poutine

Solly's on Westminster (corner Mackle) in the depths of CSL is ok & I believe is 100% kosher. From recollection, Solly's has decent hamentashen, not the hard as rock cookie-like type but a softer, more pliable dough. Both mun & prune. Their rolls are quite good. And then there's the dirty bakery in Chomedy! I don't know its real name but they have real good rolls & I love their challah. Maxies still exists in Cavendishmall but IMHO is way less than stellar. There's also 2 kosher bakeries in the St. Louis strip mall in Ville St. Laurent. Then there's Jewish-ish bakeries (that's Jewish style but operated by Philipinos or East-Indians) such as Fresser's on Decarie corner Cote St. Catherine, or Real Bagel (CSL Rd or Queen Mary locations).

Thanks Steve ... are they open Sundays?

The fact that Sassafraz is still open is a mystery to me - it's my choice of watering holes while bouthique shopping but the food is average at best. Barberian's was always good (haven't been in years) and I hear good things about Harbor 60 - that's all I got I was supposed to dine at the Senator my last trip up but got side-tracked ← Thanks, I won't consider Sassafraz. I remember having great steak at Senator but that was probably 8 years ago.

Thanks Michael, Splendido is open on Sundays. I'll check on Chiado's

Sadly Susur too is closed Sunday. Can anyone comment on Sassafraz (which is open Sundays)? What about Mortons vs. Barbarians vs. Senator vs. Ruth Chris - is there a steakhouse that one could consider "the benchmark" ... can any one say compare to Queue de Cheval, Gibbys or Moishes?

sadistick - Unfortunately Scaramouche is closed on Sundays, so is Pangea. How far a cab ride is Susur from Park Hyatt? Does Susur have a website?

Thanks all - I so appreciate all the responses to date. So far I'm leaning towards Splendido. A problem I'm encountering is many restaurants (Truffles, Scaramouche) are closed Sunday night - what's up with that? So I'm willing to expand my criteria to include a short cab ride away. I've seen so many differing opinions I'm a bit confused. On the Montreal boards, I believe there is more consensus when it comes to the best of the best. How about something comparable to (to name a few) Les Chevres, Toqué, Bronté, Chez L'Epicier, Area or Cube?

Can anyone comment on Morton's in the Park Hyatt? Since it's in the hotel thought it might be an option for a late arrival dinner on a quiet Sunday night (Truffles is closed Sundays). Is it comparable to any of the steak houses in Montreal like Queue de Cheval, 40 Westt, Moishes or Gibbys?

Website for George on Queen

I thank everyone for their suggestions. Still have a week to go before arrival so I will check back to see if anyone else has any further comments. Brab made a good point; being from Montreal perhaps our bar is set a bit higher (or maybe too high?)

Will be in Toronto the entire week of Feb 21 for business & am looking for dinner suggestions. Criteria is: within walking distance or very short cab ride from Park Hyatt, excellent cuisine, superior wine list, great service, casual business atmosphere (no jackets or ties required). Also very important that it be good value for the money. I don't really care if it's terribly expensive, as long as we all walk away & feel it was worth spending the big bucks for. Any suggestions would be very welcome. Thanking all TO e-gulleters in advance!

If you love ice cream, run do not walk to Havre des glaces. Very difficult to decide which flavour to purchase so ask for a taste, the staff are only too happy to oblige. Still conflicted as to which I liked most - close your eyes & you'd swear you were eating a combo of puréed passion fruit & mango, but with the richness of gelatto. Want chocolate, have fun deciding between dark choc, milk choc or white choc - or just say what the hey - give me a triple dose of that stuff. I foresee long lines come spring/summer. As for price, I'd way rather pay $6.00 for 500 ml vs. the shite you get from your local grocery store for $5.99 for 2 liters or even the 500 ml premium brands like B&J or Hagen Daz that sell for comparable prices.

Went into the (smaller) fish store & tasted their smoked salmon & liked it so we bought a small filet (about $7.00 for maybe a 6 oz piece). They were also offering tastes of their smoked whitefish (sturgeon perhaps), also nice. Agree with Carswell in that they did not have much product in stock. For $13.50 they had a small package containing a few chunks of smoked salmon, some smoked mussels, smoked shrimp & a few pieces of smoked whitefish. It was ok but pas plus que ça. However, on a plate with razor thin sliced red onion, some capers (if you have never tried the ones packed in salt, please do so because once that salt is well rinsed off, you will never eat brined capers again!), thinly sliced lemon, a cream cheese/sour cream mixture & some toast points, the smoked salmon(s) & the other smoked fish were simply awesome. I must admit that prior to arriving at JT, we were on Laurier East & I purchased some sliced smoked salmon at the counter of Queu de Cochon (in Le Fromentier) & I am confident in saying that having been raised on bagels, cream cheese & lox, the smoked salmon at Queu de Cochon totally blew me & everyone else away; best darned lox I've ever experienced & worth the shlep out to Laurier & Papineau. As good as Le Fromentier is for bread, I find the counter of Queu de Cochon equally good for sausauges, ham, & other pret a manger.

Also open as at 12/12 I noticed a chocolate store (hot choco for $1) and an ice cream store. I am able to confirm that Lait Cru does indeed sell Fromentier breads & brioches/danish - although there was not nearly as much variety as you find at their Laurier establishment; their goods are not baked at JT, only transported there. Go early for best selection! What I find exceptional is that the new section leads directly to the (for winter at least) indoor or enclosed part of the market where several veggie/fruit stalls are located & there are multiple side entrances for quick exits to access both side streets. And did I mention the indoor parking - granted you pay for it but on those nasty cold windy days it sure beats walking the km or so from the only parking spot I could find on Danté!

