Le Gourmet (Granby) - anyone know this place?

Hi Idenon,

Last time I have been to DiCarlo was a long time ago. I grew in Granby when I was younger, but have been living in Montreal for 6 years now.

I know that my parents go there once in a while. I'd say it's probably the best Italian in the area. But I'd be surprised if it was up to par with the average - best Italian restaurants in Montreal like Graziella, San Lorenzo, or the likes.

You'll just have to try it and report back to us.

Here are my quick recs in the area:

For Sushi - Restaurant Sakura (rue Gill)

The service can be rude to sometime plain awful, and the atmosphere is nothing to rave about. But on a good night, the quality of the food can be amazing, I've been many times, and can attest that this restaurant has the stuff to beat some of the big names of the city (Shodan, Tri express, maybe not Juni and Mikado laurier however). The other downside to the place is that the quality of the food varies considerably depending on the chefs humor. On the flipside, it's a BYOW.

For French - Faucheux or Plumet

Both are probably not the most amazing french restaurants in Qc, but are certainly decent establishments. Well renowned in the area, and respected by local foodies Faucheux would be my first choice for french fare. Their rognons and ris de veau are well prepared.

Last time I went to Plumet was a long time ago, but the chef changed a few years ago (from father to son) and I heard reports that the quality had changed considerably. I can't confirm this however.

The hidden gem - Au nid de poule

I was hesitant to post it as the place might not be the average montrealer's type of restaurant. But their rabbit liver salad is to die for. Worth trying in my opinion if not for the drastic change provided by the ride to the place and landscape as opposed to the city.

That's about it for Granby...

J.

Jhn in Quebec (including Montreal)

Le Gourmet (Granby) - anyone know this place?

I've been to gourmet many times. Although It is nowhere near the best restaurant i've been to, I do find your review a bit harsh. I'll agree with you that the sides are somewhat deceiving, however, what you fail to realize, is that for 40$, this bring your own wine probably beats any other such offerings in montreal. Take à l'Os for example; the gourmet is half the price for a soup, an entrée, a main, dessert and coffee. The food is probably nowhere near, but it's still a pretty decent try.

As an entrée, the mousse de foie gras is, at least in my opinion, pretty decent. So is the assiette de cochonailles (albeit nowhere near the bouchonailles from 3 petits bouchons).

As for mains, I'd stick with the surf and turf, but the lamb is indeed well prepared.

I'll say it again, the upside of this restaurant is the fact that it is byow.
If you go there and drink a 20$ bottle, you'd indeed be better of to go aux 3 petits bouchons, europea, or even the Brontë. But if you have an old Brunello, Moulin Touchais, or grand vin de bordeaux, that you don't feel like cooking, and that you're in good company, the gourmet, at 40$ does the job...

One last thing, I haven't been there for a few months, so there might have been a recent change in quality / preparation, but I'd be surprised if it did.

If you stay the night in Granby, you might also want to try Faucheux, which is a bit more refined and traditional french than le gourmet.

I'm looking forward to reading your opinions on the place. I generally enjoy your reviews.

J.

Jhn in Quebec (including Montreal)

La Colombe coffee

Unless you really want or need this brand, do yourself a favor and go pick some intelly at in gamba or some 49th parallel at Myriade.

You won't regret it. In my opinion, La Colombe is an overrated coffee which for some obscure reason is most of Montreal's restaurant choice of beans. I never had a decent crema (which is not necessarily due to the coffee itself) in any espresso served with this coffee. Also, if you absolutely want it, you can go at Vinum on City councillors corner St-Catherine. If I am not mistaken, the owner is the distributor for La Colombe in Qc...

Jhn in Quebec (including Montreal)

Cafe Myriade

I went to myriade yesterday for the first time.
Let me tell you, I had amazing coffee...

The espresso Anthony poured me really impressed me. I was never a fan of 49th parallel epic's espresso blend, but I must say that yesterday really made me reconsider my opinion on this blend.

