Le Pégase, 1831 Gilford, Montreal

One of the things I love most about Montreal, is the abundance of byob bistros. While the majority of these restaurants aren’t breaking new culinary ground, they are providing good quality French food at very affordable prices. There is nothing I like better than settling down for an evening in one of Montreal’s small French bistros, sipping a glass of wine that I lovingly chose for myself.

One of such restaurants is the Plateau’s Le Pégase. Located on the main floor of a residential duplex, Le Pégase spreads itself over two small rooms. While some may view this lack of space as cramped, I prefer to think of it as cozy; likewise, while some may find the noise irritating, I find it ambient… most of the time. It should be noted that the restaurant can get very loud – often, the combination of a small space, many diners and unfettered wine access can make for a very raucous evening. This is all fine and dandy when you are that group, but a mite annoying if you are not.

My most recent visit took place on a blustery October evening. As we unpacked our bottles of wine, we were met with baskets of warm baguette, accompanied by a mushroom mousse. Like many bistros, Le Pégase features a ‘table d’hôte,’ which includes a soup or salad, main course and coffee or tea. The ‘menu gourmet’ features a soup or salad, choice of entrée, main course, dessert and coffee or tea. On this particular visit, I chose the ‘menu gourmet’ and started with a very passable house salad, followed by the escargots with caramelized apples and blue cheese. Being only a recent admirer of the snail, I am rather picky when it comes to preparation. These were flavourful, but were a little gritty. The apples were a nice touch and played off the salty blue cheese, but the presentation could have been a bit more inspired. As for the main courses, I chose the ‘cerf de boileau’ and was presented with an enormous piece of deer with elderberry sauce, which had a strong tea flavour – most delicioius. The meat was perfectly prepared and had a very toothsome flavour. The deer came with the requisite serving of scalloped potatoes, something like a squash mousse and a piece of roasted turnip – all of which were good. The other main courses tasted equally as delicious: the ostrich was tender and full of flavour, as was the lamb and duck breast. The only mild complaint was that the salmon was a little salty. This was rectified by the fact that my dining companion’s sister despises raw tomatoes and removed the accompanying “sauce vierge” which may have contained much of the saltiness. As per usual, the desserts hit a high note. I opted for the profiteroles, which were the perfect accompaniment to my espresso.

All in all, our meals met with positive reviews. As we gathered our coats and packed up our extra bottles of wine, I noticed that we were the last table left in the restaurant and I can safely say that it was the hour, not our rowdiness, that had cleared the restaurant… at least this time.

Table d'hote (soup/salad, main, tea/coffee):$22-30

7.5/10

Le P’tit Plateau, 330, Marie-Anne, East, Montreal

Not to sound cliché, but one thing, among many, that I love about Montreal is the abundance of BYOW/B restaurants. While I often take this aspect of Montreal dining for granted, a recent trip to New York reminded me of why this city rocks. While dining at a relatively expensive restaurant which encouraged you to “bring your own wine,” I was shocked by the corkage fee which was at least twice the cost of our bottle. All of that to uncork and pour a couple of glasses of wine? Needless to say we put the bottle back in our bag to enjoy at a later, more Canadian, date. Which brings me to the point of this post – while there are many BYOB restos in Montreal, I recently revisited an old favorite: Le P’tit Plateau.

Le P’tit Plateau is a small-ish restaurant tucked away on a residential corner. Before I continue, let me warn you that this restaurant can get very noisy, so if you are looking for a romantic evening, best to visit on a week-night. The last two times I dined there (both within the same week), I went with a group of six (we may have been the cause of some of the din) and then again with my dining companion and a cousin with whom I had not spoken in some time (again, we may have contributed to much of the noise). Let it also be known that this restaurant gets very, very warm in the summertime. All of this being said, you should not be deterred from trying this restaurant – everything about this restaurant exudes Montreal (hence why I took my out-of-town cousin).

