I actually think this is an interesting question. A lot more rubbing off of food cultures in Southeast Asia than between, for example, Japan and China. The cultural influence of India, and later the spice trade, resulted in exposure to and use of many of the same ingredients and also to Chinese and Arab influences. There are also similarities in prominent products (rice, lemongrass, galangal) that result from both countries sharing similar climate and geography.

The cuisine of both countries is very diverse (maybe moreso in Thailand than in Indonesia). In North America there is some regional variety in Thai restaurants (just not in Montreal) but what we eat is largely Bangkok-centered and Indonesian cuisine is largely Javanese. Interestingly, Bangkok-style and Javanese food share many characteristics (emphasizing creativity/diversity in rice based dishes, not much meat, very little seafood, reliance on fermented fish/shrimp paste and large variety of herbs, use of similar local ingredients like citrus, sugar and some coconut).

Don't bother eating at any Thai restaurant in Montreal, but if you're ever in L.A. do some reasearch and go crazy. I have liked Nonya for Indonesian, though I haven't been in years.

Never did find a great baguette, though found a decent one and some very good ciabatta and other breads from Gran Forno on Las Olas (I found it by asking two restaurants with good bread where they got it...same answer both times).

Looking very hard for real Baguette in Ft. Lauderdale area with no success. Tried Croissant time and it is not at all the real thing. Limp crust and dense interior. Not much better than WonderBread. The quest continues.

I eat here once a year. One of those places that I really like but not necesarilly because the food is outstanding.

I typically go with family and we get (yes) the stone crab as well as fried green tomatoes the cottage fried potatoes, sometimes fried chicken and key lime pie.

I have tried other menu items over the years, almost always to severe disappointment.

Can regulars tell me if there is anything else on the menu I should really try?

I will be in Fort Lauderdale over the holidays and am looking for the best store to buy fresh fish and seafood in Fort. Lauderdale (normally I would travel further but my in-laws probably don't feel like driving me all around South Florida.

All recommendations much appreciated. Thanks in advance!

I will second that Park is way over-rated, though not by any means terrible. I have had better experiences with lunch (several) and think it is actually a decent value. I would go back for lunch, especially because there isn't much else I like in the neighbourhood.

I had one dinner and would not go out of my way to go back for another, not because it was terrible, but just because I thought it represented poor value.

My biggest quibble is with the sushi. True that when I have had it, the fish was very fresh. That's important, but IMHO the only thing to recommend it. On both occasions I had it (lunch and dinner) there were issues with technique (rice cooking/seasoning and nigiri assembly). There were also issues with conception from my perspective (though that is subjective and I tend to be somewhat of a purist). One sashimi plate just ruined the fish by literally drowning it in vinaigrette and topping it with truffle oil. That was probably the dealbreaker for me.

U.S. and Australian Wagyu have been available in Canada for quite a while. There used to be restrictions on importing Japanese beef but to my knowledge those have not existed for a couple years and Japanese wagyu is available in Canada (whether it is Kobe or not is another question).

In my experience, the marbling of Japanese wagyu is often finer than U.S. wagyu. Not really my cup of tea though.

"I can't think of a single restaurant that serves organic meat". Really? Because a lot of them do and they usually leverage it by refering to the meat's provenance in the menu.

For example, the first thing I did was look at 400 Coup's menu online (IMHO currently tops in fine dining in MTL) and they have organic suckling pig (Ferme Gaspor).

There are restaurants for children. Joe Beef is not one of them. Just my opinion.

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Joe Beef
2491 Rue Notre-Dame W, Montreal, QC H3J1N6, CA

Il Mulino (now Hostaria) owner is father of owner of Bottega.

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Bottega
65 Rue Saint-Zotique E, Montreal, QC H2S1K7, CA

Hostaria
236 Rue St Zotique E, Montreal, QC H2S 1K9, CA

That's not true. Some birds are fed animal by-products and there is variation with respect to antibiotic use as well. Cage free or not there is also generally a difference in the amount of exercise and age between supermarket and "organic" turkeys which affects meat quality. Finally, there are significant differences in processing as supermarket birds are pre-brined and frozen. I usually buy my turkeys from Saint-Vincent or Prince Noir in JTM.

If it was omakase then why did you think you would get to choose anything?

Sounds like they messed up, but I assume they charged you about what that would cost on the menu. I have had good experiences ordering omakase and specifying approximately how much I wanted to eat (and I think a number of other posters here have as well).

Also completely disagree that the sushi is average. It is as good as it gets in Montreal (unless you like it stuffed with Cheetos, deep fried and served with BBQ sauce).

Unfortunate.

Best two burgers in Montreal: (1) Lawrence and (2) Jolifou. Neither is a burger joint but both make burgers (Jolifou on good nights, Lawrence quite consistently) that can compete with any burger anywhere.

For the record, I have never met her (and have only communicated with her on Twitter a couple times).

