Oui Oui Montreal!!

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After a rigourous 6 months in film catering I found myself unemployed with plenty of time on my hands. With empty days to fill I found myself consistently online searching flights for a little adventure. No place in particular, just seeking something new to me. I got a positive reaction when I consulted Courtnay on my decision to go to Montreal for 4 days in January. So we were going to Montreal with a trip objective to eat and after 6 months of 3am wake ups, we deserve it.



Montreal is a city I disliked most of my life, without ever visiting, due to the fact that the horrible Montreal Canadiens are the arch rivals to my favourite hockey team the Toronto Maple Leafs. As I got older I realized the city might be more then just a hockey team and it's supporters. I would hear stories of restaurants serving great food, the famous smoked meat sandwiches, shops full of charcuterie and cheese. The city having a food culture that is richer then other areas in Canada. I am an Anthony Bourdain fan. As a young chef he influenced me on many things and to this day he still does. In his books he praises the work of Martin Picard at Au Pied de Cochon and praises the epicurean treasures to be found in Montreal. We boarded our Montreal bound plane in the midday rain of an unseasonally warm Halifax day with a folded list of restaurants and notable places of food in my back pocket.



On the other end of the flight we were greeted by an unseasonally warm Montreal afternoon (a few degrees above zero). Took a cab to our hotel conveniently located on the corner of Sherbrooke West and St Laurent street.



Over the course of the next 4 days we wandered around the city on foot and on the easy to use underground train system. We did have lunch at the famous Schwartz's Deli, which usually has a line up out the door and down the street. We were lucky the line up was less then 10 people midday on Friday. We quickly got moved to the last 2 chairs at the end of the bar. It was my first time in an old deli and I immediately loved the vibe. The small deli packed with people and employees. The walls lined with photos of yesteryear. The reason people flock here is for a Montreal Smoked Meat sandwich and that is what we were there for. The smell inside that little room should be bottled and sold. We had our smoked meat sandwiches, handed our bill and quickly paid. The smoked meat was tender, moist with a good amount of flavour. It was a great experience of being in that little, old and high profile deli with the wonderful aroma of smoked meat, surrounded by strangers all enjoying the smoked meat.



Joe Beef is a famous restaurant that I heard about via Anthony Bourdain's No Reservations television show. They are famous for their version of a Double Down, inspired from the KFC's sandwich that uses fried chicken as the bread part of the sandwich, inside is mayo and bacon. The Joe Beef version uses foie gras in place of chicken, and of course bacon. Joe Beef happened to be booked the whole time we were in Montreal but we were able to get a table at their sister restaurant called The Liverpool House. The Double Down might not be on the menu but we were both excited for what may be on offer.



Friday evening we walked in the front door of the little Liverpool House (only a few doors down from Joe Beef) and guided to the chalkboard in the back of the dining room. We read our chalkboard of options discussed, then reported to our seats that were cozily only inches from the tables on both sides and across from a big deer head. They were pictures of big rigs in one corner, deer horns on the wall, and a old convenience store scale. We had done our best to decipher the menu and our choices were made. We sipped Joe Beef Pilsner, enjoying the decor until our bread came accompanied by a pickle. Our starters were a pork brioche, braised pork inside a brioche pastry with a creamy mushroom sauce. Starter two, buffalo mozzarella which was warm and gratinated, served in a bowl with super caramelized onions. It was similar to french onion soup, the caramelized onions, the jus with some sherry. Both dishes were fantastic, very well seasoned, prepared well and just plain delicious. More beer time, then the mains came. I got a roasted rabbit with risotto and Madeira sauce. Courtnay got the Veal Pojarsky that came with mashed potatoes, brussel sprouts and a foie gras sauce. I won't lie we both didn't know what a Pojarsky was. So when we cut into the veal to see it had been coarsely minced then put back on the bone, I thought that seems funny. At first bite foie gras flavour prevailed. Under closer investigation foie gras had been inserted into the meat creating an utterly delicious end result. The rabbit was a roasted saddle that had been wrapped in caulfat, while the leg was braised. The saddle crisp and well seasoned, the leg fall off the bone tender, while the risotto was good and the Madeira sauce was rich, sweet, nicely thick and went well on the plate. We tried our best to finish our plates but ran out of room before we ran out of plate.



With over-full bellies we retreated back to the hotel to relax for an hour before we set out to meet my friends Harry and Nik. I met Harry and Nik in Naples, Italy in 2006 and even though we only spent a couple days together we have kept in touch. Fellow travelblogger Nik (onceinalifetime) did visit me in Melbourne on his round the world trip in 2010. The bar Nik had suggested to meet at was very full, so we found a nearby bar with some free tables. Soon Nik joined us then Harry. It was nice to see these guys once again, see how we have all aged. We talked travel, future trips, food, and of course hockey. Harry is an ex-chef and Nik knows his food well too, so we got plenty of restaurant tips. This is continent number 3 that I have met Nik in 6 years and who knows maybe another continent encounter again in the future.