The restaurant itself is light and airy with a hammered tin ceiling. The kitchen is relatively open and the menu is written on chalkboards above the opening to the kitchen. Diners may choose from the “a la carte” menu, or from a number of prix fixe dishes which include soup or salad, main course and tea or coffee. On both of my recent visits, I began my meal with the salad (given the early summer heat this seemed like a good choice). A fair size, filled with cherry tomatoes and tossed in a light vinaigrette, the salad was the perfect way to start the meal. My main consisted of the filet de cerf (red deer) which was topped with a mixture of mushrooms and a light reduction. The meat was perfectly cooked, flavourful and tender. The venison was accompanied by the ubiquitous, but no less tasty, scalloped potatoes and a phyllo cup filled with carrots and cream (surprisingly good). The dish was so good that I ordered it again the second time I visited. On both occasions, other dining companions sampled the lobster wonton ravioli (rave reviews), the magret de canard stuffed with foie gras (not for the faint of heart, but melting in its richness) and the souris d’agneau, which also garnered a positive report.
With our coffee and tea, we tried a number of the desserts, which included the profiteroles and the praline mousse/cake. While both were delicious, the winner had to be the profiteroles.

A note about the service: it is personable and efficient, but I was a little put out by the stern-faced proprietesse who kept hovering near our table. I wasn’t sure if she was perturbed by the noise we were generating or merely just keeping a watchful eye on her culinary domain. Either way, it didn’t hamper what was, both times, a terribly enjoyable dining experience. While this might not be the BEST meal you will ever eat, it will no doubt leave you full, content and just wakeful enough to stumble to the nearest watering hole for a nightcap.

8/10

Menu prix fixe: $27-37

Bistro Cocagne, 3842 St-Denis, Montreal, 2008

Many moons ago, back when the mighty American dollar was trumping (no pun intended) our own, a good friend of mine was in town on business and wanted to treat us students to one of the premiere restaurants in town. Given that she was coming from silicon valley and had a fairly healthy meal stipend to dispose of, I wasn’t feeling bad about choosing a restaurant beyond our usual price bracket. This restaurant was, of course, Toque. The meal was outstanding, but sadly, too long ago to review here. Now, many years later, Toque’s old space on St. Denis street houses Bistro Cocagne, a restaurant helmed by Normand Laprise’s once-sous-chef – Alexandre Loiseau. Looking to celebrate my dining companion’s birthday, it was to Cocagne we ventured on a recent Sunday night.

Feeling sheepish about arriving a little late for our 7:30pm reservation, I needn’t have worried as the restaurant was only one third full, at best. Our jackets promptly whisked away, we were invited to choose any table we liked. While the restaurant is resplendent in warm wood, soft yellows and deep burgundies, it was the food that impressed most.

The menu at Cocagne is rooted in cusine du terroir, although not quite the same as that popularized by Au pied de cochon (think less pork). We both opted for the chef’s tasting menu, being attracted by the foie gras (gasp) and the venison. We began our meal with a kir and my dining companion ordered a couple of oysters on the half-shell. The first course of the evening consisted of a cappuccino mug filled with a frothy cream of fennel soup, drizzled with a home-made arugula oil. It was absolutely delicious -- not too heavy and just faintly flavoured with the fennel. It was also a treat to drink the soup out of the mug (as our wonderfully apt waitress suggested). The second course featured a piece of very mild smoked salmon (this suited me best, as I am not a fan of fishy fish). The piece of fish was served atop a layer of fresh cheese and the whole thing was topped with tiny salted croutons. The entire dish was terribly light and a good follow-up to the soup (although my dining companion would have preferred more salt). The third course was definitely the stand-out. Described as a macaronade, the dish consisted of home-made flat noodles, tossed with a medley of wild mushrooms and topped with a piece of perfectly seared fois-gras. The entire dish was brought together by a heavenly foie gras sauce. At this point, the meal could have ended right there and I would have been happily satiated. As a side-note, our waitress said that the macaronade had ended up on the menu quite by accident. One night, several years ago, the kitchen had run out of the daily special and had quickly thrown together this macaronade as a replacement. The dish met such rave reviews that it became one of the menu’s mainstays. Following the macaronade, we had a perfectly-cooked piece of venison, which was flavourful and toothsome. It was accompanied with more wild mushrooms and roasted potatoes. Following the meat courses, we had a cheese plate with four types of cheeses, including Riopelle and an aged gouda. The dessert consisted of a “pudding chomeur” for two (served in the saucepan!), topped with a scoop of cardamom-laced ice cream and a caramel sauce. The dessert was absolutely delicious, but a little heavy for a tasting menu…

