My friends the epi-tourists planned a trip to Montreal and I managed to finagle my way along. At first it sounded too extravagant, so I dithered. Fortunately Kaarina, Laura, and Caroline are an understanding bunch so welcomed my change of mind. Also luckily, the Via ticket agent found me a seat with them, so we were able to enjoy a picnique enroute.
Being in Montreal felt like being in Europe. Mon français est pauvre so it was wonderful to have the fully bilingual Caroline there to help us navigate and translate.
We stayed at a great Air B&B in the Montreal Plateau neighbourhood, and managed to fit side trips in to Notre Dame, the Jardin, the Marche, and even get some fashion shopping in... however the real purpose of the trip was to eat and enjoy. Which we did. J'ai trop mangé.
Breakfasts were at the Air B&B. One morning fresh eggs that Caroline had brought from her "girls," another morning St - Viateur bagels with salmon carpaccio fresh from the market.
Otherwise we were checking out the local restaurants. This trip brought lots of new experiences and tastes on the menus. I am not an epicurean, just epicurious. I am no restaurant critic but I do love food, and trying new tastes, and seeing what tastes go together well - all the better with friends. I dine at fine establishments probably one or two times a year, favouring bacchanals with foodie friends to dinners out. Mainly I object to paying too much for the alcohol.
The WoW factor for restaurants starts with great-tasting and great looking food, but it is of course, so much more. Years ago I had a friend in the restaurant business and she said when you opened an establishment, you needed to concentrate on two of three things... it was impossible to have all three of these: ambience, service, and price (or value for money). That was back in the eighties, though, and when I asked Chef Laura whether she had heard the maxim she said no. I think times have changed, and people want and expect all three.
True nourishment feeds you on many levels, so I also have another requirement - how I feel after the meal. Within the hour, and the next day.
These are my ratings, 5 stars for my experiences, based on the criteria above: food; ambience; service; value; after-effects.
Restaurants
Iberica ****
Number 3 on Canada's Best. Only 30 seats in this establishment! I counted myself lucky to get a reservation for a late Thursday evening, 6 weeks in advance. Definitely my favourite meal of the trip. Great vibe and a wonderful experience - the best service of any of the spots we visited, with Andie taking her time to speak to the details on the chalkboard and answer questions about preparation. The chef briefs front of house every day about ingredients and dishes which is why they are so well informed. Gorgeous plating and perfection in the preparation. I regret not having room for dessert. We didn't go for the Lobster pasta or Beef, but throughly enjoyed the appetizers (mushrooms and pomp blanc gres champ au champions + quail besesier brelots and sauce rouge) and main (lamb brisquet). I have no idea how such a small restaurant manages to have such a huge choice of offerings, it is a magic trick! One of the best value meals, too, as Laura and I shared our plates. I will definitely return and might even be able to talk Rob into accompanying me.
We had lunch at this patisserie - of course it was the dessert we came for! The server brought a plate over for us to choose what we wanted. Talk about a tough choice! We lingered over tea before heading back out in the rain. Really delicious, great service, but a bit pricey. I also found all the hard gleaming surfaces to lack a certain welcoming.
Restaraunt L'Original ****
Loved the ambience - very early Canadian and woodsy, complete with a canoe used for the bar. Quirky embellishments in the decor. Excellent food and fine service. My favourite thing about this meal was the original preparation of bone marrow. A bone, sliced open, with pickled sashimi and red wine sauce. Deeply satisfying. If I ever return I would skip the wine and substitute a cocktail. Aside from this, no regrets.
Caribou Gourmand ** .5
Where else could you find caribou and seal tartare on offer? Who wouldn't be curious? It was an experience however I wouldn't say the flavour was exceptional and the texture was like liver. Having satisfied this curiosity I wouldn't likely order it again. I ordered the wild boar chop with polenta as my main - it was delicious at the start, but before I had even finished the meal I was feeling over-stuffed and a bit queasy. I took my leftovers to go and was astounded by how heavy the little package was. Extremely tasty however lost marks for the after-effects (just how much butter was there??) and remarkably poor service. They also didn't have the wine on their own list, or the dessert that was on the menu (although we were on the first seating). Highly disappointing, however this was one of the most anticipated meals so perhaps I'm being a bit too harsh that it didn't live up to expectations.
Jardin Botani Restaurant ****
The lunch counter at the botanical gardens was one of my favourite restaurant experiences of the trip. The counter service was quite friendly. Not only were we able to eat outside in a beautiful setting in the sun, the salad and sandwiches were colourful, nourishing, tasty, great value, and left me feeling entirely sated. Just dizzy from a fine spring day.
Cocktail Bars
Cocktail bars do not have entirely the same criteria for me as restaurants. I don't expect great value - I want a bit of theatre + great service + great vibes/fun + lots of choice So maximum four stars.
Flyjin ***
I thought this was Flying Gin when the epi-tourists were saying the name and so was a tad disappointed it wasn't all about gin cocktails, being such a devoted fan. The Queen Bee concoction, my second drink, was the best - but that is likely because as Kaarina says, anything with Veuve Clicquot has to be good. We sat right at the bar and chatted up the bartender, who was entirely entertaining.
La Distillerie ****
Best drink menu ever! Lots to choose from: A Yoda cocktail that looked just like the master, limes placed for ears; a phenomenal Caesar. A server that suggested they leave out the sugar for someone and add it in later if required. Fantastic bartender, dressed up geisha style and rocking the cocktail shakers. Good thing we had reservations elsewhere otherwise I could easily have overstayed my welcome.
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