rcianci

Haha.. Thanks Dave.. Opening a can of food and plopping it on the plate is the first image that comes to mind.. However, as you say, I am sure thats not how it went.. Its just very funny to imagine it.. Maybe I can do a Joe Beef for lunch and a Au Pied du Cochon for dinner.. ← Actually, that's exactly how it goes. They bring out a big can. Open it with a can opener and dump it over a crouton spread with celery root puree that's waiting on your plate. The duck breast and foie gras are canned in-house. Martin Picard, the chef at APdC, has quite the sense of humor. Also Joe Beef doesn't serve lunch. Neither does Au Pied de Cochon.

My wife and I took some friends to Joe Beef Wednesday night. For starters we chose a Mushroom soup, a Smoked Salmon plate, and Sweetbreads with a Salad of Cabbage, Apple, and Bacon. At our server's suggestion, I took a glass of Beaujolais with the sweetbreads. The starters were great. The mushroom soup was rich and creamy and topped with truffle oil foam. The sweetbreads and bacon were beautifully crisp and nutty and the cabbage and apples perfectly dressed. I didn't get a taste of the smoked salmon, but my wife and her friend seemed to be really enjoying it. For mains we got a Hanger Steak with Beaujolais sauce, Braised Beef with Carrots, Chicken with Crayfish, and Sheppard’s Pie. We let our server pick the wine for us, a spicy Cote-du-Rhone which matched the food beautifully. Many were the shameless moans of pleasure coming from our table as we demolished our food. Particular standouts were the braised beef which came with really, really fresh heirloom carrots and a roasted marrow bone, and the chicken, which consisted of braised legs sitting in creamy crayfish bisque and covered with fresh truffles. The steak was tender and perfectly cooked and the Sheppard's pie was a deeply flavorful beef bourguignon topped with mashed potatoes enriched with aged Canadian cheddar. We shared little tastes of each other’s dishes and ooh’d and ahh’d a lot. Desserts consisted of a crisp meringue with berries and whipped cream, and an éclair filled with chocolate nougat cream and brandied cherries. The servers brought out little pitchers of bittersweet chocolate sauce which they ceremoniously poured over the meringue and the éclair. That was really fun. One of our friends got a special dessert the kitchen had made just moments before: Canneles, which were perfect with a crunchy caramel exterior and a moist center. They came with pots of not too sweet apple sauce and Crème Anglaise for dipping. My wife showed remarkable restraint and contented herself with tastes off of everyone’s plates. This meal was the highlight of our visit. The food was fresh and tasty. Our server was friendly, helpful and well informed about the food and the wine list. My wife and I were very pleased and our friends were thrilled. What a great evening!

A. J. Kinik's and Michelle Marek's blog ...an endless banquet has the best guide to inexpensive and mid-level Montreal restaurants. Scroll down the page until you come to the "City Guide" links in the left hand column. The hot place to eat and party right now seems to be Garde-Manger on Rue St. Francois-Xavier in Old Montreal. I've not yet been so I can't comment on the prices, but there have been some very positive comments about the food and the scene from fellow eGulleteers.

Damn! That would have been so cool.

Thank you for showing us this, bourdain. I'm sorry for your grief. Please don't lose hope. People do rebuild. Life does go on.

Check out La Montée de Lait. Inventive fare, exceptional selection of wines by the glass, interesting selection of raw milk cheeses, reasonably priced. La Montée de Lait 371, rue Villeneuve E 514 289-9921 LesleyC's Review

Chris, no one is arguing for a "a single (more or less), consistent, knowledgable, reliable source of criticism". This is not an elitist vs. populist debate. What kind of "popular consensus" do you imagine the guide represents if the people who do most of the dining out in this town weren't surveyed? Montreal has a vibrant popular food culture, but you won't find an accurate representation of it in a Zagat guide because Zagat's methods are shoddy.

I'm pretty much a wine drinker these days, but I hear good things about this place. Baldwin Barmacie If you get a chance while you're here, try an Icewine Martini. Enjoy Montreal.

Yay! Sara is gone. Let there be dancing in the streets!

