SUWU restaurant opening: Feel the vibe

Just when I though my Wednesday night couldn't get any more basic, the opening of the SUWU restaurant on St-Laurent spiced up my evening. Its great wooden chalet atmosphere with an old school hiphop vibe didn't only catch my attention, it will definitely have me coming back. I actually forgot I was in Montreal for a couple of hours. The comfort soul food reminded me of California. 

SUWU remodeled, remixed and made a major upgrade from the old Cafeteria. 

Understand the vibe as you read the article: Listen to & download the SUWU mixtape vol.1 for FREE Here

Read more to see more pics and details

***Look out for their mac and cheese grilled cheese!***

Cocktails such as Wu Tang were served. (Wu Tang: Sake, vodka, litchi, grapes and lime)

                                   The cocktail list also had some very interesting names 

Their classic beef tartar with dijon mayonnaise, beets and marinated onions was simply amazing. I loved the taste. I could seriously eat ten of those little hors d'oeuvres. 

 Then the cheeseburger empanadas came and my night couldn't have got any better. 

 ( Rosemary fries)

 Thanks to TRACEY BROOKE PR for all of the organisation skills and the great PR

 Follow Jillian Zrihen on Twitter and Sana as well.

Visit the SUWU website http://suwumontreal.com

Like SUWU on Facebook

Follow SUWU Montreal on Twitter and on Instagram: @suwumontreal

[RESTAURANTS] Diablos BBQ: Southern food in the heart of Montreal x contest

Two weeks ago, we tried Diablos BBQ and we absolutely loved it! 

Restaurant review & Contest + rules after the break!

Just before the holidays, I attended the Notable awards...Ok I didn't really attend the awards but instead, the after party #DontJudgeMe. There, I met a few Twitter followers, had drinks with them, interacted, laughed etc.  After a couple of martinis, I started rambling to Raphael514 about how we don't have Southern food in Montreal and how was craving for chicken'n'waffles and other fried foods. He laughed and just said: "Why don't you come to my restaurant then? We have chicken'n'waffles on Sundays".

He couldn't be serious. 

My sister and I were so shocked and pleased at the same time that we simultaneously started laughing nervously.

Southern food...in Montreal? No!!! It couldn't be!

Indeed, he was right and I did not hallucinate the words that came out of his mouth. Diablos BBQ is located in the heart of the Latin Quarter and
serves Southern inspired food and drinks. I just had to try this spot.

So after eating some yummy Southern food in Atlanta at Gladys last January, I came back to Montreal with that same craving I had in December for fried stuff. I immediately messaged Raphael and asked him when I should come to try Diablos...I couldn't wait any longer. He replied that Mondays are usually a good day because it's "All you can eat ribs". Did you read this well? ALL YOU CAN EAT RIBS! So Fabi (my sister from another mother) and I went last Monday and absolutely loved it

The Restaurant

Diablos is a baby in the Montreal restaurant scene as it only opened 8 months ago in April 2012. What inspired them to bring a Southern Flavour to Montreal? Well in the past, the partners/owners

Sass was there: Toqué book launch at L'Arsenal

When I think of the restaurant Toqué, I think of three things:

-Extreme class

-French cuisine 

-The renowned chef Normand Laprise.

It was impossible for me to decline the invitation to their gastronomical book launch at l'Arsenal. Toqué is one of the top restaurants in Montreal: Zagat's first edition of their Guide to Montreal put Toqué at the top of their list and the restaurant was awarded the Five Diamonds rating (the highest rating) by the Canadian Automobile Association and the American Automobile Association, to name a few distinctions. And when I said "Damn the book is 70$! That's not a joke!" the restaurant's chef, Marc-Antoine Crête replied (well it was more like screamed): "DEUX ANS DE TRAVAIL QUE TU VOIS LÀ!! DEUX ANS DE TRAVAIL MA CHERE!!!!" (translation: This is two years of work! Two years of work lady!!!). Okay. He was right. Cool guy though.  

Now back to the event.

I did not know what to expect and was pleasantly surprised to enter the beautiful room and see a fresh oyster bar on my left, a wine bar in the middle, people serving horse tartar & tataki on my right (you read that right) and...food trucks. Yes. They brought food trucks inside of L'Arsenal. Wine tasting, good music, food, good looking people and the "crème de la crème" of Montreal's gastronomical scene. This "5 à 7" (our term for Happy Hour) was more like a 5 à 10 as this event turned into a party. 

