Montreal: Markets, Brunch and Parks

May 16, 2012 By Smith & Ratliff in Food, Living, Travel 3 Comments Tags: bikes, brunch, canada, greenmarket, montreal, parks, photos, spring

After sleeping in following gorging ourselves the previous night, we woke up a little later than anticipated, but excited to be in a new city nonetheless.

We planned on using bikes to get around the city for most of the trip, and since our hosts already had one bike, we only needed to rent one. We had heard a lot about Montreal’s BIXI bike share program and were eager to test it out. We were surprised how easy it was to get set up, and within minutes Laura had her own bike to use whenever we needed one.

After getting a feel for the city’s many bike lanes and paths, we headed over to the Mile End neighborhood for brunch. The ride over from our apartment was quick and painless, and after a brief wait (which we used to stroll around the neighborhood), we were seated at Lawrence, a contemporary brunch spot similar to something we would find in SoHo or the Village.

We both loved the charm of being greeted everywhere in French, but were grateful when servers and hosts quickly switched over the English, avoiding our painful French.

Laura had delicious housemade soda bread topped with bacon, fried eggs and fiddleheads. I had a rich French toast with strawberries and cream. We also shared a refreshing Pimm’s Lemonade—an early taste of one of our summertime favorites.

After brunch, we hopped back on the bikes and rode up to the Jean-Talon Market.

Like New York City greenmarkets, Jean-Talon featured a lot of Québécois farmers selling their goods, but unlike New York’s markets, the perimeter of Jean-Talon is lined with permanent shops—fromageries, chocolatiers, ethnic food stores and fishmongers among others.

We paused for a few minutes to enjoy a few freshly-shucked Canadian oysters before we rejoined our bikes and rode back down to the beautiful Parc-La Fontaine to sit in the grass and enjoy the rest of the afternoon.

- Ryan and Laura

Montreal: Au Pied de Cochon

May 15, 2012 By Smith & Ratliff in Food, Travel 3 Comments Tags: au pied de cochon, canada, dinner, montreal, restaurants, spring

One of many reasons we were looking forward to visiting Montreal was Au Pied de Cochon. Chef Martin Picard has created a temple to all thing foie gras and porky in his rustic, welcoming restaurant on Avenue Duluth.

As soon as we knew for sure we were coming to Quebec, I immediately made our reservation, for the first night of our trip, at Au Pied de Cochon.

Luckily, the apartment we’re staying in is just a short walk away, so after a brief rest and freshening up, we walked through Parc-La Fontaine, braving a light rain, on our way to undoubtedly our most anticipated meal of the trip.

Both the dining room and service at APDC is warm and friendly and we were thrilled to see Chef Picard–a burly, boisterous gent—storming about the dining room. After listening to the multitude of specials, we started with a glass of the Au Pied de Cochon namesake beer and ordered our meal, tentatively asking our server if what we ordered would be enough. She assured it it would be, but I failed to notice the gleam in her eye. If only we knew!

Our first course out of the kitchen was a tempura-battered soft-shell crab in a sushi rice cone with—what else?—foie gras and a side of pungent fish sauce.

The presentation and general idea behind this course seemed very different from APDC’s general approach to food, but we loved it nonetheless. The crab was cooked perfectly and discovering the little lobe of foie gras inside was a treat. It made us look forward, even more, to what else was to come.

Next, we went with one of the specials—a rustic pork pâté served with buckwheat crêpes and maple goat cheese. The buckwheat crêpes were warm and the goat cheese was deliciously sweet. Meanwhile, the pork was a chunky, hearty blend. A bite combining all three at once was heavenly.

Then the real fun began…

The next two dishes out of the kitchen were undoubtedly the most mind-blowing of the evening, even though we were already thrilled with what we had eaten. We (perhaps naïvely) ordered the restaurant’s namesake dish topped and stuffed with foie gras. Imagine our surprise when an entire roasting pan was placed on our table, filled with the fried pig’s foot, vegetables, mashed potatoes, and yet another large lobe of foie gras.