Had opportunity to pass by yesterday, unaware that the extension was open, albeit only partially occupied. First impression was COOL! Do check out the Olive & Spice store with so many varieties of oils that can be sampled & I saw several different types of fresh vanilla beans under glass. The fromagerie/boulangerie seemed to have same style as Fromentier; could it be an offshoot? Their breads & danishes sure appeared similar & when we were there early afternoon, they were almost sold out of bread. Polish bakery Wavel opened another location & now their delicious ponkis (best doughnuts in town!) can be discovered by those outside the NDG area. (I saw an empty box next to the cash at Chez Louis!) Also nice to have a bookstore & a kitchen accessories store on site. I think it's a great concept & will surely attract even more people to JTM.

A group of employees recently went to Area for dinner & thoroughly enjoyed it as we were able to sample an extensive cross selection of their menu. A bit off the beaten path but IMHO well worth checking out. Area Restaurant That same group had lunch 2 weeks ago at Cube & there was high praise all around. Since we were actually meeting for a few days at Hotel St. Paul, Cube catered our afternoon breaks as well as a fixed price lunch menu based on choice of 2 starters, 2 mains & 1 dessert. They had us in & out & back upstairs in under 90 minutes & each dish was absolutely delicious & lovely to look at. The restaurant was quite busy for a Thursday lunch with just about every table filled, however, Wednesday & Thursday nights did not appear to be too busy. Cube Restaurant

In case you did not see the pictures of our extravaganza that were posted last March, check this out: Smoked Meat Marathon

My favorite experience in the mid-80's was a (few) trips (ha!) to Miss Brown's Cafe in beautiful Negril Beach, Jamaica. Bless her soul, Miss Brown baked some of the Island's most potent & tastiest treats ... her ganja cakes were spicy, moist & sweet. You wash one (or more if you dare!) down with some magic mushroom tea & you're in sweet raggae Jamaica heaven & I still have the pictures to prove it (& they WILL follow me to my grave). I wonder if Miss Brown's shack still exists - anyone?

My vote goes to Jamaica Way on Queen Mary between Westbury & Lavoie. Always a treat to eat there.

Carswell: At J-T market I noticed several of the stalls west of Chez Louis carrying several different types of figs. At Chez Louis, apart from their "crab mushrooms" (lobster mushrooms anywhere else!) they had other very exotic mushrooms that I have never seen before. Sorry that I forgot what they were called, they were huge & kinda sponge-like shaped and the prices were out of this world expensive. Also amongst the exotica were some enoki-like shrooms. All of which were too rich for my blood. Another exceptional find at Chez Louis is their olive oil. Not sure where it's from but I think they bottle it themselves (there's no label on the bottle) & they sell it by the litre for $19.99 + $3 deposit on the bottle. The fish store Shamrock always has a line up of people eating fried calamar, but the strong deep fried fishy smell makes me steer clear. I've seen people sitting & eating & have heard complaints about "too chewy", "too overcooked". Has anyone tried it? Just around the corner on Mozart East corner St. Dominique is Jos & Basile & apart from the different types & cuts of meat, pork & poultry & speciality items, they offer some very affordable pizza & specials of the day. They also have an outside bbq fired up on weekends. The woman behind the pizza counter or behind the bbq is a hoot - she can look at you & will offer you a plate of her choosing. I find their pizza to be quite good - as far as pizza in Montreal goes!

I've been visiting Whistler regularly for 11 years now & never miss an opportunity to dine at Rim Rock Café. My friends (locals) nor I have never been disappointed. We even ate there on their seasonal opening night a few years ago (when they rolled out their "tasting" menu) and it was as if they had not been closed for the summer.

Carswell you are bang on; it is L'Amandier. The week before last I saw M. Morel speaking with what I assumed to be a contractor (they were poking & pointing around) and sure enough last Friday on a follow up visit, I noticed their "L'Amandier" sign as well as a hand-written sign in the window indicating they are closed for rennovations - probably during the construction holiday period.

I wish I could remember the name of this bakery! Taking a little stroll on Laurier east of Le Fromentier, maybe near Fabre, we came upon a small store with an intriguing menu du jour posted outside and ordinary looking display cases inside. What I didn't expect was an amazing pastry & cake find. And from the looks of what was going on in the back, there's some serious baking & cooking being done. There's not an abundance of variety, like maybe a dozen different types of pastry/cakes (available in single serving, & 3 different sizes), also fruit tarts, danish, croissants, etc & a display of real cute marzipan figures. We agreed that what we tasted was in a league of its own! They also appear to make their own ice cream. Does anyone know this place? It's real hot!

I always leave a tip when I take out, usually 10% or more if it's an inexpensive meal. Most (if not all) local take out restos or fast food joints have some sort of tip receptacle alongside the cash register or debit machine, the exception being the large takeout chains such as McD or BK etc. It's almost expected that you throw your change into it. What pisses me off is when I throw a couple of bucks into the "pishka" under the watchful eyes of the person doing the cash without even receiving a thank you.

Carswell - I've seen 2 types of La Chinata. I have only tried the smoked paprika sweet. The little sticker says Extremadura Pimenton Consejo Regulador Denominacion de Origen. I was hooked the second I opened the tin and breathed in the aroma. I use it liberally when roasting chicken or cooking beef and it's great for home fries or other roasted veggies. BTW, I was very pleasantly surprised to find it at Maitre Boucher & I stand corrected - $3.85 is the price on the "seal" across the top. Cheers!