My brother came back to Toronto for a visit, so he and my mom decided to take a trip to Montreal for the weekend.  They were only staying for two nights, so I didn’t really have anything planned for them except that we were going to try out some good restaurants in the area.

Thursday night was Au Pied de Cochon, which I thought would be a good way to start things off, but when we got to the restaurant they had lost our reservation!  They offered to get us a table as soon as possible but we still had to wait another 40min before getting seated.  Well, at least they didn’t turn us away like they did to the other cutsomers who didn’t have reservations.  My mom and bro found the foie gras poutine to be absolutely amazing, but my mom was not so impressed with the Duck in a Can and the Happy Pork Chop.  I think it was a bit of a meat overdose for her, but I don’t blame her.  I mean, look at the size of that pork chop!

Friday, I had to work most of the morning, so we went out for lunch closeby to this bistro called Vallier.  I’ve been here for dinner before, so I trusted the quality of their food.  My brother ordered a lamb burger and my mom and I shared a leek and potato soup, a salmon tartare and some fries.  This is definitely a good place to go for reasonably priced French food that tastes great!

After lunch, we went for a walk in Old Montreal.  We paid a visit to the Notre Dame Basilica.  The inside of the church is so beautiful.

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There is also a small chapel at the back of the church with a beautiful alter crafted in wood.

For dinner, we tried a restaurant called Toque which was recommended by one of my foodie clients.  This restaurant is pretty upscale and their prices are a bit higher than the bistros that I’ve been going to lately.  At first I thought we weren’t really dressed up enough for the restaurant especially because my brother was wearing shorts!  But, since we were tourists, it was ok, and nobody seemed to mind.  Another customer was even wearing flip flops.

They started us off with an amuse-bouche of corn mousse.  I don’t think I’ve ever had corn-flavoured mousse before, but it was quie an interesting taste and the mousse was more like a foam that melted as soon as you put it into your mouth.

I didn’t see anything that excited me that much on the appetizer list, so we just ordered a grilled Mackerel and gave it a try.  It was pretty good; the way it was cooked is very Japanese.

For our mains, we got shoulder of suckling pig, Atlantic halibut, and cavatelli with veal meatballs.  I really liked my veal meatballs.  They were really tender.  The halibut was cooked perfectly as well and the suckling pig just as tasty.

Dessert was millefeuille with fresh berries (for two).  It tastes aboslutely as good as it looks!  They also gave us some tiny blueberry macaroons to finish off our meal.

Overall, I think the quality of the food was really good and the portions were just right, but I think that the food is slightly overpriced at $40 a dish.  I think you can get the same quality of food elsewhere for 3/4 of the price.  I think I would only come back to this restaurant if someone else was treating me!  hahaha

On Saturday morning, we visited the St. Joseph’s Oratory which was located on Mount Royal.  This church is not nearly as grand as the Notre Dame Basilica but it was nice because it was situated on top of the mountain and it had a nice little garden in the front.

I really wanted my mom and bro to try the French toast dessert at Lemeac, so I took them there for lunch.  They actually have a pretty good brunch menu on Saturdays and Sundays, and the restaurant is not as crowded at this time, so I would recommend going there for brunch.  My mom and I shared the smoked salmon and poached eggs on top of blinis and a side of fries.  The French make such good fries, I just can’t stop eating them!  My brother tried their risotto with asparagus and wild mushrooms.

This time I was able to take a picture of the inside of the French toast.  The toast tastes like cake!

Our last stop before my mom and bro headed back to Toronto was at Schwartz Deli.  You can’t find a line up like this anywhere in Toronto!

My sandwich tasted pretty good.  I think they gave me medium or lean meat cause it wasn’t that fatty.  It probably would’ve tasted better if I ate it while it was hot though.

On Sunday, I walked along the entire rue Ste. Catherine by myself but I didn’t buy a single thing!  If you weren’t here for the partying, I think Montreal would be a pretty boring place if not for all the wonderful restaurants, bistros and cafes.

P.S.  The Holts on Bloor beats the one in Montreal x1000.