Charles Antoine Crête, the chef at Toqué, having a drink.
while signing a book. 

One thing that got my attention was the "Ouache Bar"...Let me explain something: "Ouache is a word that naturally comes out of a French Quebecor's mouth following a reaction of disgust: It's our "Ew". So this Ouache bar had a bunch of disgusting shots. When I asked the bartender (dressed as a cow girl, by the way) what the drink was, she told me it was a bunch of stuff mixed together. I had a shot and...Ouache!!! Really gross. I'm sure many people still enjoyed them after a couple of wine glasses. Ha. 

Check out more pics and an interesting video after the break!

Sassou's Montreal faves: Food, Markets + Going out

Why hello my loves! It's September already and it's starting to get cold! I don't really mind because I do love my leather jackets and blazers. September is also the month where I notice how many people have decided to come live in our beautiful city, Montreal. 

This article is for the newbies and also for my fellow readers as I have decided to share my all time favorite spots in this multi-cultural city. This first edition will solely be dedicated to Food spots and Bars/clubs & the next editions will include beauty and fashion spots. I was born and raised in Montreal and although I have a love/hate relationship with my city, I still think it is one of the most beautiful in the world mohstly for cultural reasons. Think of this article as my own version of Mirror's "Montreal's Best" (R.I.P., Mirror, I will miss you). If you have any other suggestions, feel free to leave a comment! These are my favorite spots and I am sure there are more places for me to discover.

Legend

Prices
$ Very affordable
$$ Moderately priced
$$$ Expensive, but worth it

Notoriety
C = Classic
N = New
W = Can't go wrong
F = Fun (usually has good music or a DJ)
D = Good for a date

FOOD & GOING OUT

As a self proclaimed foodie, I admit I am the type that would  go out to eat and then might end up at a bar or sometimes, I'll prefer going to a bar that serves food. So this kind of explains why I put these two together in one category. 

Breakfast/Brunch

I'm a bruch gal. You can catch me almost any Saturday or Sunday at one of these spots.

-L'Avenue, 922 Mont Royal East. 
Metro Mont Royal
$, C, F, W 
I know, I know, the lineup sucks but the vibe is great and the food is good and not too expensive. If you can, go there during the week to avoid waiting too long.

Classic breakfast but with even better potatoes

-Folies, 701 Mont Royal East
Metro Mont Royal
$, C
I usually go there when the lineup at L'Avenue is too intense. Just as good, minus the ambiance. I  suggest their crepes!

-Ben & Florentine, multiple locations
$, C, W
Can't go wrong with them.

-Le Pois Penché, 1230 de Maisonneuve West
Metro Guy ou Peel
$$$, W
Fancy fancy, yummy yummy. They don't

4 things I like about Méchant Boeuf

Last month, I went to Méchant Boeuf with my family and we all loved it! Mind you, my Dad is pretty picky about the food and he enjoyed each bite. Since then, I went back a couple of times either just for drinks, dinner or drinks and bread & butter (don't ask). 

Pic found on  mrlewburger.com

Here are four of my favorite things about this place

1. Their foie gras poêlé

It MELTS in your mouth. The waitress made a mistake and brought us the foie gras torchon at the beginning and it is not comparable to the warm version. One of the best I've tasted in Montreal.

2. The staff

Excellent service. Cute waiters. Jason at the oyster bar is very sociable. Everyone there is fun, friendly yet professional

Lab #5 Wine Tasting awesome event

Last Tuesday, me and a couple of friends attended a pretty awesome event for wine lovers. If you never came to Quebec & plan to come soon, it is important to know how much we love wine.

SocialGrapes.com is an iphone app to guide wine appreciators towards a variety of choices, depending on their taste. Their founders are doing something which I personally have never seen in Montreal: Every week, they conduct a "Blind" wine tasting event called the "Social Grapes Lab" in their office, which is located in Montreal's Old Port. The wine tasters then fill out a form with their comments and ratings on each wine (and remember, they have NO IDEA where it comes from, the name, ingredients. well...except alcohol of course), all of that while

Restaurant review: Osteria Venti is my new Italian lover

The thing about being obsessed with food and traveling is that I become extremely picky when it comes to certain types of food. Remember when I ate that quiche in Paris at Angela's? Yeah, I cannot eat quiche anymore unless it's from Gascogne or some similar amazing bakery. This is what happens when you eat the best local food.

