That night, after checking in at our amazing hotel (Le Chateau Beauvallon), we went up to the ski village of Mont Tremblant, rode the gondola up to the top of the main street, and then walked back down. At the base of the hill is La Cabane du Sucre - The Sugar Cabin - where I found one of my favorite sweets in the world: Barbe a Papa a l'Erable - Maple Sugar Cotton Candy. Ohmigod. I've had it before and was kind of searching all over for it. It's an amazing sweet - lightly maple-y and... wow... you've got to try it if you can.
After a stop at the casino (to spend money - in no hopes of winning anything), we went back to the hotel, changed clothes, and headed for dinner at La Petite Cachee ("The Little Hideaway"). When we arrived, we were the only ones there. The place truly is "petite" - probably about 10 or 12 tables in the main room around a fireplace. The woman who waited on us (probably the owner?) was amazing. She explained the menu and the specials. She helped us with wine selection. She paid attention without being pushy. And, well, I won't mention the last thing she did just yet.
I really don't remember the full meal that everyone had. I know that my aunt had a salad to start, and Christopher and I started out with a to-die-for grilled blue cheese sandwich. My aunt had a chicken and gorgonzola pizza with arugula - I snuck a piece of it and it was perfect, both crispy and chewy. I can't remember what Christopher had, but I had the most amazing little Shepherd's Pie, a layered column of meat, leeks, and mashed potatoes. Amazing. Dessert? Of course we had dessert. Christopher had a chocolate cake, and I had a "soft apple" cake, which came to the table with a candle in it - and the woman who had been helping us out actually sang me "Happy Birthday." She had overheard us talking about it being my birthday, and took the step of making the evening almost perfect.
Back at the hotel, we started up our gas fireplace, turned on the A/C, and sat and watched a little TV before bed. And... yeah... could there be a better way to cap off a birthday?
I've already told you about the great breakfast we had the next morning. Lunch came to us a little late in the day in Saint Sauveur, where we stumbled across a little cafe (Cafe Denise, maybe?). The service... well... it was pretty awful. And Christopher's croissant sandwich with cheese actually had American cheese on it. But my aunt's fruit plate was beautiful to look at - and pretty huge. My "Sandwich oeuf-tomates" (Sandwich with egg and tomato) came out "sans oeufs" when it got brought out. It took a little discussion, but when it came back it was a great sandwich with a perfect over-hard egg, juicy tomato slices, mayo, and lettuce.
Monday night we had true "leftovers" for dinner - trying to clear out the leftovers from the fridge before we left. Granted, it was all much better leftovers than we ever get at home (great cheeses, bread, multiple desserts). There really is something nice about being in a place like Montreal.
Our final night in Montreal found us out to dinner at Le Jardin de Panos. A very nifty little Greek place near St Denis street on "The Plateau" in Montreal. We all had various kinds of Kebabs. I think three of us had lamb, Christopher had filet, and my aunt had shrimp. The food was incredible. It was another "Apportez Votre Vin" restaurant, so we had great wine, and even had room for dessert. Going with the recommendation of our waiter, we had galaktoboureko. It's... well... there's this custard... and there's filo dough... and it has cloves in it... and honey... and it's not overly sweet. If you find it at your local Greek restaurant, do yourself a favor and get it!
I would be remiss if I didn't tell you about the last place Christopher and I stopped to get food in Montreal. We were running errands on our last morning, and went to a shop that my cousin had recommended. La Maison du Macaron. Yes, it was a little out of the way. Yes, the info on the website was wrong about their opening hours. Yes, it was worth driving to and waiting for. Not only were the macarons incredible (perfect texture, great flavors), but they actually also offered *frozen* macaron. We each had one - mine was lemon, and if I focus really hard on it, I can still taste and feel it in my mouth. Cold, fragrant, tart, sweet... seriously... worth going back for.
And, well, there you go. The food listings from my trip. Tomorrow, for Travel Tuesday, I'll try to hit a few other highlights. Then, maybe, we can get back to our regularly-scheduled blogging.
No comments:
Post a Comment