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Hmmm, Charland's an interesting possibility. Though I was thinking much further east, we did head home alongside the Miron quarry, so that may be worth a look.

This may seem like an odd query, but egullet is clearly the best place to seek help. A few years ago, I was cycling through the east end and came upon a street full of Italian food places that I'd never seen before. I was quite surprised, as I know the various neighbourhoods quite well. No, it wasn't any of the usual suspects like Jarry or Jean-Talon est. It was an E/W street, and a smallish one compared to those two. The one place that stood out was a large 24h Italian traiteur type of place. 24h...wow! There were butchers, bakers, grocery stores. It was whole little Italian commercial strip I'd never seen. This weekend I was out on Amos and Charleroi, between Pie IX and Lacordaire, and for a moment I was sure I'd found the place, but I was wrong. I knew I was zeroing in on the right area, because there were some familiar streets and parks, but there had been a few old signs and things that I knew I'd remember if I saw them. I didn't. So, in the same vein as Charleroi, are there any other strips anyone can think of in that sector that might be the one I'm looking for? I've ruled out Monselet and Fleury. Thanks.

Hmmmm, didn't know that one. I'm going to go tonight and report back. Bob

Went to Pho Tay Ho on Friday night, and would have to agree that the raw beef is a winner, big time. A perfect blend of lime, onion, chili, and peanut. And you weren't kidding when you said it was huge! Bob

March Orientale is indeed a good one, and we go there whenever we're at the Jean Talon market. Another of its ilk is Marche Ying, up on Wilderton. I'm hungry Bob

Yakata on Cote-des-Neiges has never let me down. Bob

I'd have to agree, but conditionally. Yes, I've been buying my galangal and lemongrass, etc in Chinatown for years, and yes, they are OK. But they are honestly a million miles away from the quality and freshness you find in Asia. OK, not a million miles, but... When you grab a bunch of lemongrass stalks over there, the scent rises up to meet you, whereas here I have to start cutting it and practically stick it in my nose to get the same hit. Galangal is the same. When you pass a table of it in a market in Saigon or Bangkok, it practically leaps off the table at you, and even with your eyes closed, you know you're in front of the galangal. I have to use 3-4 times the quantity here to attempt to coax the flavour out of it. Transport is not kind to many of these ingredients. It's quite true that many of the Vietnamese in Montreal are from the South, but the bulk of the Vietnamese food you find here is from the North, pho and bun bo being the two main staples of the Hanoi dinner table, and the "typical" Montreal Vietnamese restaurant. Soupe Tonkinoise, as they call it here, referring to the Gulf of Tonkin. But, yes, there is much more than pho and bun bo in Montreal, but not too much more, and that's my problem. Cau lau is an amazing noodle dish from central Vietnam, made with thick rice noodles and pork cracklings. It's to die for. The almost-raw beef and watercress salads are incredible, and the flavours and scents almost knock you over. And I should qualify my comments about Thai food. Most of the local curries are pretty good, but that's because they're using pastes made in Thailand, though in Thailand, the curries don't use as much thick coconut milk as here. Most of the non-coconut curry dishes here are pretty woeful imitations. Not to say they don't taste good. They do, but I'm always looking for the real thing. I've asked many of the chefs here why they don't make it like at home, and the answer is not a surprise. "Nobody would eat here" On a related note, for those who care, the biggest surprise I've had in years was that the best Thai food I've ever had outside of Thailand was at a restaurant in...wait for it...Maine. It's on Rte 1 just outside Biddeford. No kidding. It's run by a gang from Chiang Mai, and they do not compromise one bit. It was absolutely fantastic. Bob

You know, to be honest, several of the pho restaurants around town do soup exactly as you'll find it in Hanoi, and the vermicelli noodles with pork/beef/etc, are almost identical to Bun Bo in Vietnam. The cuisine of the North is not nearly as varied as the South, and the main staples are pho and variations thereof. Again, Pho Bang New York on Cote des Neiges does about the best I've ever had in town. It's all about the broth, and they have it nailed. We were sitting in kindergarten chairs at a little plastic table on the sidewalk outside what is reputed to be the best pho place in Hanoi, and agreed that it was only marginally better than in Montreal. In the South, the food is similar to Lao and Thai cuisine, with much more complex layering of flavours. Saigon rivals Bangkok as the food capital of the world (my opinion...). That's the stuff that's hard to find here. Loads of fresh chili, lemongrass, tamarind, fish sauce. If it exists, I will find it. Bob

I'll have to give that one a try this week. There's a place nearby on...hmm, St. Denis, I think (it's been a while) that sort of models itself after a very good fish restaurant in Hanoi, and is quite good in it's own right. The Gazoo did a thing on them last year.

After returning from 2 months of gastronomic bliss in Vietnam, I'm dead-set on finding as close to the real thing as possible in Montreal. Now, I've been through similar quests before, most notably with Thai food, and came to the sad conclusion years ago that there isn't a single Thai resto in Montreal that comes close to matching the real deal. (Yes, lack of truly fresh ingredients is partly to blame for this) I'm hoping I'll fare better in the Vietnamese quest. Camelia is very good, and many of the pho places, Pho Bang New York, in particular, can produce pho that is easily up to Hanoi standards. Dishes like bahn bao and cao lao are a lot harder to find. The Vietnamese version of Thai tom yum, made with tamarind and pineapple is a very rare beast indeed. There used to be a resto on St. Laurent called Tong Nam back in the 80s, the location of which was later absorbed by Hong Kong restaurant. They did that soup right on par with the best restaurants in Saigon. Give me your best shot.... Bob

5716 Sherbrooke West, NDG Bonne Bouffe. That's the only adress you need to know.

That Grenet/Poirier corner is a great little Cambodian strip. The best resaurant on the block burned down some time ago, but passing by on Saturday, I noticed they are just about set to open a brand new place on the next block. Very exciting.

Atami. That's funny. We were so pleased when Yakata open the the CDN site a few years ago. Atami used to be a good local haunt, until we both got really sick after eating there. Never went back. I know it can happen anywhere, but it's hard to drag yourself back to the same place after that. I've found that Yakata's CDN quality has actually improved since they first opened, and now that the St. Laurent staff is there, it can only get better still. I think they started out on CDN with their "second string" crew. Bob

Unfortunately, the venerable and always excellent Yakata closed its doors yesterday on St. Laurent for the last time. On a positive note, the Cote des Neiges branch will stay open, since they own the place. Apparently, the rent on St. Laurent was becoming ridiculous.

There is a wonderful store in Chinatown on St. Laurent, just a couple of doors up from La Gauchetiere on the West side. It's the biggest store around, though it seems small because of the crowds. The funny thing is that although it's been my haunt for many years, I can never think of the name. I just walk in and shop. Odd that. Anyway, they have the freshest assortment of veg anywhere, as well as fantastic cuts of meat, rivalling any of the upmarket boucheries in town for quality. They are directly across the street from the once glorious Kim Phat. Bob