All in all, the evening was a tremendous success. While the chef made the rounds to the “fancy” tables (there seemed to be many regulars and/or vedettes in the room), he didn’t give us the chance to compliment him on the wonderful meal. That aside, our waitress was very attentive, terribly knowledgeable (she had put the wine list together herself and had recommended a lovely wine, of which, I am embarrassed to say, I don’t remember the name).While not as pricey as Toque, it remained an expensive evening, but they do have a $25-30 and $35-40 menu. To conclude, I can’t recommend this place enough. I would hate to see another excellent restaurant close because of poor attendance. Just make sure you bring along a somewhat wealthy benefactor, or somebody with an expense account.

9/10

Mains: $25-40

Cowboys, horses and fine restaurants, oh my.

1. Brava Bistro, 723 17th Ave. S.W.


I don’t know if I’ve changed or if the city has changed. Back in the day, a visit home to Calgary did not imply fine dining -- a dinner out meant either Earl’s, or the pizza place down the street (the now defunct “Willow Park Pizza” made the best pizza I have ever had). These days it would seem that Calgary has a multitude of fine dining establishments and where once it shunned its culinary prairie roots, you can now find any number of excellent restaurants specializing in local game (and prairie oysters). This could have a lot to do with the large influx of 20-30 somethings now taking advantage of the job boom (the local chicken-on-the-go joint was offering $16/hour to sling chicken thighs). Regardless of the reason, I welcomed this burgeoning dining trend and spent some of my recent holiday sampling these new offerings.

Located on 17th Avenue in an unassuming spot between a Starbucks and a Subway (?), Brava Bistro has quickly made a name for itself as one of the trendier restaurants in the city. For over a year now, my brother has been heckling me to try this classy restaurant located but a stone’s throw from our high school. From their outdoor patio (not that we were trying it out in frigid December), you can see the front lawn of the school where I played hacky-sack in my army boots so many years ago. Nostalgia aside, the restaurant interior is chic in taupe, with a mixture of high bar-style tables and low tables with both banquettes and chairs. As is the recent trend, the restaurant also features a long bar at which many lone businessmen and groups of ladies sat for both dinner and drinks. My brother and I were quickly seated at what I considered to be the best table in the house, and what my brother saw as the worst table. This demonstrates my wish for privacy when it comes to dining out and my brother’s wish to see and be seen.

We began the meal with a cheese plate (my dining companion would scoff at our audacity to start the meal with cheese -- how very gauche and Western Canadian!), which was paired with a wonderful Oregonian wine. After a recent road trip down the West coast, I opt for Oregonian wines whenever possible. The cheese selections were unique and varied. While my brother preferred the soft, mild cheeses, I preferred the strong, old cheeses (my brother turned his nose up at some Oka cheese I offered up for Christmas dinner). As for our main courses -- when in Alberta, order beef! We both had the beef tenderloin which was cooked perfectly to the requested medium rare. It is such a treat ordering beef in Alberta – mad cow be damned! The beef was accompanied by some of the best mashed potatoes I have ever sampled (this might have to do with the addition of truffles) and steamed spinach. We rounded off the evening with espresso (excellent) and a piece of lemon tart.

All in all a most enjoyable evening out. The food was delicious, the prices were fair and the service was excellent (our Jared Leto lookalike waiter was attentive and knowledgeable).

Mains: $15-35

8.5/10

Next post - review of Alloy: Blue-collar meets white-collar meets California.