sharkbait88's Profile
Places to read
cafe myriade on mackay and maisonneuve, not exactly quiet all the time but the pastries and definitely the coffee are top rate
croissanterie linda on st catherine past st marc i think, definitely very quiet in there, coffee is standard but they make some decent croissants and muffins.
QING HUA DUMPLING
no i dont remember them having it on the menu last time i went (in december). this place is pretty strictly serving only dumplings and the occasional northern style side dishes (if i remember correctly)
you should try maison du nord on st mathieu and lincoln after you try qing hua. i personally like theirs much better over qing huas.
lunch box left at room temperature all day safe?
sorry, didn't know exactly where to put this but just wondering if anyone knew the answer or had experience with it
i brought chicken adobo and brown rice in a tupperware to eat and took it out of the fridge at 11 am. i ended up not eating it and won't be going home until midnight.
will i still be able to put in the fridge at home and eat it tomorrow? or will it absolutely not be safe to eat? i've searched all over google, and technically i shouldn't eat it if its been out in the "danger zone" temperature (above 40 F) for longer than 2 hours, but then i've found people who have said that they eat chicken thats been left out for a while with no problems.
anyone have any experience with this?
thanks
Boston Hound needs some recommendations for Montreal
regarding northern style brunch
i only know of a few northern chinese places in montreal, the best being maison du nord on 2130 st mathieu near guy concordia. its good, but not super amazing, there is a real lack of a selection of northern style restaurants here in the city but if you wanted to go to one, that would be my best bet.
Best lunch specials?
just went to eat at Papas Tapas Martinis today at the corner of prince arthur and st laurent for their $9.99 lunch special. came with dark greens in balsamic vinegar, a roll (with great olive oil too!), egg drop soup, a choice of mains (today it was sauteed tuna in tomatoes or a steak) and dessert, a scoop of vanilla ice cream in an espresso.
ignoring the quantity of what you get, the quality was superb. the soup was a bit underflavoured, but everything else was great. my companion had the steak and i had the tuna so i got a chance to try both. steak was perfectly cooked, slightly charred with a sprinkling of olive oil carmelized vegetables. the espresso was very well made as well.
portions were perfect, not too much and not too little.
the atmosphere was nice and relaxed, no snobbishness, quick and efficient service, didn't feel rushed at all despite that.
a gourmet lunch that easily would go for at least $20 at other restaurants, definitely will go back!
o and did i mention they have a 5-7 happy hour during the week with a free martini for every tapas you order?
Any good Indian buffets downtownish?
i had buffet at taj once and it wasn't good at all. the tandoori chicken was too dry and the other items were not good enough to remember.
places i would go for buffet that are cheaper and better
le rajput on prince arthur and st laurent-10 bucks, selection of 4 different main entrees, not too much variance, but the quality is great.
mumbai palace on lincoln-10% off if you're a student, $10, more selection than le rajput and great home made flavor.
Venue for private music band party in Montreal?
i know burritoville on bishop near concordia has live bands playing all the time. it has a couple of floors and probably can accommodate that amount of people. i've also heard that vibe is really great as well.
24 hour cafes with free wifi downtown?
does anyone know or recommend any 24 hour cafes besides the second cup next to concordia and the one on st catherines in the downtown area? free wifi is a must
Australian Pie/Tourtiere Australienne
went with a friend today, tried a sample of the chile con carne, and had half of the smoked fish and half of the lamb roganjosh. the lamb one was good, but the smoked fish one blew it away. i have no idea how or why, but it was heavenly. the chile con carne one was also very good, a tad bit better than the lamb roganjosh in my opinion. also had some of the lamingtons, a cake wrapped around a strawberry filling coated with sugared coconut flakes. it was good, but not anything to write home about.
sushi anyone
i ordered a 15 piece maki combo, probably the only "real" sushi pieces were one topped with salmon and the other with shrimp, besides that the rest were basically just seaweed, rice and various "fillers" such as a typical california roll with sprinkling of fish eggs. i think that person ordered the chirashi plate though, which probably offered more of an opportunity to actually taste the fish freshness etc.
but i am judging based on my various sushi experiences in asia and southern california so i guess take it with a grain of salt
sushi anyone
does anyone have any recommendations for a decently priced best value sushi place? i'm a starving student who is desperate for some good sushi, don't mind if its not the best like jun i, but i tried sushi 7 a couple of weeks ago by concordia and it definitely was NOT worth it, despite the cheap price.
Best Desserts at Au Pied de Cochon?
i've had the pouding chomeur and the pot de creme. the pot de creme was ok, but the pouding chomeur was AMAZING. one of my favorite desserts!
