40 Ouest

[calgarymarmitons]

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

[jersey13]

That could be. I came across that place in a database and the email is @sunshineboys.com. I guess they are the folks behind Queue de Cheval? If they are as pricey as I hear the Queue is, I wonder how long they'll last in that location...

[Chazzy]

It's supposedly somewhat cheaper than Queue de Cheval and the meat is aged for slightly less time I believe, but I hear the menu and concept are otherwise relatively similar to Queue, just a slight step below.

[jersey13]

That's a relief. I love a good steak. However, if the step is only as you say, slightly below, West Islanders may still be in for the shock of a lifetime! A couple I know recently blew upwards of a mortgage payment on dinner at the Queue.

But no matter....Westies will feel like they are having the "Queue experience" without having to hit the highway.

[food_dwarf]

40 ouest is the west island answer to Queue de Cheval in fact it is owned by the same people.

Edited May 30, 2003 by food_dwarf (log)

[identifiler]

When I had an office in the IBM tower, I used to park beside a bunch of humvies. The parking valet told me it was the owner of Moe's deli and bar and that he was also behind queue de cheval, is that correct ?

[eat2much]

They used to park the Humvee right in front of Moe's....

Same people indeed.

[thezim]

check out their website at www.40westt.com.

It's very impressive and contains the full menu.

[jersey13]

40 ouest is the west island answer to Queue de Cheval in fact it is owned by the same people.

Hey food_dwarf,

I recall you were looking for good resto employment on the West Island. Where did you eventually land?

[Lesley C]

I was at 40 Ouest last night and had a good/bad dinner. The steak was quite tasteless. Very strange. Everything there is oversized. For dessert they give you a cheesecake that could easily serve three.

Otherwise the decor is rather magnificent, and service is a bit on the overly-friendly side but that's OK for the West Island.

The raw bar (also stunning) was packed and the restaurant was about 90% full. It seats 450. Montreal steak houses should be nervous.

[jersey13]

How are the prices?

[Lesley C]

Higher than expected.

20 oz rib steak $32

14 oz Delmonico $28

rack of lamb $38

Shrimp cocktail $17

Caesar salad (not great) $9

side dish of 5 grilled asparagus $9 (tasted like propane)

Black sea bass (2 lbs) $53 (!)

cheesecake $12

hot chocolate tourte $15

Get the idea...

[jersey13]

Yikes! Will you be doing a review soon?

[maxanon]

Has anyone tried the place recently?

[gruyere]

I was there for dinner on two earlier occasions and had lunch last week.

Our party of four had two steaks, rack of lamb and sea bass for mains. I had the del Monico steak. It is not on the lunch menu but as it is the smallest steak available here I asked if they could accommodate the request. Our waiter left to check and came back to inform me that it would not be a problem. The other steak was a 20oz rib that I think they call the Cowboy or the Texan or some such western style name.

The lamb was pronounced very good, the sea bass was described as over cooked and the two steaks were very good. My del Monico was tasty, slightly charred on the outside and done rare as requested. Stick to red meat is, I believe, good advice in this restaurant.

The wait staff was very good and the surroundings are quite impressive.

All of us red meat lovers can probably hearken back to a steak that blew our socks off. Consequently when an expensive steak house doesn't meet our highest expectations we are sometimes disappointed. 40 Westt is a steak house and in that regard it does a good job.

Steak houses in my mind conjure up masculine imagines, woody decor, large, expensive portions, expense accounts, etc. Queue de Cheval, Moishe’s, Rib n Reef and 40 Westt (I know there are many who do not place these four establishments in the same league and I can buy that) can hold their own with many good steak houses. They are expensive but that is the business and they are certainly not more expensive than Morton’s in Toronto where I believe they set a high standard for being overpriced.

If you are a Montrealer looking for a steakhouse it’s not a bad choice. If you are from out of town save your money for a more Montreal experience. Montreal is a strong restaurant city by pretty much any standard, certainly by any North American standard. but in my humble opinion we are not a real ‘steak house town.’