I don't mind being the voice of dissent here. I think Lesley Chesterman is more knowledgeable about food than approximately 100% of the people posting on Chowhound (I rounded up). I won't defend the quality of the writing, but in all fairness once you've written 100 or more restaurant reviews (as I have) you will discover that the subject matter is somewhat limiting. Also let's not forget that (IMHO) the content of the Gazette is geared to aging Anglo housewives, so many of us are not the target audience.

I think the smartest thing said in this string was don't read it, if you don't like it.

Could someone rename this thread "Map of Places probably serving Hamburgers"?

Just got back from my second trip to Portsmouth in the past few years. It is not a good town for fine dining. The upscale dining experience in Portsmouth would be considered average (at best) in Boston or Montreal. Based on past experience Black Trumpet is very over-rated for fine dining--a menu that tries to be trendy but is not executed well.

Tried Jumpin Jay's this time and also found it average--no remotely local fish on offer. The fish and scallops were well prepared but everything that wasn't a protein was very amateurish. Also dingy and a very unappealing bug fell from the dusty lights above onto our table. It was OK, but I wouldn't go back.

I also tried Surf and it was the best "upscale" restaurant I have been to in Portsmouth to date, but probably because we stuck to simple fare (raw bar and lobster). Again though, the sides (especially the mashed potatoes) were terrible and most of the items from the raw bar were not very impressive (underseasoned scallop ceviche and could have been fresher tuna). Lobster was very good. Service was slow but friendly.

I think the way to go in Portsmouth is downscale--burgers, lobster pound etc..because upscale is invariably disappointing. Pretty little town, though...

I will be posting pics on my website soon (hopefully). The most memorable was a whole lightly battered deep fried rockfish with aioli that we eat with our hands. It was beautifully presented and completely devoured.

No need to be defensive--I'm not blaming anyone for a "bad"recommendation just providing my feedback as it seems La Dama gets recommended a lot on this board as a sure thing on Sundays/Mondays. The point is just that I'm not sure the people doing the recommending eat there frequently, so they might be interested in feedback. I would be.

We ordered a couple of "seasonal" apps not on the regular menu, including sauteed wild mushrooms which were poorly cooked and underseasoned. The lobster with rice (lobster paella) was also underseasoned. The rest was not bad, but nothing particularly impressive either. Could it have been the wrong dishes or an off-night? Sure. But if I had to guess, I would guess our experience was more typical than not.

I love traditional cooking (actually more than the avant garde stuff in general) but the technique was just not here. It could have four Michelin stars for all I care--my meal just wasn't very good.

Again, not to cast aspersions on anyone for recommending it--this is just my feedback.

Just to close the loop, I will reiterate what I wrote in another thread. La Dama served us an extremely expensive and (almost comically) poorly prepared meal (seasoning and cooking skills of an enthusiatic but inexperienced home cook). I do appreciate all the advice I have received on this site, but think those in the know should re-consider recommending La Dama as a sure thing.

Just a follow up with respect to Marcello--I think it is really under-rated. The tasting menu was one of the best meals (and biggest surprises) of our trip . Much more impressive than Can Fabes or Cinq Sentits in Barcelona, which are much more ballyhooed. The menu was well designed as a whole with a good dish to dish progression and reasonable portion sizes. Technically each dish was well seasoned and technically very sound and the cuisine is very ingredient driven with a bit (but not too much) of a modern twist. Nice views into an open kitchen and very charming service by the cooks who bring you your food tableside.

If you go to Santiago, eat at Marcello...I don't think you will be disappointed.

I ended up going to La Dama on a Sunday in May based on recommendations on this board that it would be the best bet that night. The restaurant is in a very interesting Art Nouveau building but that's theonly nice thing I can say about it. Maybe one dish was well seasoned and executed. The rest were average at best and it was one of the most expensive meals we had in Barcelona. While you can never be sure, I don't think it was an off night either. It is basically impossible to pay that much for such an underwhelming meal in Montreal, so you can imagine my disappointment.

Incidentally, I also thought Cinc Sentits was overhyped, and much preferred my meal at Saüc-- very well thought out and executed plates. Tickets was, unsurprisingly, amazing.

Thanks. This is fantastic...

Any can't miss eating experiences in Bilbao? Names that have come up are Cafe Iruna and Azurmendi. As with my other requests, it can be fine dining or a hole in the wall, as long as it is good. Thanks in advance for your help.

To refocus on Santiago de Compostella, the most prominent names I have heard are Marcello, Carretas and Don Gaiferos. Any insight on these.

Any other input on what is interesting foodwise here would be appreciated. It can be high end or really simple. Anything memorable really. Thanks in advance for your help.

La Dama it is. Thanks so much.

I have looked through a few threads on this topic but the Sunday night advice always seems to be squeezed in with a lot of other advice.

Simple question: what is the most memorable meal you can have in Barcelona on a Sunday night?

Thanks in advance for any help you can provide.

Newsflash: There is crappy food in Italy too....

Okay. Let's just say the lobster roll (and everything else on the menu at Muvbox) is sh!t and move forward with the negative feedback on that basis.