FYI - they have been available at Marche Victoria Oriental for the past 3-4 weeks. They come in on Thursday morning and are all gone by mid-afternoon.

Looks like we're getting to the end of the season though. The ones I bought this morning weren't as perfect as the ones I bought three weeks ago.

Good quality-price ratio at Quebec Smoked Meat in the point.

Their smoked meat is excellent, but they also make eastern-European style hams that are less-processed than supermarket types and are very fresh. Their turkey is also less processed then what you get at the supermarket.

Where is the picture from?

They did keep the coffee roaster, but I think primarily as a decoration. I did get an espresso, and it was competent.

On a recent trip we ate at "Orange Bistro" in the center of town. A fairly unpretentious place but still featured lots of local fare. One nice touch is "real" raclette - i.e done with a half-wheel of cheese rather than the little toaster thingy - made with local cheese.

Other places are more elaborate, but the quality/price was bang on here.

I'd say not comparable to a rijstaffel in Holland - but as close as you can get in Montreal. It's really more of a tasting menu. Still good though.

Do you mean simply raw pork belly? I've seen that at lots of butchers. Tranzo usually has it.

They make quality bacon at Bucharest (Decarie & Snowdon) and Chopin (Decarie & Monkland) - in both cases I believe they're smoked in house. Bucharest also sells the "double-smoked).

They are both European-style, which seems to differ in that they use less (or no?) sugar to cure. The taste is different, but you can also see the difference because after frying, you don't end up with all that burned sugar crust stuck to the bottom of the pan - and of course the bacon doesn't get as crispy for the same reason.

I believe even the most "artisanal" Anglo-American style would have sugar added.

Note that Quebec Smoked Meat (Nower) makes superior-quality bacon. I wouldn't call it "artisanal", but certainly much better than what you buy at the supermarket.

+1 for Grace. By comparison Golden Cockerel is just ginger ale.

The only place in the ski village that I would go out of my way for is Le Savoie. And it's not cheap.

The brew-pub will at least deliver a filling plate of decent food at a decent price.

The guys at Tranzo should be able to help you out. As should any place that makes sausages in-house. William doesn't.

Maitre Boucher would be another source.

Could also be because they closed at 7PM, or something like that. I actually wanted to try it, but never could because they close before dinner-time.

Bad strategy.

I suspect that Bannette started ad a Qc outpost of the French chain but has basically been cut loose. They are a bit of a conundrum to me - not stellar, but definitely "artisanal" at the same time. So on the whole worth the trip. It's owned by a couple from Marseille, and they bake everything on premises. So in some sense the most "authentic" french bakery in town, for better or worse.

I know this doesn't sound like much of an endorsement - I actually like it more that I'm sounding. Give them a try at least.

As other posters mention, the roquefort sticks are truly outstanding.

I have 2 copper pans that I bought at the store. (Dehellerin, that is). The more recent one is in fact stamped Mauviel.

Pretty much any place that makes sausage will sell you both casings as well as the appropriate cuts to make them.

Tranzo (Somerled & Cavendish, in NDG) sells lots of their excellent homemade sausage. Maitre Boucher on Monkland, or any of th eplaces at the Atwater market would do as well.

Can't remember. A couple of $. One bag is a lot. You can use the leftover to make foccacia the next morning.

Italian bakeries will sell you fresh dough - e.g. Molisana on Somerled, or NDG Bakery on Upper Lachine. You need to call during the day, or they will have used it all by end of day.

Well that would certainly be the passing of an era. What a shame.

Course the last couple of times I've been there was no sign of Giovanni, and I had the distinct impression that the staff were going through the motions.

Does anybody have any details?

Premier Moisson sells an excellent green tomato ketchup. I've bought good home-made ketchup at Quinn farm, and the Jean-Talon market. Places that specialize in jams and tourtieres usually have some.

I was up north last weekend, and there were several people walking and riding on the Train du Nord bike path carrying wicker or wooden baskets. On closer inspection, the baskets had mushrooms in them.

And later in the day, I was playing hide 'n seek in the woods with my kids. At one point, I looked down and saw two fat boletus mushrooms by my feet.

Brought them home and cooked them with veal and cream. They were truly delicious.

Anybody else have experience with them? Understood that nobody's going to reveal the location of their stash...

I bought them at Douceurs du Marche.

Can't guarantee it - but I'm pretty sure the guys running "Montreal Smoked Meat" aka "Nower" on Centre St in the point are Ukrainian - that would be worth a try.

Worst case you can burn it off. It will stink and give off nasty toxic smoke though - do it outside on a camp stove. You'll have to re-season it after.

Out of curiosity - what's wrong with the cheap ones?

Maitre boucher is great - and definitely high-end. You can get what you need, as well as fine lamb, foie gras, bavette's always in stock, ...

If you're looking for specific things to barbecue, you can give Tranzo a try. (On Somerled corner Cavendish). Go mid-week, and if they don't have what you're looking for they'll order it. (i.e. bone-in brisket, whole pork shoulder, etc.)

Nice thing with Tranzo is you're dealing with the owners, who are extremely knowledgable, not just some employee they hired last month.

At Maitre Boucher on Monkland the sign on the garlic says it's product of Argentina.

At Loblaws - and seemingly only there - the frozen snails packed in garlic butter in real snailshells inported from France.

It's real old-school stuff, but like cheese fondue, there's a reason these were popular dishes before they went so completely out of fashion - in the case of snails by taking shortcuts with the canned ones, not bothering to pack them in shells etc.

So good I even bought a set of the special snail tongs on ebay.fr.

I keep worrying that they are going to stop carrying them, but they've had them for a few years now.

I am fairly sure that "Primo" soups are re-labelled Progresso.

I always assumed it was to keep them from turning to mush.

BTW - I find the ones packed in glass jars to be superior to the ones in flat cans.

I'm more than happy with my "Isomac". They are sold unbranded around Little Italy - mine came from the Faema store. No idea why the're sold that way. (Unbranded.)

Price is right, and with no doser it takes up very little counter space.