For those of you who went and took espressos, I don't know what was you opinion about it, but I must say that the one I had was great. I remember reading a post on home-barista by Dan Kenh's explaining how they rate an espresso based on visual presentation and he showed pictures of different crema colours / intensity with the associated score it would receive. Looking at the pictures of espresso yielding 8-9 scores, I thought to myself wow, I never had a crema that dark and intense before.

Now I drink a lot of espresso, consider myself a good barista, and had what I considered the occasional godshot. But yesterday's shot really made me question my definition of it. Anthony said that he pours the shot a bit colder than Jf at InGamba. Depending on the blend I also tend to pull my shots on the lower temperature band of my rancilio since I find it usually positively affects taste and texture. I also consider InGamba's espresso to be poured a little bit on the high temperature side.

To make this story short, the espresso I sampled yesterday was the first espresso I drank that I would rate an 8.5. The crema was red dark, and uniform as opposed to the nutbrown with tiger stripping spots I get from my setup. In short, It was amazing...

Oh, and did I mention that they sell the coffee beans at a really cheap price 13 to 19$ for a pound of 49th parallel. All in all, I definitely recommend this coffee joint. And i'd like to thank Anthony for the experience. I hope they do well in the future.

J.

Jhn in Quebec (including Montreal)

Cafe Myriade

Trust me it is...
But when I compare it to wine collecting, restaurant hopping, and my other habits, I'd say it's relatively cheap.

I once had a person tell me that what's great about certain commodities (such as coffee) is that the base product is cheap. Therefore, one can sample, or even consume great quality of this product without breaking the bank.

A pound of intelligentsia coffee will set you back about 20$ in Montreal, less if you order it online. In terms of quality, those coffees are the equivalent of a grand cru classé in Bordeaux wines, or some of the best DOCG italian ones...

In my opinion, totally worth it...

J.

Jhn in Quebec (including Montreal)

Best Coffee in Montreal?

Speaking of coffee, I went by InGamba yesterday to get my periodic bean resupply and noticed that they carried new coffees.

A new intelligentsia blend: El diablo Dark roast (which I bought)
And also roasted beans from cafe vivace.

For those of you who don't know what cafe vivace is (and who are coffee lovers), it is worh it to go read on it and on it's founder on the internet. Supposedly this blend contains a certain amount of robusta beans from "top quality" lots / geography like india. I didn't buy those since I they had been roasted for a week already, but when I'll go back, I'll try to get some fresher ones and report on them.

As for the Intelligentsia El diablo, it is definitly worth trying for any espresso lover. It's a nice change from the usual third wave espresso blend...

J.

Jhn in Quebec (including Montreal)

Pullman / Bu / Bouchonné / 3 petits bouchons event...

Has anyone else received this in their mailboxes?

http://www.pullman-mtl.com/bars-a-vignes-FLYER.jpg

If so, do any wine lovers have something to say about which winemaker presentation might be the most interesting to attend?

I do feel as if the tuesday event might be the most interesting as their is a lot of different choices. I know that I don't care much for dupere barrera so that eliminates at least one choice, but as for the rest, I'm confused as to where I should go.

I'll try calling les trois petits bouchons to ask about the 2 winemakers that will be present on the 11th.

I'll post when I get more infos.

J.

Jhn in Quebec (including Montreal)

Finding good espresso in Montreal

Great, thx for the answer Carswell.
I'll definitely go see that beauty...

@Daimon,
Did they use different types of 49th parallel coffees, or do they only serve the Epic espresso one?

J.

Jhn in Quebec (including Montreal)

Finding good espresso in Montreal

Wait, If I'm reading this correctly, you're telling that Anthony has a Kees Van der Westen espresso machine in his new coffee shop?

If it is so, I'm heading there as soon as I get a chance. Even though these machines are glorified la marzocco, they still are the equivalent of a van gogh for the espresso lover...

Could you confirm if we are talking about the same gear carswell?

J.

Jhn in Quebec (including Montreal)

Best beef tartare in montreal?

Hi Richelle,
glad you enjoyed it...
Les trois petits bouchons is definitly one of my favorite restaurant on the island. As Souschef, I also tend to consider a small menu to be a +.

