Foie gras « Bread and Molasses

Tag Archives: Foie gras

Pintxo

Et puis, votre Noël? Il s’est bien passé? Vous avez sans doute vraiment le goût de manger un repas riche et copieux en ce moment, n’est-ce pas? Oui, je sais… Moi aussi je me dis que ça suffit l’excès, que je retourne au gym pour vrai et qu’il faut absolument que je prenne le contrôle sur mon budget dès maintenant. Mais dans deux semaines, quand la culpabilité sera passée, vous repenserez à ce billet ;-) Vous ne regretterez pas, je promets!

Pintxo est un de mes restos préférés depuis longtemps. Vous connaissez mon penchant pour les tapas? Eh bien, ici, on propose une variation sur le même thème. Au fait, les « pintxos » sont la version basque des tapas, plus petits et plus raffinés. Le resto est chaleureux et vivant et l’équipe est bien rodée, en cuisine comme en salle. La salle à manger comporte deux espaces distincts, ce qui permet d’asseoir les groupes ensemble et d’offrir plus de tranquilité aux couples et habitués. Côté décor, les tableaux grand format aux couleurs vives captent l’attention et donnent le ton : au diable la retenue!

Je suis retournée au Pintxo mardi dernier avec une amie pour un souper de Noël. Ci-dessous, quelques photos pour vous mettre l’eau à la bouche et une liste de mes pintxos à ne pas manquer.

Artichauts, palourdes et jambon serrano

Capeline de pétoncle sur tapenade de chorizo

Pieuvre grillée et chorizo

Nougat glacé en dessert

Pintxos à ne pas manquer :
Si vous visitez Pintxo, je vous implore de commander au moins un (sinon tous!) ces plats :
- Artichauts, palourdes et serrano (photo plus haut)
- Torchon de foie gras avec confit d’oignons
- Foie gras poêlé sur lit de lentilles et réduction de vinaigre de vin rouge au jus d’échalote
- Boudin noir maison aux pommes

Le mot de la fin

Les + : Cuisine basque à son meilleur! Service attentionné et ambiance chaleureuse. Points bonis pour la possibilité de faire sa réservation en ligne via OpenTable. Plus de restos montréalais devraient offrir cette option.
Les – : Si vous commandez vos pintxos à l’unité, l’addition peut être salée mais il y a des options plus économiques (voir plus bas).
Bon pour : Groupes comme couples. Il faut aimer les fruits de mer par contre.
Coût : Élevé. On compte 4 ou 5 pintxos par personne à environ 7 $ l’unité. Par contre, on offre un menu du midi de trois services les mercredis, jeudis et vendredi pour seulement 18 $. Le soir, on offre une formule dégustation incluant 4 pintxos et un plat à 32 $. Plusieurs vins sont offerts au verre ou en demi-bouteille.
J’y retourne ? : Depuis toujours

Visitez le site Web de Pintxo pour en faire la visite virtuelle et voir plus de photos : www.pintxo.ca

Comments Leave a Comment
Categories Plateau, Restaurant
Author Jess

Hot Doug’s Encased Meats Emporium

2 Nov

On our recent trip to Chicago, we set out to find the best joints for the city’s most popular comfort foods: hot dogs (Chicago makes the best) and real deep dish pizza (Chicago makes the only). Pequod’s deep dish pizza was outstanding, but Hot Doug’s was the highlight.

Chicagoans know hot dogs. And man, Hot Doug’s is the real deal. Here, a well-oiled machine of a team serves you a wide variety of doggers ranging from the more ‘traditional’ to upscale and fancy. Just check out the menu for yourself. The act of getting to Doug’s counter and conquering the long line-up is an adventure on its own. It’s a 45 minute commute outside of the downtown core – or The Loop as Chicagoans refer to it – and the wait itself can be another hour. But everyone there is happy to oblige. After all, these dogs are legendary.

Doug Sohn, the founder and owner, greeted us with some welcoming chit-chat, despite having served hundreds of patrons before us. Our choices had been carefully selected and I personally had rarely been this excited to order food.

Dog #1: Pork taco sausage with green chilli mayonnaise and queso asadero. This was like biting into a taco in disguise. The taco spice and cheese had been mixed into the pork sausage and the sauce had just the right kick.

