.  It’s not really marketed as a foodie destination, more a place to buy some good wines and perhaps crack open a bottle right there, or sample some others whilst grazing on some snacks.  

The place is stacked with wines from floor to ceiling, on each wall.  They also sell a bunch of other drinks and whilst it's a tiny room, they've really made the best of the space they have to work with.

We ordered pretty much 1 of everything between the 3 or us.  The toasted bread was replenished literally about 10 times without even having to ask.  

  

In this first picture is the foie gras with anguille fume (€10) which was great.  Even Art, not the biggest fan of fish, was taken with the smoked eel stuffed in the centre.  Great with the bread, from a local bakery.

Next to arrive was the saucisson salamino (€8) and the house smoked duck breast, magreb fume ici (€7).

Final batch of plates we ordered were the saint nectaire cheese (€8) the lombatello di cinta senese (€8) an Italian proscuitto type ham and, what was for me the best dish of the day, the ricotta anchois (€8).  The combo of anchovies with the creamy cheese topped with toasted bulghar wheat and plenty of Occhipinti extra virgin olive oil.  The oil was also left with us for regular top ups and I got a bottle to take away.  So good.  It’s from a small family run estate where some of the wines on offer are also produced. 

Onto the wines, the biggest hit of the day was probably the P.U.R BBQ 2011 which Bel took a few bottles of.  A full bodied red from the Chavanay region of France made with Syrah grapes.

I preferred the Bourgogne Aligote from Naudin-Ferrand, a fruity and smooth white.  Glasses of these to drink in range from 5-8 Euros and the bottles can be purchased for around 7-15 Euros.  And that is really all I should say about wine, because I know so little, but everything we tried was excellent.  So cheap and it really was the best way to spend the final few hours of our trip.  I had a cider too for €3.

I can’t think of anywhere similar to it here in London, it’s a brilliant idea.  There was a steady stream of visitors coming in to pick up a bottle or 2, and the lovely lady working there that day was so sweet and helpful.  It's a casual vibe and really ended our holiday on a high note.

Septime La Cave

3 Rue Basfroi, 75011 (Charonne)

Paris

8.5/10