A while back, I commented on a fellow Canadian blogger’s post about the famed Montreal restaurant Le Pied de Cochon and wondered whether maybe I might eat there during an upcoming visit…
Evelyne emailed me back to ask if I might want to meet up for drinks when I was in Montreal and of course I said yes! Events conspired that we only had about 2 hours to meet, eat and drink but, taking one for the blog, we both thought that we could manage that!
We headed out to a bar-resto called L’appartement. Very trendy and probably packed most weekend nights but Evelyne being the savvy Montrealer, had booked us a table at the granny hour of 6.30 when clearly all the cool people come out for drinks (errr…not!).
We thought a drink and a couple of snacks might be appropriate at that hour and Evelyne filled me in on the excellent trick of going to more expensive places and ordering “small bites” (appetizers or side dishes) so that you get to taste everything and not pay a full meal price. I am not sure that would go down so well in Toronto but apparently in Montreal, it’s quite acceptable. Cool.
We ordered martinis:
Green Tea for Evelyne:
and Basil-Blueberry for me:
Not too sweet, not too herby, this was a perfect end to a long day! Whilst we had our drinks, we perused the menu:
Evelyne chose what all good filles Québecoises would choose: Tartare de bison façon classique avec croûtons $11
and Sauté de champignons sauvages avec basilic frais $4
I chose crevettes tempura, sauce teriyaki au sésame grillé $9
Delicious little bites of plump juicy shrimp in a thin batter with a great dipping sauce:
It was short but sweet – so much fun to meet bloggers you read regularly in person! If you are even in Montreal, get in touch with Evelyne – she knows all the cool places to go! And I would totally go back to this bar-resto on another visit to do the drink/snack thing.
Resto L’appartement
600 Rue William,
Montreal, QC H3C 1N6
(514) 866-6606
Great treat, and you seem to have enjoyed yourselves!
I love Montreal! This post makes me want to go back there immediately! Looks like you had a nice time.
How come you guys didn't invite me? I'm crushed. Don't even have a martini to drown my sorrows. And don't go giving me the old 'thousands of miles' excuse, I've heard it all before!
oh fun great times to meet friends and eat good food have fun in lovely montreal lol Rebecca
Wow what a great post…and I am already nostalgic. We had such an awesome time and it was a pleasure to meet you. Here is to you showing me a trendy place in TO soon!
Laura, tokyoterrace – thanks!
Conor – well you know I think the martini would spill on the ride over!
Rebecca – cheers!
Evelyne – it will be my pleasure!!
All of these dishes look terrific, loved the drinks! What a great time you must have had.
this place looks great! i've been wanting to visit Montreal for the longest time… wil def check this out if I ever go…
no bloggers in ur area, no problem! come to NYC and you can hang-out will us =)
Fresh Local – yup – it was all great!
and this blog – you should. and perhaps we might meet in NYC next year…
What? No dessert???
I want to hang out with you guys: Cheap Ethnic Eats (protesting the z, however (pet peeve)) sounds like the perfect blog for me, besides yours of course, and your drinks and apps meal is my favorite way to eat. Or a tasting menu. I love not only to try a lot of different things, but I like eating them WITH people so we get to compare notes. But seriously, I'm with Mary-Laure: no dessert? You could have split TWO!
Oh the drinks look fantastic! I love Montreal!! Btw, I'm up for a Toronto blogger event when we're both in town!
WOW!!! those pictures look so edible I'm reaching through the screen! I like the insider tip of heading out upscale but just doing the drink appetizer thing- more fun and safer on the pocketbook too.
Mary-Laure and Kablooey – it was JUST apéro so having dessert might have been a bit excessive…
HighLow – hopefully sooooon… Here or there…
Linda – thanks! and yes, it's a great concept – more restaurants should allow it especially in this economy….
Sounds like a great time! I'm all about drinks and appetizers 🙂
Jen – good times indeed!