When was the last time you were in the mood for Greek food but were also thinking, “hey you know what would be really good right now? Persian food!” I don’t know about you but when I’m in the middle of shcoffing an all dressed chicken pita, the one thing that’s on my mind is beef kebab. No, not really. But if you ever wanted to have both types of food at the same time, or are having trouble coming to an agreement on where to go eat with someone, there’s a solution for you. Located in a modest strip mall in Kirkland is Grill Select; Greek and Persian Cuisine.
So when can we make brunch an actual “thing”. A thing that doesn’t only exist on weekends or have to involve mimosas and hangover sunglasses. Granted, there are a bunch of places that serve “brunch” throughout the week, but when you live in the suburbs brunch options often suck and are usually crowded with yoga pant mommies pushing strollers who talk to servers like three year olds. So when I make the effort to drive clear across the island of Montreal via highway for brunch, that restaurant must really stand out. I went for brunch at Les Affamés, a modest “bistro du quartier” … just not my quartier.
I used to think that it was ludicrous to eat soup noodles in summer, but with more and more noodle houses popping up in Montreal I think I’m going to have to abandon this ridiculous way of thinking. I just couldn’t imagine slurping copious amounts of hot noodles in steamy broth when the mercury inches above 20 degrees when I already have sweat management problems. I guess I can say my narrow-mindedness changed when I spent some time in South-East Asia where downing road-side bowls of hot noodles at the butt-crack of dawn where the temperature was already 30 degrees and a notion of “humidex” didn’t exist because it was always at 100%. So as spring kicks into high gear and air is still crisp, I checked out Nouilles de Lan Zhou in Chinatown for some homemade hand-pulled noodles.
The great team over at Cult MTL is at it again asking Montrealers what’s best of the best. This awesome publication is looking to YOU, the readers to vote for everything from best restaurant to tackiest local celebrity. It’s that time of year again… Time for Best of Montreal 2015!
The masterminds behind Imadake and Ichi Go Ichi E comes Yokato Yokabai, Montreal’s next premiere ramen house. Japanese ramen comes in different styles and the variations are dependant on the city or region it comes from. The differences in noodles to the delicate and nuanced characteristics in broth and preparation are all claimed by different prefectures and cities all across Japan – much like the Montreal steamy where it’s the same hot dog served around the city with the same toppings, the secret is in the water that it’s stemmed in. I had the opportunity to get an exclusive sneak speak at Yokato Yokaba’s menu and their beautiful rustic Japanese inspired space.
If you can remember last year around this time, I was chosen as one of seven celebrity bloggers across Canada to take part in Thai Kitchen‘s Ambassador search in their “Lucky Recipe Challenge” where I was asked to develop recipes using some of their products. My recipes included a red curry pulled chicken tacos and even a tasty vegetable salad rice bowl with crispy noodles – some of these recipes I still use to this day. If you can also remember that I didn’t win and was robbed of the title; but at least I’m not bitter about it.
I’ve been a big fan of Blackstrap BBQ and total fan boy of Pitmaster Dylan Kier and have been following his quest for total BBQ domination in the local, provincial, national, international and interstellar BBQ competition circuit. So you can imagine my excitement when I found out that he was opening up another restaurant. His second endeavour however isn’t another banging BBQ joint, but rather a spot that Montreal has sorely needed for the longest time. A place that would fill a certain Tex-Mex void in the city – Tejano BBQ Burrito – your new go to spot for burritos.
There’s a day during the year that I looked forward to the most. On par with Christmas day and my birthday – not for gifts and spending time with family –because more importantly, my parents let me skip school and I didn’t have to put in the extra effort and pretend to be sick. Chinese New Year is a particular important time of year for Chinese – traditionally the celebration lasts for 15 days – the first three days at statutory holidays in China where the country literally grinds to a halt where everyone is spending time with loved ones. Though we might not celebrate communism in the west, we do celebrate Chinese New Year, so if you’re down to party like it’s 4712, here are some things you need to know.
Sushi restaurants in Montreal are a dime a dozen. Seems like every neighbourhood has their own local sushi joint where everyone gets their nigiri and maki fixes and lightning jolts of omega-3s straight to their veins. Sure, you’re not going to meet P.K. Subban or pay for your meal with your next car or mortgage payment, you might even end up paying with your gastrointestinal tract for having raw fish that’s prepared on a hot line next to fiery wok pushing out general taos and pad Thais. Don’t get me wrong, these polar opposites are rare and chances are your go-to spot probably satiates any sushi cravings you may have adequately, celebrityless and hygienically. I recently hit up Kaiji in Villeray, a spot I’ve been to once before and promised myself to visit again if I were ever in the area.
One of the least represented cuisines in NDG/Westmount is Thai. Why? A question that will stand the test of time along with “why isn’t there any pho in the area?” and “why is it only here that people feel the entitlement to cross the street diagonally?” along with the classic, “why is there a Lululemon uniform for old ladies in NDG/Westmount?” I recently went to try and answer these age old questions starting with the lack of Thai food representation in the area. I noticed this place a while back and was skeptical, Pick Thai – located on de Maisoneuve and Northcliffe, across from the Vendome Metro station and in the shadow of the new super duper hospital, I was skeptical but impressed. Skeptical because it was the first of its kind, the one to try and set precedence to say that this area needs a taste of the Southeast and impressed for exactly the same reasons.