But in my opinion, it is the service and atmosphere that really sets this restaurant apart. Their wine list is also one in which you see a strong coherent direction.

Being a wine lover, I would say that although this place markets itself more as a restaurant than a wine bar, it is (in my opinion) one of the best spot in Montreal to get exposed to wine made in a responsible manner.

So now, can we start a "Best crême brûlée in Montreal" thread?

J.

Jhn in Quebec (including Montreal)

Best beef tartare in montreal?

Hi Richelle,
The tartar is not always on the menu, but it's definitly worth it if it is there.
If it isn't, the surf and turf with magret de canard, and their bison ribs are amazing.

You also need to try the squid in appetizer. That is, if you enjoy seafood. I promise you, it is divine.

Have a good meal!

J.

Jhn in Quebec (including Montreal)

Bronte: A MAJOR Disappointment

I'm sad to hear it.
My sister used to work there. I've never eaten there myself but I went to the bar many times to taste their new wines.

I did however eat at the cube when Joe Mercury (the chef at bronte) used to be a sous chef there. It was a pleasant meal but could have been described a bit as how you just did for your Bronte visit. Good ingredients, a lot of work put into the plates, but somehow the end results isn't stellar.

I am surprised about the seared foie gras. I know they pride themselves in the quality of their foie gras. Then again, maybe you just happened to be there on an off night. The last critic I read (the one in La presse this summer) was ditirambique.

J.

Jhn in Quebec (including Montreal)

Best beef tartare in montreal?

In my opinion they go as this:

#1. Les trois petits bouchons:
The egg and the weird mushrooms that comes with give it a nice unique touch.

#2 The bison tartare @ Au pied de cochon

#3 Tapeo:
They add small matchstick fries in it which gives it a nice texture

Then you have the usual suspects once again: L'express, Lemeac, etc...
But they are nowhere near the 3 mentionned before (at least in my opinion).

J.

Jhn in Quebec (including Montreal)

Boston Cocktail Nerd ISO Montreal Recs

I totally agree with you about the "cocktail" worthy point maximilien.
However, I do feel that these places are

"really interesting bars to check out"
as bza asked.

I do agree that l'assommoir is also a decent place for cocktails. What about the Gogo lounge? do you guys think it is cocktail worthy?
I know that the best drinks that i've had were at the cube which was more of a restaurant than a bar. But then again, I usually stick to wine, beer or scotch so you're welcomed to critic my opinion on cocktails...

Jhn in Quebec (including Montreal)

Boston Cocktail Nerd ISO Montreal Recs

I'll tell you where to go if you invite me at milk and honey...
Ahahaha, this place seems a bit overrated anyway.

The usual suspects come to mind.

Le pullman - http://www.pullman-mtl.com/
Probably the wine bar in montreal which has the best atmosphere, wine choice is impressive, and the food is ok.

La buvette chez Simone - http://www.hour.ca/food/food.aspx?iIDArticle=15278
Again, a relatively new and decent place. Food is ok, so is wine.

Le baldwin barmacie http://english.montrealplus.ca/bars_restaurants/baldwin_barmacie/1048831
A bar on laurier with a great atmosphere. The drinks are decent, and the crowd is good looking. Be aware that most of the people there speak french.

The burgundy lion - http://www.burgundylion.com/
A new pub that opened in little burgundy. It's right in front of Joe beef and liverpool house so if you plan on trying these restaurants, you could have a few drinks there afterward.

Then there's the supperclub scene (Buena notte, koko, sofia etc.) but I'm not a big fan of it. I'd also try to stay away from the crescent street bars, since they're everything but montrealesque in my opinion. And as a scotch lover myself, I second the whiskey cafe choice.

Have nice trip!!!

J.

Jhn in Quebec (including Montreal)

Espresso Beans

Thanks for the info anth.
That's what Jf a CiG said also, but he did manage to get a small batch for the regional's of WBC.

I'll definitly try writing them. The reviews of their roasts where stellar on both coffeegeek and homebarista.

Jhn in Quebec (including Montreal)