Dog #2: Ribeye steak sausage with horseradish sauce, fried onions and aged cheddar. I had never even thought of a steak sausage, let alone ribeye steak (my favourite cut). The ingredients here worked perfectly together: the tenderness of the encased meat, crunchiness of the onions and intensity of the aged cheddar.

Dog #3 (the pièce de résistance): Foie gras and sauternes duck sausage with truffle aioli, foie gras mousse and fleur de sel. As decadent as it may sound (and believe me, it was), this dog was extremely well thought out. The truffle aioli added unbelievable flavour while the fleur de sel contrasted perfectly with the richness of the foie gras, both in flavour and texture.

We rounded everything off with an order of duck fat french fries. That’s right – they’re fried in duck fat! Although they were good, I think both Jess and I were expecting greasier fries with a deeper flavour. Chicago just might have a thing or two to learn from our beloved Lafleurs.

Now, if only someone could bring the fancy dogger concept to Montreal… (nudge, nudge, Mr. Jeffcott).

Comments Leave a Comment
Categories Restaurant, Special dining experience, Travels
Author gogodelaghetto

Cabane à sucre Au Pied de Cochon: not for the faint of heart

25 Apr

I got lucky. Get your minds out of the gutter; it’s not that kind of blog… I got lucky because I managed to get last minute reservations to the infamous Cabane à sucre Au Pied de Cochon. You know the one, right? It’s run by Martin Picard, who also owns the Duluth Street restaurant by the same name and stars in “The Wild Chef” on the Food Network. He’s known for his over the top, no-compromising, full-fat cuisine, as well as his extensive use of foie gras in the traditional Québécois dishes he serves up. When I got the email explaining how they had cancellations and a few open spots for this year, I was ecstatic! So were the seven other diners who joined me on Saturday night for the real epic mealtime.

I had no idea what to expect but the experience was everything I hoped it would be: a supped up version of a traditional Cabane à sucre with all the classics, only better. If you are expecting a fancy place with white table clothes, you’ll be disappointed. It’s nitty gritty and focused on the food. You’re sitting at a rectangular table on a bench in what seems like a nicely-decorated old barn with hordes of people including loud “mononcles” and kids. We’re definitely not in Old Montreal anymore, Toto. But isn’t that what the Cabane à sucre is all about? Good food that highlights maple products – hold the etiquette. Maybe that’s the only critique I can give this Cabane à sucre: it was a little light on the maple… The pork stole the show, from the souffléed oreilles de crisse to the roasted pork shoulder, it overshadowed everything else.

They serve a set +10-course menu (yes, more than 10 courses!) and family style dishes in the centre of the table, which works out nicely because you get to taste a little of everything while choosing your own portion size. With that in mind, try to gather up a group of friends – I would say eight works perfectly – so that you can all sit comfortably together at one table without being crammed. It gets hot as heck in there! And PLEASE, ladies, nix the heels…

So what’s the bottom line? I say if you are lucky enough to get a reservation, jump on it! For a fixed price of $54 per person, I feel like I got more than my money’s worth. But know what you’re getting yourself into. The presentation of some of the dishes is meant to impress… or repulse depending on your view point. Whole Cornish hens, including the heads and feet, are served on a platter. I think that as long as you’re not a vegetarian (duh!) or too light-heated, you’ll enjoy the experience. Because that’s just what it is: an extra-ordinary dining experience.

THE FEAST

Entrées

Pea soup with chunks of foie gras.

Oysters with salt water and maple jelly

Green salad with oreilles de crisse, cheddar and ham.

Maple buckwheat pancakes with smoked sturgeon and crème fraîche.

I forgot to snap a picture of the cretons-filled maki. What a shame! It was was a big hit both presentation and taste-wise.

Main courses

Maple glazed Cornish hens (presentation leaves little room for doubt...) with potato gnocchi.

The most tender and juicy, fall-off-the-bone roast pork shoulder. Smoked for 12 hours and served with a beer-reduction gravy.

Lobster omelet soufflé

For an extra $20, they offer a tourtière with homemade ketchup. We ordered it, but were happy they forgot to serve it to us in the end… Do like our buddy JCo and get one to go.

Desserts