Inside the restaurant (website pic)

Did you know that my favorite country in the world is Italy? Yes it is! I have been there a few times, went around the whole country on a tour when I was 15 years old and during the years after, I have stayed in villages (we were once in a villa overlooking Tuscany...beautiful) and even stayed in an apartment in Rome near the Piramide metro station. Furthermore, when it comes to Italian food...I've had food that was beyond heavenly and gained about 5 pounds each time I went. This is why when I am back in Montreal, I have a lot of trouble accepting Italian food that is not authentic: Up to now, I've only appreciated the food at Graziella and Da Emma. Thankfully, I just discoverd this restaurant with food that made me experience multiple foodgasms (see definition on the right of the blog). I mean, just the wine was like WHOA so imagine the food.

The restaurant

Osteria Venti is located in the heart of the Old Port and I was quickly attracted by its cozy decor. Brick walls and dimmed lights automatically made me feel warm and at home...just like in Italy :) I loved how the wine selection of the night and the deserts were written on a chalkboard. Their menu is more about QUALITY than about QUANTITY, which is something you do not find often in Montreal with the endless menu pages of many popular restaurants. This particular menu is consisted of different items showcasing regional Italian dishes at their best, with a maximum of 5 well selected choices per course.

The entrance (website pic)

Crostini & Antipasti

I started with a "Baccala mantecato" which is a crostini with salted cod spread (Crostini is Italian for "Little Toast). In comparison to your usual crostini, the bread was not that crunchy but it was actually a good thing, in my opinion. I cannot even find the worlds to describe the taste...it was impeccable and not too much; a perfect start. Afterwards, we had the braised octopus with fennel and capers "Insalata Di Polipo". This delicious dish reminded me a lot of the South of Italy where they eat a lot of yummy seafood. By the way, I said "we" but actually, I did not order this. My friend did but I ate most of it...sorry! I couldn't help it: The tangy octupus tasted way too good.  

My crostini

The yummy octopus

Primi

As a Primi, I ordered the

New night for foodies at my favorite bar in Montreal: I'll House You

The bar

L'Ecurie Bar et Table, a resto-bar located in the heart of Montreal's trendy Plateau Mont-Royal neighborhood, has continued to increase in popularity since its opening in the summer of 2011. Since then, it has been talked about in newspapers including Montreal's Journal Métro and in other popular media. It is my favorite bar in the city because of a few things: Great music (the popular, the hip hop, the old school...just how I like it), good vibe, trendy decor, friendly bartenders and even better.....GOOD FOOD! This shouldn't really be a surprise since one of its co-owners, my good friend and Facebook/local celebrity Jeremie Anfossi Trepanier, is one of the biggest food lovers I know. When I think of him, I automatically think of all of his gastronomical pictures and restaurant "Check In's" on Facebook! Great food and drinks such as the house favorite, the Nouski (a combination of vodka and Orangina) are a great combination to an entertaining night!

The event

Buddha and his sausages

On top of "Les Mardis Pouliches" which is French for "Tuesday's Chicks Night", L'Ecurie Bar et Table added another fun night for my family of foodies: "I'll House You" Wednesdays in collaboration with Felipe St-Laurent and his homemade crafted delicatessen and high end processed meat catering company "Ils en fument du bon" (Google translate that. You will smile :P). Felipe is an unforgettable character: His sparkling and hyperactive personality add an interesting twist to his cooking talents. With all of his experience in the gastronomical and catering industries, he decided to launch his own delicastessen company 6 months ago. Now, on Wednesdays, the customers at L'Ecurie will be able to taste his products & eat some good food, all of that while jamming to some soulful, funky-fresh hip house music. I went to the premiere last Wednesday and had a blast! I felt bad for my friend that is currently in lent  until Easter(good intentions though) because she could not taste the yummy yummy homemade sausages. Oh well. More for me!...muhahahaha Some sausages had cheese in them, some of them were made with Guiness beer and stuffed with mint (yum!) but my favorites were definitely the ones with the black garlic or as Felipe described it best:

I ate extremely well in France

Guys, I know I was m.i.a. for awhile but I'm back!!! 