Saturday afternoon Nik found some time to play tour guide as he picked me up and we went to Mont Royal. Mont Royal is a mountain in Montreal that is also a big city park with loads of walking trails, frozen ponds for skating and a great viewpoints to look over Montreal city. I was surprised to see how busy the trails were on a mild Saturday afternoon. Joggers, cross country skiers, snowshoers, tourist and locals alike enjoying the great park. Nik and I talked life while we were perched above the city enjoying the views and the conversation. Harry met us at a bar downtown where we enjoyed a beer and chat before we departed all separate ways once again.



Saturday Court and I had not been feeling great, maybe it was the food hangover from the Liverpool house meal, maybe it was something else. Sunday morning we were both feeling much better which was probably due to the great bowl of noodles we had followed by the 12 hours of sleep we had just completed. We walked around old Montreal for hours in the light rain, enjoying the cobblestone streets and the lovely architecture on a quiet Sunday morning The old port was the home of ice fishing huts on the ice and just around the corner a busy outdoor skating rink. The rain picked up to a medium rain, we decided to tough it out as we felt guilty about Saturday being unproductive. We did return to the hotel to dry out, then set out to enjoy the dry and warm underground city. The underground city is a set of interconnected complexes and home all sorts of shopping. We aimlessly walked around, up escalators, down escalators, up stairs, down stairs, around bends until we got tired of endlessly walking this labyrinth of shops.



Our final night, Sunday, was our most anticipated night of our trip as we had reservations at a restaurant called Au Pied De Cochon. I have wanted to dine here since I heard about this place years back. We arrived early to a less then half filled restaurant and were seated in the middle of the restaurant with good views of the kitchen. We had a good idea of what we wanted before we read the menu. The menu complicated our decision making and when we made up our minds our server arrived to tell of today's specials. We started with the foie gras cromesquis which are little cubes of foie gras battered with a parmesan bread crumb and deep fried. It arrives at the table, you wait 30 seconds for it to cool then pop it into your mouth. The parmesan crust breaks filling the mouth with warm foie gras flavoured liquid. Yes, very delicious. Course two was from the specials menu and was a house made (made at Martin Picard's sugar shack in rural Quebec) proscuitto with sweet pickles. The meat was tender, with a lovely texture and paired very well with the pickles. Course 3 was black truffle and goat cheese grilled cheese with maple syrup (made at Martin Picard's sugar shack). I was excited to enjoy a grilled cheese with black truffles in it, but we found that it was weak in truffle. It was still really good, but I expected it to be a decadent sandwich of cheese and black truffle slices. Our main course was a house made sausage, with gnocchi, lentils and foie gras for two. It was served it a big aqua coloured cast pan. The foie gras melted on the top. The dish was good, the gnocchi had a velvet like texture, the sauce of great consistency and the sausage had a coarse texture. We munched away, watching the plates of others leave the kitchen pass en-route to happy customers. We chatted about each dish as we had spotted them in passing. I was curious and wanted to order half the menu. The Duck in a can, the foie gras burger, the pig's trotter all dishes I wanted to try. We were full but decided a little dessert would be a good thing. Our dark chocolate pot de creme (I used to love pot de creme in college) was large, rich in flavour and presented very well in a mason jar-esque container. The restaurant was full, we were full so we paid the lady and walked the long way back to the hotel in hopes of burning a few extra calories. There I had it, the restaurant I have wanted to go to for years checked off the list. Even though I tried not to over-hype the whole thing, after my meal which was well above average, I felt that maybe it didn't meet the expectations that I had. Maybe it was my menu choices, maybe it was me, maybe it was an off night at the restaurant, but I guess I had hoped for something better. After-all Friday's dinner at the Liverpool House had me wanted to put my chef whites back on and beg for them to teach me how to cook like they do .



Monday came, we went to the Jean Talon market to purchase some charcuterie meats to take back to Halifax. We returned to the hotel, packed our bags, checked out and took a cab to the airport early. Montreal, what a wonderful place. We met so many helpful and friendly locals even though we rarely even tried to use our poor French skills. We got to hang out with Nik and Harry which was such a great time to re-see those guys plus it keeps me connected to my old travel life. I am sure I will be seeing both of those guys again, just not sure where. All I can say is that Montreal feels like a special place. For me it's hard to compare it to other cities I have been. The people seem very proud and very happy with life. I hope to visit the city once again in a warmer time of the year, and I expect to like it even more next time. With hockey rivalries aside, Montreal is wonderful place especially to eat and I learned of some other eateries that I couldn't fit into my time, belly or budget this time. See you again Montreal.

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Comments

[cabochick]

I think I just gained 10 pounds! Great blog.

[cleanpairofeyes]

I did gain 10 pounds. Guess it will help keep me warm in winter. Thank you