Elounda

1818 boul. de la Côte-Vertu

 St-Laurent, QC H4L 2A6

  (514) 331-4040

I was told about this restaurant by quite a few people whose opinions count. Elounda, in Ville St-Laurent, situated in a little strip mall attached to another restaurant, has a great location on a very busy street. It took me a little while to try this place out because Mediterranean food is good but has never really blown me away enough to hurry to a new location.

I went on a very busy Saturday night to this big, yet cozy restaurant. The owners and waiters were very very friendly, unfortunately only to the people they knew. Service was average throughout the night, but the food made up for that. The first entree was the Elounda special(15) which was composed of fried zucchini, eggplant and cheese with tzatziki sauce. Absolutely delicious, lightly fried with one of the best tzatziki sauces I've ever had. Next was the Greek salad(17) which was alright, but way overpriced, and that was for the smaller size.

For main course, I had the lamb chops and swordfish(32), which were  both delicious and nicely cooked. It came with vegetables and  half of a corn on the cob. The salmon(28) was well done, with a crispy outside and a moist inside, once again with vegetables.

For dessert, a phenomenal baklava(7), a sweet, rich pastry made with phyllo dough filled with chopped nuts sweetened with honey or syrup. Bite after bite, this kept on getting better. This is not my usual dessert. I typically like very sweet chocolaty items but this was right up my alley. Fruit, on the house, was a nice end to the night.

A light dinner finished off with light dessert. This was a very different night for me, but I must say very enjoyable. I would recommend this restaurant for everyone, from the true "foodies" to the once a year diners. My only complaint on this restaurant would be the high prices, but apart from that I left very satisfied.

Food:8/10

Atmosphere:8/10

Service:7/10

Location:9/10

Price:6.5/10

Overall:8/10

Le Milsa

5021 Boul Des Sources

 Dollard-des-Ormeaux, 

QC H8Y3E3 - (514) 542-4224

A new restaurant opened recently in the West Island, meaning I had to try it out, and quick. I'm always looking for something new and good, close to home. Montreal is known for its amazing food, but unfortunately in the West Island, there really isn't that much. Le Milsa, with 4 locations and a fifth one opening soon, I was hoping that this new expansion wasn't going to hurt the food that I heard was so great at the Bishop location. This is a Brazilian rotisserie called "Churrascaria" that comes from the word "Churrasco"which means a restaurant that serves grilled meat on skewers(most of the time all you can eat); with waiters walking around slicing the meat on clients plates.

This particular location is enormous, split in two sections with the bar in the middle, has midway through the night a belly dancer and a male dancer. The music turns up loud, the lights dim and the disco balls light up. There are 3 different sections on the menu ; the turnstile,  the whole cornish hen grilled on charcoal and the smoked salmon grilled on charcoal. I choose the turnstile(29.95), which is 10 different types of meat(all you can eat), some of the notable meats were the pork sausages, filet mignon, lamb and strip loin. The meats were all cooked medium rare so they were all juicy and tender, but I found that they lacked a little bit of flavor. I assume the meats are not top quality which is the reason why they're not as delicious as they could be.

A mediocre at best salad was served with the meal, so were bland sweet potatoes, a tasty rice and delicious sauteed mushrooms. For dessert there is the choice of grilled pineapple covered in cinnamon and sugar or vanilla ice cream. I opted for the pineapple and was a little disappointed by the overly bitter taste. The wine list is pretty decent for this type of restaurant but are priced a little bit on the high side.

At the end, I had a nice time, with a good 20 minutes of belly dancing and a male doing some type of karate dance.  The food was average at best, with prices too high to match, I unfortunately cannot see myself returning here.

Food:6/10

Atmosphere:8/10

Service:7/10

Location:6/10

Price:6/10

Overall:7/10

Au Pied De Cochon

536 ave Duluth est
Montréal, QC H2L 1A9
(514) 281-1114

Food is my passion, I love trying new restaurants, new dishes, new ingredients, that it ends up being very rare that I go to the same place twice. What does it mean if I go again? Great food, great atmosphere, great prices, well it is a combination of all of them. Many times I'll go to the same place because, it's tasty food at a good price and close to home. And then there's Au Pied De Cochon, which I've been 4 times and I'll add one more to the list in a week. This place combines the food with atmosphere, the great service with even greater prices and delectable smells with divine flavors.

At this point, I've nearly tried all the dishes I've wanted to try on the menu, 23 different items. As you can tell, I like this place a lot. Martin Picard, the chef at this small eatery, has a TV show on the Food Network "The Wild Chef" and was just featured in Playboy as one of the greatest chefs. Playboy has never been wrong before... The menu is filled with fatty items, french fries(in duck fat), hamburgers, foie gras, pizza, pork..you get the point. This is one of the most unhealthy places in Montreal, but also one of the tastiest.