Looks like El Bulli recently revamped their website. They've got 1200 photos tracing the evolution of their cuisine, a timeline, "historical" documents (such as their permit to put in a miniature golf course back in 1961), and testimonials from the key players. I've been exploring the site for 2 days now and I find it quite engrossing. I'd be interested to read other members' comments. El Bulli

How to Get a Reservation at El Bulli - Season 2006 Note the date of Louisa's blog entry. Every year in mid-October, Luis Garcia opens the reservation books at El Bulli. Four days later, he closes them with more requests than he has seats. He has his own system for determining who gets a reservation. Consider a request to be like buying a lottery ticket.

I'll keep a good thought for you and your crew. Watch yourself Tony.

I'm not a vegetarian, but I like the idea of vegetarian fine dining as an option. It's too bad it doesn't work in Montreal.

Just checked Les Chevres online menu. Only one all veggie starter and one all veggie main. What gives? I thought the idea was that vegetables are of equal worth as meat or fish and are as worthy of having the main focus on the plate. Have they changed their minds? Could they not sell this idea to the Montreal dining public?

I have a copy of the Canadian Food Network version of the show. One difference I noticed between my copy and the Discovery Travel broadcast was that in the latter one of Albert Adria's experiments was cut from the Taller sequence. I decided to buy the DVD from Zero Point Zero because I realized my copy of the Canadian Food TV broadcast probably contains cuts as well.

No.

hehe--true and funny! this was a truly fascinating show--what an amazing place El Bulli is--we were thinking it has to be 1000 bucks to eat and drink there per person with such an intense set up. I would love to eat there--and i love AB's struggling with the standing on the head of all he has learned and done by Adria and gang--and loved how important it was to Adria for AB to "get" what they were doing. fascinating TV Zoe ← Dinner at el bulli costs only €170/$215 per person without wine. Quite a bargain. Now if I can just get them to take my reservation.

I found bourdain's eGullet postings after his return from taping the Adria show. Barcelona-Roses, Fantastic Congratulations to Zero Point Zero Productions on the U.S. television debut of Decoding Ferran Adria.

How many does the terrace seat?

bethala, don't be shy. Tell us what you think. Kidding aside, the more I hear about how Zagat does business, the more vacuous the guide seems. I can't imagine wasting my time on something with a signal to noise ratio that low. I think the problem lies in catering to the impulse to get maximum return for minimum involvement. That is not a force for good. It is, in fact, pretty damn destructive. Some things are just worth waiting for or taking some trouble over. Without anticipation, there is no sense of occasion. Without patience, the ability to perceive subtlety never comes. Maybe the reason I like Montreal is that its food culture seems so much saner than much of the U.S. (Though I'm proud of the sustainable agriculture, artisinal foodstuffs thing we got going here in Vermont.)

Wait, who says they have to go at all? A chef I know read me the results of the Montreal guide. I think the list is a complete joke. If I remember correctly, Fairmount Bagel scored higher than Club Chasse et Peche for food. I wish the Zagats would just stick to New York. The way this guide is put together(and the disgraceful amount of money they offer to the guide writer -- or should I say compiler) is insulting to anyone who cares about the restaurant business in our city. The Zagats make me hate Americans. They have reduced our wondeful restaurant scene to a list based on the opinion of so few. And question: was the web survey even open to francophones? ← Lesley, you posted back in 2004 that the surveys were not available in French. I guess they've never done anything to correct this oversight. My guides are my fellow foodies on boards like this one. I'll take bethala's post of her impressions of Montreal over any published guide any day.

I checked Discovery Travel Channel's calendar and "Decoding Ferran Adria" is listed for 10 pm Monday, July 3 and 1 am Tuesday, July 4.

mayem?

I've seen it too. I have a copy. I think it is his best work. I admire Tony's conviction and bravery in putting up his own money to make the show. The whole experience of being with Adria, observing his team at the Taller, eating the food at the restaurant, seemed to make Tony more humble and more thoughtful than before. Pure speculation on my part, but I think No Reservations (assuming it would even exist) would not be as good a show if Tony had not made Decoding Ferran Adria.

Bethala, thank you for that great report. I love the way you write. I'm glad to hear that you and your boyfriend had such a good time. It's always gratifying to know when one's reccomendation resulted in someone having a good experience. Though in my case it was more along the lines of telling you what to steer clear of. Anyway, a lot of people don't take the trouble to write back about their experiences. Thank you for doing so.