Recently (meaning earlier this week) I was in France and I ate sooooooooooo well!!! Check out some of my faves!

Le Cinq Mars

51, rue de Verneuil, Paris

Quartier: St-Germain

Click here for the website (English version available)

Best beef tartar of my life. And you guys know how much I love tartar!!! It was sweet and salty, the beef was fresh, it tasted like paradise! The eggs-mayo were surprisingly good! So good that my friends ate most of mine and ordered another one! The mayonnaise was sweet and perhaps had some dijon mustard in it and the salad was a perfect side to it. And what to say about the crème brûlée? Beyond delicious! The food was great yet affordable, 38 euros in total for the apetizer, main course, desert and glass of red wine. The service was also great, thank you Alexandra for this good suggestion :)

Oeuf Mayo

"Saucisse de 'Chez Conquet' et purée maison aka.... Bangers and mash

Tartare de boeuf coupé au couteau aka beef tartar

"Veritable" (True) Mont-Blanc. My friends had a foodgasm 

Creme brulée a la gousse de vanille bourbon

Sandwiches + wine at random bistros in the street

Yep, you read the title right! For about 4 euros, you can get some yummy

Restaurant review: For a trendy burger restaurant downtown, go to I-Burger

Last Tuesday, at around 3 p.m: After work , before Jeanne's shift. As we met on the corners of Peel and Ste-Catherine:

-Me: Yoooo 

-Jeanne: Yooooooooooo 

-Me: I'm hungry

-Jeanne: Me too!! 

-Me: Yoooo what's your budget?

-Jeanne: I dunno like 20 bucks?

-Me: Okkk ok me too (sigh). So I heard about this place called I-Burger downtown. Let's go see and if it's too expensive we'll just got to Mister Steer. Nahhh mean?

-Jeanne: Aiiighhhtt I'm down chikita

Turned out to be a great choice! Located on the always-busy Metcalfe street, the atmosphere was pretty calm when we entered: This was already an interesting aspect for me. Brick walls on one side, painted designs on the opposite wall, dark chairs and....wait...the girl had no menu in her hands. I was already freaking out, thinking "Here it goes. Now we're gonna have to wait for the menus, then wait another 30 minutes until she comes back to take our orders etc etc." However, I was quickly proven wrong and on top of that, was pleasantly surprised. Since I did not have time to research about the restaurant before going, I had no idea about the concept! I work nearby and had gotten good "word of mouth" about the place. Furthermore, the lady kindly gave us explanations on their super cool menu....it's literally on your table! Using the touch screen, you can surf through it, look at the images, order, choose what you want and don't want on your burger and can even

Restaurant L'Atelier: Originality and good taste

You know, I've been to this Mile-End restaurant 4 times already and I cannot believe I have not written anything about it yet! I brought my sister there for her birthday and even held my last birthday dinner there!  L'Atelier is one of my favorite restaurants in Montreal. Wanna know why?

"Tartare de magret de canard aux lardons, framboise et balsamique blanc" (duck tartare) with sweet potato chips

Their menu on a chalkboard (December 11th, 2010)

-It's BYOB (Bring your own bottle), which is great because you can get an amazing bottle at SAQ for less than 20$ and bring it there. I love it because usually, a good bottle of wine costs 30$+ in restaurants. Very interesting to have a gastronomical BYOB, unlike Casa Grecque or Au Vieux Duluth.

-Their menu is ORIGINAL, seasonal and they focus on local foods. Check out the pictures after the break. Did you ever have buffalo ribs (Côte levées de bison), duck tartar or buffalo tartar with a side of

Garde-Manger Restaurant "I'm like, emotional"

To be more specific, I would like to give you the exact quote from Cathy's experience there EN QUÉBECOIS: "Chu comme, émotionelle la, tsé". 