Downtown Montreal for Lone Business Traveller
suite 88 isn't very good on chocolates themselves, no flavor, just chocolate substance. the hot chocolate on the other hand is very rich and dense and definitely the place's forte. haven't tried anything besides that though.
Restaurant Openings - 2010
yes. checked it out today again. the pizza place seems to be run by non middle easterners, and they have a variety of other cheap italian food, a chicken pasty for 75 cents, some kind of wrap, spinach lasagna i think? and most of them are 2.25
the bakery offers assorted baked goods and prepared meals. one such meal was a veal and vegetable plate for 5 bucks, they had a salmon one for 6 bucks, they have pretty big sandwiches for 4.25, the wraps are a bit smaller portion sized and are the same price. they have some hot foods as well but didn't check them out. he seems to specialized in cheese infused breads, one of which i tried and was very good. fired cheese bread balls, baked pretzel style cheese bread, guava filed bread for 2 bucks, etc. but looks like downtown st catherines finally has a bit better cheap eats corner!
Restaurant Openings - 2010
a couple new places:
there is like a little mini food court just opened today on st catherines and city councillors between kanda and champs sports goods. inside theres a Buns, another 2 dollar pizza slice place, and a bakery! didn't really check out the pizza place, but the bakery sells an assortment of ready made foods, plates of pastas/meats/entrees for around 5 bucks (good sized portions too!) sandiwches and wraps for around the same prices. they have baguettes, guava filled pretzel bread, cheese and onion bread, croissants etc among others.
Best Tartare Frites in Montreal
last time i went to au pied du cochon, my friend had a bison steak tartare of which i had some and he said it was the best he's ever had. i thought it was equally great, but that was the first time i had steak tartare.
Suggestions for 7 College Kids in MTL
bars:
brutopia on cresecent, one of the local bars that makes their own brew and very good as well.
mckibbons on bishop
peel pub on peel for the typical college student cheap alcohol vibe
clubs:
the one i like going to is a side/bside, admission is free and good music.
other ones that are worth checking out is club 747, and tokyo. try to get onto the guest list on any of the clubs, just google montreal clubs and there will be a few pages that allow you to sign up for guest lists, either avoiding line ups or cover charges.
belgian waffles
ha if you're referring to the ones in peel station, unfortunately those are the only ones i know off. besides that i've seen them in suite 88 chocolate shop on maisonneuve, but they were in a big glass jar and really didn't look appetizing at all.
Restaurant Closings - 2010
restaurant caravelle that served cheap homestyle vietnamese food in the basement of 2020 university is closed as of the beginning of this year. no word on relocation or reopening.
Restaurant Openings - 2009
because its cheap and all you can eat of course. thats whats most attractive about it for me at least. not that i'd go there again -_-
where can I find Chinese/Thai/Asian Desserts in Montreal?
wow do i miss those.
the closest i have to come to finding any asian desserts is the korean restaurant on st catherines, i think its called towa? serves pa pin su (similar to the snowcone chinese dessert) or at least had a sign in the window saying they served it. never went though. and for chinese desserts, the closest to it i've seen are the buns they usually serve at dim sum restaurants, red bean, winter melon cake, custard, etc. i would DIE to get the lesser known chinese hot soup desserts, hong do sa type of stuff.
Food Shopping crawl in Montreal--Please tell me if I'm missing anything!
i had no idea that homemade was an actual honest to goodness bakery. i visited kpzoo's link and noticed that its the exact brand that is sold in all of the McGill cafeteria's. had a muffin before, it wasn't too bad i guess.
Montreal
well as far as the best croissant i've ever had, its at kouign amann at mont royal and st laurent. they also have some different, but still good, croissants at linda's croissanterie on st matthieu and st catherines (i think its where it is)
West Island - good coffee anywhere ?
for a cafe in general, my favorite one in the area is cafe Twigs in ste anne de bellevue which is very very close to beaconsfield. unlimited coffee/tea refills, great affordable sandwiches and wraps, and home made desserts. i've heard that the brownies are delicious, but i've never tried them.
san remo pizza?
thanks! didn't know about meilleur choix before, but will definitely stop by.
had the quatro (something) with mushrooms artichokes and ham pizza. and definitely wasn't too bad for the price, although the crust was a bit thin and because of it all the juices soaked through and it became soggy. but besides that, not too bad!
Where can I get a decent samosa downtown?
the pakoras are delicious! the samosas fyi are a dollar each, taxes included.
