‘Montreal’
In need of some food to soak up the booze of the night before, we found ourselves at Les 3 Brasseurs in downtown Montreal. Of course, in English this translates to The 3 Brewers, so it seemed like a good place to get our fill before leaving the lovely city of Montreal. Because it seemed necessary, we started with a couple orders of poutine for the table – including one non-traditional that had pulled pork and bacon.
The Jewish influence on Montreal’s food scene goes beyond the bagels and into the realms of meat. Specifically smoked meat and there is no better-known place to get the smoked meat than at Schwartz’s, which has been making the stuff since 1928. Today Celine Dion weirdly has some sort of ownership in the place, but I went hoping this had little to do with the popularity.
We know this truth to be self-evident: Not all bagels are created equally. This has been briefly touched upon on this blog in the past, but my recent trip to Montreal made that sentiment all the more powerful. You see, I had eaten a Montreal-style bagel before, but only after picking up a half dozen on the way out of town and consuming them upon returning to LA. This time, I made sure to get one fresh off the line at Fairmount Bagel in Mile End, which has been pushing bagels since 1919.
Where were you when you ate the greatest meal of your life? Until I went to Liverpool House in Montreal I wasn’t quite sure. You see, Liverpool House is the sister restaurant to Joe Beef, which is often considered one of the best restaurants in the world. Yet, after paying a visit to Liverpool House I can’t imagine how Joe Beef could be any better.
A long, long time ago I visited Montreal for my friends’ wedding and was introduced to real poutine for the first time. I say real, because the stuff they serve at Wendy’s in Ontario is…well…Wendy’s. My friends took me to La Belle Province and I suppose you never really forget your first love, because upon my return to Montreal it was all I wanted.
For some reason, Celine Dion gets a bad rap. Maybe it’s because she’s Canadian. Maybe it’s because her music gets stuck in your head. Maybe it’s because she sank the Titanic. Whatever the reason, she is definitely in good graces in my world.