Me, Chuck Hughes and Cathy in the Garde-Manger kitchen

You know sometimes, you go to a restaurant and you sit down, eat and just leave. Regular stuff. But at Garde Manger it was an EXPERIENCE! A pleasant one on top of that! I'm not gonna lie...I had been trying to get a reservation there for the past 3 weeks with no success and when I finally got the RSVP....it was at the bar. Can I say dissapointment? Yes, but not until I actually got there. Sitting at the bar was actually awesome, especially with Zoe offering you drinks and Kyle asking you what your favorite Motown joint is :) Any who, this small cozy restaurant felt just like home the moment we entered it. Brick walls, dimmed lighting, candles, pretty people...how could you not love it? 


Before I talk about the food I am judging that is is very, extremely important to
talk about the first thing that blew me away

Restaurant Vallier: Nice discovery! / Belle découverte!

(Version française plus bas)
After leaving Marché Bonsecours at 10:00 p.m. on Day 3 of MFW, it was quite hard to find a restaurant. Most restaurants were either too expensive (dude, I'm not spending 40$ for your stuff, not today) or had already closed their kitchen.

Nonetheless, we found a good restaurant on McGill! I had heard about it in the past, but had completely forgotten where it was. Lucky us, their kitchen was opened! Vallier Bistro et comptoir is a charming restaurant with an original menu and a good "home" feel, as the service was friendly. Here is a glimpse of their menu: Mac'n' cheese with bacon, game meat loaf with porto foie gras (OH WOW!) and filet mignon napped with onion confit. I had the "paté chinois au confit de canard", which is sheppard's pie with duck and homemade ketchup (superb! it was yummy) and Dimi, who was a bit skeptical, had the simple burger with fries. According to him, it was very good even if I ate all of his fries. We had chicken wings as an apetizer, and if I was with Cathy, we probably would've chosen the beef tartar (I LOVE tartar). We finished the meal with a nice glass of porto. Subliminal. I definitely have to go back and try something else, everything looked good.


Highly suggested!

Après avoir quitté le Marché Bonsecours vers 22:00 après la troisième journée de la semaine de la mode, il plutôt difficile de trouver un restaurant qui n'offrait pas de nourriture "fast food". La plupart des restos au vieux-ort étaient soit trop chers (ok...euh...je ne vais surtout pas dépenser 40$ pour un plat. Non. Pas aujourd'hui) ou bien, leur cuisine était fermée.


Par contre, nous avons pu trouver un bon restaurant sur McGill! J'en avait déjà entendu parler , mais j'avais malheureusement oublié ou c'était situé. Chance pour nous, leur cuisine était ouverte! Le Vallier bistro et comptoir est un charmant restaurant avec un menu original et une atmosphère accueillante, doté d'un service amical. Voici un apperçu de ce qu'ils offrent: Macaroni au fromage & petits lardons (en entrée ou en plat principal), pain de viande de gibier garni de foie gras au porto (OH WOW!) et filet mignon tartiné d'oignons confits. Pour ma part, j'ai choisi le pâté chinois au canard confit avec ketchup maison (superbe!) et Dimi, qui était un peu sceptique, a choisi le hamburger avec frites. Selon lui, c'était très bon même si j'ai mangé presque toutes ses frites. Nous avons pris les ailes de poulet comme entrée et, bon, si j'étais avec Cathy, nous aurions surement pris le tartare de boef (J'adooooore le tartare). Et quoi de mieux pour terminer un repas qu'un bon verre de vieux Porto? Je dois absolument y retourner, et essayer autre chose!


Je le suggère grandement!

Restaurant Vallier

425 McGill

Vieux-Montréal, (Québec)

H2Y 2H1

Click HERE for their website/Cliquez ICI pour leur site web

They are on/Ils sont sur Facebook !

Splurge of the month: "Le Local" restaurant

I'm not even going to explain myself on this one. Everyone deserves a little splurge once in awhile. 

So me and the girls decided to go to a restaurant called Le Local. How do I know about this restaurant? It goes back to the annual book fair (was it in November?), and there, I discovered a SEXY SEXY cook called Louis Francois Marcotte and bought his books (not just because he was hot...really...because the recipes seemed VERY interesting, and not too hard to make). Came to find out he had a restaurant.....read the reviews online (as usual) to find out they were totally mixed...not always a good thing. Asked friends about it, some said it was great, some said it was not bad, too expensive, whatever. So I went for myself to come to this conclusion: SCREW THE BAD REVIEWS! This restaurant was almost a 5 stars for me. Definitely worth the splurge.

