calgarymarmitons

Lesley, My apologies to you and Ex for misleading - my information is of course quite DATED! Let's just say mid-90's to be fair. I do defer to your comments on recent management of Pius but "the worst cooking facilities"?? Can you elaborate on your ranking of Montreal's cooking school facilities? I've attended a number over the years and Pius doesn't stick out as that bad. Oh, and Chef Daniels' reputation, from SAIT, does precede him. John

Ex, Know the school quite well from my days with Les Marmitons of Montreal. Chef Thomas Green runs the show and the program is quite extensive. It is a very different focus from that of Cordon Bleu, inasmuch as Pius focuses on getting you entry-level skills and Cordon Bleu is more on the refinement side of things. Chef Green's operation is slick, his equipment and kitchen facilities are one of the best in Montreal and the staff's ersanlity and demeanor makes the place a lot of fun. It is, nevertheless, an extension of the Quebec High School program and not a hi-fi, glitzy, bells-and-whistles progtram. You work, you study, you graduate, and then hit the streets, looking for entry-level kitchen work. Good luck! John

Merlin, Michael's always wanted to go back to his country food roots, so when the opportunity came up for Mission Hill and the Okanagan, he packed up his young family and departed Wrayton's. Their loss, I must say. Means that I now have to pencil in Mission Hill as a stop on my BC Interior grand tour! Somebody's gotta do it!. CM

LL, Now that you mentioned the dining room at Mission Hill, we just lost one of our more talented Calgary-based chefs, Michael Allemeier, to Mission Hill as their exec. I think Mike has the character and "chutzpah" to make the winery rock! He's always been an affecianodo of fresh produce, so he'll be in his glory in the Okanagan! Do check him out. John

Scott, Don't forget to ask for a visit to their wine cellar, or better defined as their wine cave(s). It is quite an experience, particularly when you ask where they also ripen their cheeses. Enjoy. I know my wife and I did. John

On my last trip through the "Ouest Island" from the airport, I noticed that the building at Sources and Brunswick behing the Bar-B now housed 40 Ouest. Anyone dined there yet? Someone told me it's Queue de Cheval Ouest?? The Sunshine boys at work out Ouest?? John

Steve, I agrre with you that yook whe is a tantalizing dish, especially one prepared on Korean home soil. Dining at the Seoul airport food court on a short stop-over earlier this year, the dish had my taste buds fluttering for hours! As for classical French Steak Tartare, my vote goes to the one served at Les Halles in Montreal. A wonderful preparation tableside made this dish all the more appealing, especially when the waiter preparing the dish asked me what type of anchovies I would like. Type of anchovy, I asked?? Yep - Portuguese whole, spicy Spanish, traditional flat or marinated Italian. Now that was a couple of years ago, but that event will stick with me for awhile. Also tried horesemeat tartare in Paris at one of the myriad family bistros in the 5ieme arrondissement - quite tasty, not as stringy as some beef tartares I've had over the years. And you gotta have the heavenly Belgian-style fries served with an accompaniment of mayo. Yum! John

Lesley, My senses are just now starting to return to reality. OK, I may be somewhat prejudiced to Les Chevres' cuisine being from that all-meat land of Alberta but nevertheless my Quebec heritage was effectively re-awakened last night. Patrice, that truffled milk mousse accompanying the chocolate cream was something else. Once again, bonne chance! John

Have any of you ever had a restaurant experience where your expectations of the cuisine and ambience were blown away by the real thing?? Well, that's my story with Les Chevres last night. Reading through this thread this morning, and the discussion about the menu, the kitchen theme, the decor, I can tell you that the sensory explosions my wife and I experienced last night at Les Chevres were amazing. In fact, I'm still in recovery mode and may not be able to get the right words typed out to accurately reflect the event. Claude Beausoleil, Patrice, Stelio, Yves and the rest of the Chevres team have got their act together, even on day 2 of their effort. Yes, things are still coming together - Claude apologizing for the lack of butter nives as they were stuck in transit from Italy and were arriving early next week - but the dining in my opinion was above reproach. And isn't that what it's all about?? While I did not memorize the menu for publication, I can tell you that it does have a definite vegetable orientation. Only non-vegetable on the appetizer list was foie gras and, yes, it was great - with chocolate crumble and shaved mushrooms! My wife's artichoke and calamata olive dish was beautifully presented, and delicious too. The entrees were very much veggie-oriented, and being Albertans, we quietly diverted our attention to the meat dishes - I opted for the signature roasted baby goat and my wife chose the roasted chicken. For a restaurant that focuses its attention on veggies, Stelio did an amazing job on these two meat dishes. My most recent goat experiences did not endear me to the species, but last night's dish sure renewed my interest. Thinly sliced, rare, and beautifully presented - I even forgot what the veggies were that Stelio put on the dish!! I'll never be a food critic!! And the roast chicken - plentiful, moist and tender. A work of art!! One cannot have a complete dining experience at Les Chevres without a visit to the cheese counter. Three goat cheeses, three raw milk cheeses, a Belgian Passeralle (havarti) - a great presentation from a beautifully displayed cheese counter. The wine list was more than adequate and very reasonably priced. The focus here, as explained by Yves Larose, is on organic wines (les vins biologiques as Yves put it) and on smaller French wineries. Our dinner selection was a Cotes du Rhone from Domaine Cros de la Mure while our cheese selection was a Gamay Touraine Domaine Clos Roche Blanche, both excellent for the menu selections . And now for Patrice's creations - dessert and pastries!! While I'll let Patrice describe the dish at his first opportunity, I'll just describe the taste experience - WOW!! The chocolate mousse topped with caramalized banana slices was preceded by a avocado-cream-filled egg shell and followed by a collection of pastry mignardises. My wife and I looked at each other while this was being presented to us and our eyes were filled with glee. Pretty amazing stuff. Oh, I nearly forgot. The Beausoleil cocktail. A daily treat from the bar, again focusing on the vegetable theme but wth a twist. Last night's offering was home-pressed tomato juice, vodka splash, Bloody Ceasar-type with a fresh oyster added for good measure. Nice touch! All in all, a wonderful dining experience. Lived up to, and surpassed, expectations. Keep it up. We'll be back later to see if you can. John P.S: The "Opening Soon" crew was anxiously looking for mini-disasters to happen along the way to the opening and NONE happened. Pretty smooth opening process, so I was told - we'll have to wait for the broadcast to see their take on it.

OK, folks. Made a reservation for tomorrow evening and will be posting thoughts and comments soon thereafter. Looking forward to THIS one!! John

Patrice, Felicitations et bonne chance from Calgary!! Any room left for dinner this coming weekend?? Would love to check your new digs out on Friday night - PPPPLEEEEEEEZE!! John

OK, Now that I've got your attention, a little discussion of the merits, or demerits, of Alberta beef vs. KC, Texas, Nebraska, Argentina, Kobe, or any other such designation. Well, for one thing, Alberta beef has flavor. And a major reason is barley, the prime source of feed in Alberta feedlots, and unique to Western Canada. The benefit of barley as feed is that the grain is a high protein, high energy feed source. Alberta beef is famous for its texture and quality, and barley is a major reason. Let the games begin! JG