Some of the most notable items on the menu are the foie gras cromesquis(3.50), two deep fried squares, filled with hot melted foie gras. The only way to describe this dish, is an explosion of flavors! The tarragon bison tongue(6) is absolutely delicious, and this was the first time I have ever tried tongue. This piece of meat is a melt in your mouth type with just enough sauce not to overpower the meat flavor. The beef tartare(12) is one the best tartares out there, rolled in a sushi cornet filled with rice, matchstick french fries and a quail egg, this was such a pleasure to eat.

All I have to say is, foie gras, an abundance of foie gras. The best dish at this restaurant, I would have to say is the foie gras poutine(23). An absolutely exquisite poutine that combines french fries(in duck fat) with cheese and two different types of gravy, a PDC gravy and a PDC gravy mixed with foie gras in it, and then a big chunk of foie gras right on top. What more can I say than cloud nine, heaven, a dish fit for a king...

Another main course worth mentioning is the duck in a can(37). An extremely heavy and rich duck with foie gras and even richer sauce. This dish is pure fat but with tons of flavor.

This last dish was ordered more for the fun of ordering it then anything else, but in the end, it was delicious. The pigs head for 2(75), not something I would eat everyday, was a cooked head, served on a huge wooden platter with mashed potatoes across the face and mussels shoved in the mouth. The meat is so tender, that a spoon can can cut it, with such beautiful aromas, and the potatoes made with melted cheese are none I have seen before.

Even the desserts are phenomenal, from the creme brule(7), to the pecan pie(12), the pot de creme(8) and the chocolate molten cake(8). All with such sugary and sweet flavors, all desserts are a must!

I do suggest reserving a table a couple of weeks in advance, last tuesday night at 11 PM, there was still a lineup outside! I do also suggest trying to get a seat at the bar, were you can watch the artist create your masterpiece. The service is superb, with waiters, busboys, hostesses and kitchen staff greeting you and smiling the whole night.

I could keep ranting about how great this restaurant is forever, but I'm sure the keys on my keyboard would start breaking off. All I need to say is, this is not for the faint of heart (yes there is steak on the menu) or the kosher people, this is an all out carnivore, artery clogging, heart stopping, delectable restaurant. Martin Picard, I thank you for this gem in my hometown!

Food:9.5/10
Atmosphere:9/10
Service:9.5/10
Location:8/10
Price:10/10
Overall:9/10

Les Fetes Gourmandes Internationales 2010

Les Fetes Gourmandes Internationales 2010, is taking place from the 28th of July to the 1st of August. For 18 years this event has been held on Saint Helen's island, but for the first time it is brought to the Centropolis in Laval. With easy access, a huge amount of free parking, this is a great spot for this large event consisting of over 60 kiosks from around the world. Countries ranging from Polish, Portuguese, Jamaican, Brazilian, African and a Little Italy with over 12 kiosks, featuring a beautiful Lamborghini booth with the new Supperlegera. Of course Quebec food also plays a huge role, with bison, duck and "Queue de Castor".

Admission for the day is a measly 8$, a great price to see all the different culinary items available in our world, or 10$ for a 5 day pass. Food is extra of course, with prices starting at 1$, this day can become quite expensive. I held myself back, trying only items that are very difficult to find in our city.

I started with Kangaroo steak, a tender piece of meat cooked nicely was a little strong in taste. Next on the menu was seal, with a steak texture, it tasted somewhat of beef liver. This was my least favorite item of the day. Another booth was serving up alligator, turtles, snakes and insects. I wanted to try all four but they only had two left. The snake was tough, dry and had a fishy taste to it.On the other hand the alligator was nicely cooked, tender and served with couscous. One of the better dishes of the day. The camel had a grainy like beef texture, but the fact that it was turned into a burger made it tasty. The milk fed veal brochette with melted cheese was delicious and so was the calzone and pizza.

Dessert was the best part, starting off with 3 different cheeses, with sliced baguette and a small piece of foie gras torchon, delicious and the best value for the money at 6$. Next was a piece of sugar pie with pecans, so tasty, sugary and salty, my taste buds were really starting to dance again. Last but not least was the chocolate churros, do I really need to say more... Deep fried dough topped with sugar and filled with a chocolate hazelnut sauce.

A gorgeous sunny Saturday afternoon, with 2 and a half hours of fun, this day was well worth it even if the price tag for 2 came to 75$. I decided not to try any of the huge selection of beers for the fact that it was  a very hot day and I was already exhausted. This was a great success with the massive amount of people who attended, hopefully next year they can bring even more food into the mix, I know for sure that I'll be heading back!

http://www.fetesgourmandesinternationales.com/