Salomon

Hi all, I need your help: I'm taking out chinese business partners (men and women) and a colleague out for a night in town... but none of them is very open minded about trying new stuff. Just to give you an example, my colleague (he 's a baton rouge kind of guy) looked scared when looking at the pied de cochon menu; it's that bad! I'd like to take them out to a nice (enough) place either downtown, plateau, main or old montreal area (and treat myself at the same time!). I thought of: - The Keg (urgh) - Queue de Cheval - Pied de Cochon (keeping hopes alive!) - Moishe's - Café Ferreira You guy have any suggestions? Thanks,

... so I went back last week to bdl since its close to my place (in fact, it's the only thing close to my place, but that's another topic to be started). I have to say that my experience was very good. Foodwise, it was probably the best experience I had there, one of the best restaurant experience in a while (upto par with Margaux, more enjoyable - and cheaper- than Laporte). I won't go through all the details, but it was great (getting better as the meal was going). The service was very good. It felt like there was some serenity in the place that wasn't there before... Or maybe it was me, I dunno! I'll go back for sure! Sal

I went there a while ago. The ambiance and staff is very nice and friendly, pretty upscale. The pizza was good, but not great to my taste. Maybe it's because I haven't tasted the original italian stuff...

So we decided to give the new Margaux a try last thursday; we were not disapointed. It started out on the wrong foot though: it took 45 minutes to get service. But it didn't went unnoticed: the owner (or his wife, I don't remember) brought some Kir to excuse herself (it seems that some reservations arrived late). I started with ravioli de boudin noir aux pommes à la crème de bollets. It was very good (the pasta was fresh as was the boudin), very "autumn" and tasty. A bit on the rich side due to the sauce but very good. My main was ris de veau à la réduction de porto. The ris were fresh (no funny taste or texture) and well prepared. They were perfectly "saisi" (sorry it's too early in the morning for my english vocabulary), not too dry. They were served on a kind of roesti (potato pancake) with some fresh grapes with the porto. Very well done. In the plate was included a creme brulee de foie gras that was to die for. I would have made a meal out of this side (but would have probably died of liver failure somewhere on Parc)! Mrs Salomon had the tartar the saumon as an entree (very fresh and honest) and the cote de cerf (perfectly excecuted). Eventhough we were full at that point, we still went for the creme brulee a la lavande, which was again, well done (I ain't a big fan of lavander in meals). Someone in our group did take a chocolate cake of some sort and was rolling her eyes with delight for the next 10 minutes... The wine list is not incredible (but still good) but comes at a very reasonable cost. All in all, after tips, taxes and wine (45$ St-Emilion 2004), It came to 135, which was very good for the quality of meal we had. In conclusion, I would say that Margaux doesn't reinvent anything, but it's doing an awesome job at preparing classic french food. The service was very good (the room is not very flamboyant), and it's a great bang for your bucks kind of place. Margaux to me is an excellent alternative to to best BYOB (Colombe, Infidèles, Christophe, Petit Plateau, etc.) in town and all in all, in the same price range. I will certainly go back in the next few months. Enjoy, Sal

It might not be very original, but "A la DiStasio" is doing the job for me, both the book and the website. Simple technique, simple ingredients; better for everyday cooking than gourmet meals. Not enough fish recipe though... Sal

anybody else has comments about this place? I'm planning a birthday dinner and my choice is down to "le bouchon de liège", "le margaux" or "le Jurançon"... S

do you know if that 5 a7 will be open to all and if he'll do a small "demonstration"?

- I've been in Charlevoix (Baie St-Paul) a few times in the recent years and I'm making a point every time I'm there to eat at les saveurs oubliées http://www.agneausaveurscharlevoix.com/english.html. It's one of the best table I've been, and probably one of the best "bang for your bucks" in the whole province. You can also buy product from the farm. The service, dining room and food are very good. Note also that it's BYOW, which is nice. Reservations are mandatory. - I've also heard great things about la maison Otis in Baie St-Paul, for both the food and lodging (they have a SPA, which can be nice). It's a bit costly though. - Also, you have to stop at l'économusée du fromage (it's on the main provincial road - the 138 I believe - just outside of Baie St-Paul) for Charlevoix's cheeses at a low price. - Finally, if you're looking for a B&B, here's a recommendation: http://www3.sympatico.ca/eider.matinal/. The comfort, the rooms, the view, the warmth of the owner are making this place a coup de coeur. It's not cheap, but it's great. Bon voyage

Hi all, I will be visiting (from Montreal Canada) Munich for a Trade Show (at the Trade Center); I'm excited to visit your city but I'm kind of last-minute! Would you have any recommendations as far as hotels are concern? Thanking you all in advance, à bientôt, Salomon

Hi all, I've been looking in the Ottawa thread and couldn't find what I'm looking for; we're searching for a nice place to stay for a night this summer. We have a wedding there and we would like to find a nice B&B or hotel in Ottawa that wouldn't be too expensive. The bride "arranged" us to the McGee Inn, but we don't have a good feeling about this place (and it was kind of costly). Do you have any recommendation? Thanks, Salomon

...so we finally when to panache; it was amazing! We went for the degustation menu. Incredible quality of food along with very good wine pairing. It sure was a night that a will remember for a long time. I haven't been to either l'intiale, LR or l'Utopie, but I can't imagine having a better experience somewhere else. A very special thumb's up to Jean-Simon, the maitre d'hôtel who made the whole experience even better. Very professional, kind and passionate about food. The service was simply impeccable. And the dining room (and hotel bar) looks great. I couldn't recommend it enough!

I'm going myself in Quebec city for xmas... We will be staying at le priori (good deal could be found on bonjourquebec.com). For dinner I have to choose between Utopie, Initiale, LR and Panache; I haven't been to any of those places and since this is our xmas gift to one another, I'd like to get it right... So: one meal, which one to choose? All these options seems great but I' like to see what you have to write... Thanks all, Salomon

Was at JTalon this morning and I ran in Anthony Bourdain at 'qui lait cru', along with is crew. I guess they're doing a show about Mtl after all... Salomon

Went to pintxo on friday night... I have to say that I was disapointed. The service was OK, one of the waiter being very nice and helpful, the other being kind of snubbish (I guess it was to recreate the real spanish experience - the menu was in french, we ordered in french and he kept on repeating in spanish what we ordered - it got annoying)... The quality of the food was way up there; the pintxos (or XXS tapas - more on that later) were very good, made with fresh fish and/or vegetables, the taste was subtle yet present; very good food. The main courses were also awesome. The wine list is good and varied BUT: the quantity -vs- cost ratio is kind of silly. I know it's small tapas, but c'mon! For 5 persons, we ordered 2 bottles of wine(50$ea.) 10-12 pintxos (each pintxos the size of a big maki from say Maiko) and each a main course for after tax and tips 330$. As I said, the quality was there, but all of us we're hungry (and angry) upon leaving. I felt ripped off. One of the main course was jarret d'agneau; it came on semoule. The whole plate seemed more like an entrée; the bone was taken off (a big no-no IMHO); it was good, it looked good but the portion was ridiculous... I had the aiguilette de canard sur risotto; superb, but the portion could have been at least a third bigger for the price. I'm not saying it should be Duluth-size portion, but it shouldn't be "jean-paul gauthier's runway models catering service-size" either... Or maybe I didn't understood the whole concept (come to think of it, if it that was the concept, I didn't like it). Disapointing experience... So many more interesting options in this area (plateau)...A bientôt, Salomon