Reviews, Opinion, Rants and Raves
Nonya
DINNER June 27, 2008
On its travels from its original home on a seedy stretch of St-Laurent to a short dalliance next to a strip club on Ste. Catherine and finally to its current home in Mile End, one thing has always remained true: Nonya makes great food at low prices. While Nonya may be the most prominent Indonesian eatery in the city it is not a household name. Which is a shame because this restaurant, and the cuisine in which it specializes, is well worth getting to know better.
Thelonious
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Au Pied de Cochon
DINNER June 22, 2008
Chef Martin Picard has become the golden boy of Quebec cuisine by reinventing upscale versions of proletarian Quebec classics such as poutine and pig's feet. The order of the day at APDC is excess, with no dish that can't be improved by the addition of a thick slice of foie gras and no seafood platter too gargantuan to serve. In going down this road ADPC has broken new ground in promoting a market cuisine that is truly Quebecois and, in the process, become almost iconic in the minds of local foodies, many of whom might eat a napkin if Mr. Picard mopped his brow with it.
DNA
LUNCH June 18, 2008
DNA was recommended to me by an alert reader as another Old Montreal option with a decent three course lunch set menu for $25ish. DNA, of course, used to be California Dreams, a restaurant that will only be missed for the cruel hilarity of a visit there. When I ate at California Dreams we had to dodge police officers and a disgruntled ex-employee at the front door and were given expensive mixed drinks that we had not ordered while enduring the cheerful mania of an owner overseeing the death throes of her restaurant. The highlight of the night was a waiter tripping while bringing a platter of food up the stairs and the amazing crash of the dishes on the hardwood floor that reverberated through the restaurant (because it was basically empty).
Le Latini
DINNER June 15, 2008
Le Latini is damned close to being an iconic Montreal restaurant. It is a mainstay that has been around for years with a reputation for serving up top Northern Italian with prices to match. My own view is that it is generally over-rated, so I'll admit to a little bit of a preconceived notion of what I was getting into. Recently, I wrote "the food may sometimes not live up to its reputation, but when they get it right it is gorgeous. Sadly, at the prices they charge, they don't get it right frequently enough and the erratic service only adds to the impression that eating here is not a value proposition." Time to test that hypothesis.
Tokyo
A full review of our April trip to Tokyo has been completed and is posted at http://www.montrealfoodie.com/tokyo/ in the Food Travel section. I am falling behind in the Food Travel section and may skip forward to Zurich before finishing capsule reviews for Beijing, Seoul and Singapore...hopefully soon.