[wattacetti]

Yikes!  Will you be doing a review soon?

I believe Lesley's review came out some time ago and the column's no longer available on the Gazette's website.

Has anyone gone in the last 3-4 weeks? Upcoming social function and they've voted for this place, so I'd like to see if there's been an improvement or change.

[BlueState_4]

I went to 40 West during the week, last week. I thought it was spectacular. Very good setting, definitly lively and they had a good choice of food. I've read some of the other comments people have made. Maybe i just got a different chef making my meal.

Edited August 20, 2003 by BlueState_4 (log)

[Lesley C]

Did you have a steak? I was underwhelmed by the steak, but much of the rest was rather spectacular -- for a steakhouse, that is.

[onionbreath]

Big plate syndrome , bloodless tasteless steaks, service that is annoyingly over-bearing and rehearsed, no seasonal/local ingredients in site(mid-summer).....and a huge parking lot full of competing SUV'S.

[Lesley C]

Yeah well, as much as I hate it, you have to commend restaurateurs who are putting on such a big show. A city can't live on 60-seat chef-driven Plateau restos alone.

[onionbreath]

Leslie, you make these restauranteurs out to be local heroes. The future of Montreal dining depends on supporting restaurants that can serve up unexpected dishes that rely on good quality meats, that dont use farm raised or endangered fishes, and that use local vegetables when in season. People will pay for guaranteed quality and consistency in a meal. Take Delfino for example.

[Lesley C]

Trust me, I have NO reason to defend places like 40 Westt. But I can only admire restaurateurs who are willing to bet a pile of money on a flashy restaurant off the highway. I'm all for a bit of drama with my dinner. I'm not in favour of supporting one kind of restaurant over another. If the place is packed, they must be doing something right.

But yes, my heart too belongs to the chef-owned restaurants, especially places like Delfino, Brunoise and Les Chevres. But the customers who go to Delfino are probably not the customers that flock to 40 Westt. I'd say the 40 Westt customers probably used to go to Gibbys or the Bifteque.

[Walnuts]

Hi Onionbreath,

Although I am not crazy about the dry-aged beef, I think that 40 Westt and Queue de Cheval are pefect examples of what a high end authentic steakhouse should be. The owners have done almost everything perfectly.

In my opinion, a steakhouse should not be about unexpected dishes and market fresh local vegetables. A steakhouse for me is consistent, excellent cuts of beef, mashed or baked potato, crab cakes, and Cabernet Sauvignon. Big portions are to be expected, especially in a place like 40 Westt or Q de C, which are all about doing everything big and loud... Obviously many people agree since large steakhouses like 40 Westt, Q de C, Gibbys, Restaurant du Vieux-Port, Moishes and Rib n Reef are always full. We cannot put these places in the same boat as most of the restaurants referred to on this board.

As far as the future of Montral dining being in small restaurants, we must not forget that, although most of us who are in this business are in it because of our enthusiasm for food, service and gastronomy, a restaurant is also a business. And you can only go so far with a 40 seat restaurant, targeting a very limited crowd.

[onionbreath]

hi Walnuts:

Your point about quality and consistency is well taken. Where 40 fails is not in design or concept but in FOOD. They take almost premium ingredients and add no soul or flavour to the foods.

An authentic steakhouse requires history and pedigree. A place like Peter Luger's in Brooklyn features a simple menu but every dish satisifies, their porterhouse steak is profound.

To the owners of 40 Westt, restaurants are financial transactions and playgrounds for the nouveau riche. They take oodles of money and hire management consultants and consider themselves pervayors of fine cuisine.

We ran up a $ 600.00 tab ( for 4) for a nice drink, an average wine, forgettable steak served by what seemed to be high school students on summer vacation.

[Lesley C]

They could certainly use a steak consultant.