Nevermind the fact that my friends arrived a little late. Nice decor, great ambiance, good looking people, good looking wine cellar, good looking menu...good looking food. Oh and very easy to find parking, according to my friend Jessica. How great is it to add that they have one of the best sommeliers in America Elyse Lambert! I saw it on the website but quickly found out she's a genius when it comes to wine. Cathy said she liked some region in the south of France, i said I liked wines from Bordeaux....and the wine waiter brought us this wine called Walden (an delicious wine, 5 years old). Its like she read right through us! We enjoyed every sip. And our friends loved it as well.

And the food...omg...the food....I had  "herbed bread crumbed snail cromesqui" as an apetizer, which is a fancy expression meaning "delightful breaded snails with a tasty sauce underneath". So good. Then had the beef tartare, along with fries and salad. Paradise. As Cathy described: "The beef just MELTS in your mouth. My friend Pairle had the beef flan steak and I guess it was really good because I blinked and it was gone. Didn't taste my other friend's foie gras but I suppose it was great, because it was also gone very quickly.

Anyways, it all cost me 79.01$ (taxes included) for:

-1 mojito (10$....while I was waiting for the girls)

-My part for two bottles of wine (25$...each bottle was 50$ and we took 2...do the math)

-Cromesqui (12$)

-Beef tartar entree (23$)

-SUPERB service by none other than our friendly waiter Mathieu (PRICELESS!!! No for real, left him good tip)

Totally worth the cash. The experience is one of kind; the food, unique. 

Le Local

740 William

Montreal (Quebec)

H3C 1P1

Click HERE for the website.

The owner: Louis-Francois Marcotte

The beef tartar

Foie gras

Photos courtesy of: ME and http://www.resto-lelocal.com/index_en.html

GOOD EATS! Buns, on Ste-Catherine

Ok so my bf is staying downtown, but more towards the west side (atwater). I'm reallly not used to that area and whenever I walk around there, I discover amazing new places! Like the other day, I walked past a lil burger joint called "Buns" and was really intrigued. From outside you see a little window with someone making burgers and potatoes on the grill. And in the corner of the window you can read their limited menu (hamburger, double hamburger, veggie burger with portobello mushrooms, grilled potatoes, soft drink....thats it) and I don't know why this intrigued me so much. But hey, I had stuff to do and never stopped to eat. 

Days went by, I kept thinking about it. I wanted that burger!

So last week I finally went. So you go in, the dude asks you what you want, I tell him id like a burger with no pickles (each burger usually comes with tomatoes, lettuce, pickles, onions, mayo, mustard, ketchup and free mozzarella), the grilled potatoes and a Coke. The he tells me "Great, it'll be 10 to 15 minutes". WHAT??? Wtf.....anyways i frowned a little and sat down to wait for the burger. Good thing about this little place is that they had great music and good speakers....I hadn't heard the No Doubt album in a while...anyways...after a little while I finally got my order....and.....

WOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!! DEFINITELY WORTH THE WAIT!! DAMNNN!!! I wanted to keep the best for last so I started off with the potatoes...I don't know how they make them so freakin delightul. I think they use some of the spices that they use for the burgers...grilled and spiced to perfection (for once, i didn't have to add salt), perfect with some ketchup. Then....."pa padaaaaaaaa"...the burger! Very good!! The meat was also perfectly spiced, and I liked the way they put the tomato and mayonnaise under the burger and not on top (I hate how it always slides whenever I take a bite). The bread was also amazing, not like the cheap ass burger bread you find everywhere else! It was even grilled a little, something I adore. Only thing was that I found the burger a little small for the bun and the ingredients, but it still tasted great.

And all of that for only 7$!!!!!! Tax included! The burger (4$) potatoes (2$) and drink (1$)! NIIICE! Its definitely worth the wait! But while you wait: good music, and funny staff!

So if you're on a budget, around Atwater or Guy metro station and want a great meal with a burger, I strongly suggest this joint! My mouth is watering as I am writing :P


BUNS
1855 Ste-Catherine Ouest (between St-Marc and St-Mathieu)
Montréal, Québec

P.S. When I went on twitter to share my joy, everyone was like "OMG you're so late" lol but hey, better late than sorry right?

*Picture from http://www.offthehook.ca/photos/ssparagraph/1302380005f.jpg