Quick, name you most favourite Japanese restaurant in Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue. As we all know this area of the city is a bustling hub for fine Asian cuisine. Jokes aside, if you know anything the current Montreal restaurant scene, you would not be surprised to find hidden gems in any corner of the city. Blue-collar neighbourhoods like Verdun or Ville Émard or Côte-Saint-Paul once known for their greasy-spoons and casse croutes are now home to awesome Asian restaurants like Comon, Les Street Monkeys and casual fine dining with the likes of Joe Beef’s McKiernan. Or maybe Laval which was once a baron wasteland of anything delicious is now home to fun drinking and food spots like 123Dzo, Gon Bui and modern Italian at Gatto Matto. The list goes on. This week we’re going to the way West Island to check out your new favorite Japanese restaurant Mont Brise serving Teishoko style dining.
Food
I know I often talk in superlatives and hyperbole. Likening something to a mind shattering experience of epic proportion‘s or comparing something to the warm embrace of your mother. I mean, both statements could be true. I’ve eaten a lot of things so if I tell you something is awesome I’m usually right. Also your mom‘s hugs are A1, trust me. So, when I tell you that this place serves the best French toast you’ll ever have in Montreal you’ll have to believe me. And I’m not even a fan of French toast. This week I visited a local café that if you closed your eyes and concentrated hard enough, you’d think you were transported to a quaint Parisian neighbourhood. You need to go to Les Bourlettes Café in Ville St. Laurent.
I’ve been writing about the Montreal food and Montreal restaurant scene for over 15 years (!) In the past decade and a half (!!) I’ve been witness to fads, trends, restaurants come and go, some with great fanfare, others quietly. What I love most about writing about food are the places that normally would not get noticed. The places who fly under the radar because they are so busy doing their own thing to draw attention to themselves. The gems. I’ll admit, the places that I often selfishly keep to myself. But then realize it goes against exactly what I set our to do 15 years ago; sharing my experiences and discoveries I make eating my way across the city. I’m going to tell you about this place I’ve been going to because, I think you’ll enjoy it as much as I do; Restaurant Miran.