This was followed by poutine, the traditional Québécois dish of French fries topped with gravy and cheese curds, also topped with lobes of foie. It initially sounds a little off-putting, but once you have it, it’s easy to see why people like it. In fact, the little boy sitting behind us on the train ride asked his mother, multiple times, if he could have poutine when they got home!

By this point, we were in serious pain and looking down the face of more foie gras than either of us had ever been served at once. We managed to eat all of the foie, at the expense of the other food. (Although I would say that we put a serious dent in both plates.) Ryan said he was as full as he was following the tasting menu at Per Se, which is saying a lot. We forewent dessert and walked home, slowly, relishing in the first of several excellent meals.

(I’ll also admit that we had a slightly lighter dinner at APDC on our second night in Montreal. We were strolling around the neighborhood and had yet to find anything that sounded good, so we ducked in, totally not expecting to get a table, but lo and behold, we had another superb meal.)

- Laura and Ryan

Montreal: Via Amtrak

May 14, 2012 By Smith & Ratliff in Travel 2 Comments Tags: canada, montreal, spring, trains

Whenever we travel, Laura and I cut costs by swapping apartments. We weren’t planning any trips this spring, but a few months ago Laura saw a listing for a couple in Montreal who wanted to stay in Manhattan in May. We figured why not?

After working out all the details with our new French friends, we decided to forego a plane trip in favor of the Amtrak Adirondack line, direct from New York City to Montreal’s Central Station. The price was right and we heard from friends that it was one of the most scenic trips they had ever taken.

After waking up a few hours before our usual time, we headed to Penn Station and boarded the train to Montreal. The trip was scheduled to take 10 hours including all stops, so we settled in for the long journey.

We didn’t end up sleeping very much, as the scenery kept us awake for most of the trip. The first leg of the journey took us along the Hudson River, with views of the Palisades, West Point, Bear Mountain and other natural landmarks. Soon the background changed to sprawling farmland and small towns before we sidled up next to luscious green Vermont and Lake Champlain. It took a few cups of coffee to make it to this point, but the train was comfortable (despite the non-functioning WiFi) and we were enjoying the new experience.

Finally, we reached the border where we sat for about 45 minutes after customs agents inspected everyone’s passports and declaration forms. This was definitely the least interesting part of the trip, as the café car was closed and the scenery not so interesting.

We got on our way and a little more than an hour later, we pulled into Montreal’s Central Station, ready to find our little apartment and prepare for our first Québécois experience: dinner at the famed Au Pied de Cochon.

- Ryan and Laura

Melvin’s Juice Box

May 11, 2012 By Smith & Ratliff in Drink, New York No Comments Tags: greenwich village, melvin's juice box, miss lily's, restaurant

Adjacent to the excellent Miss Lily’s on Houston Street, is the new home of Melvin Major—the juice king of New York.

Melvin developed a celebrity-cult following during his years at Lifethyme Market a few blocks up Sixth Avenue, and, at the beginning of this year, finally broke away to open his own spot as part of the Miss Lily’s empire.

The space is located in the back of Miss Lily’s Variety, a shop that sells rare and influential Reggae vinyl along with posters and other memorabilia.

The store is as bright and happy as Melvin himself with blue-and-white tile floors, colorful peg menu boards and vintage tables and chairs.

The juices all have clever names like “Jamaican Green” and “Catch a Fire” and are all made using organic fruits and vegetables. We love “The Real V-8,” a mix of kale, collard greens, cabbage, red onion, red pepper, tomato, lemon, ginger, garlic, apple cider vinegar and cayenne pepper.

Juices aside, the shakes are a personal favorite of ours. Unlike some big name places around town they aren’t watered-down with a ton of ice or made into sugary confections. The protein shakes aren’t just breakfast worthy—you may find yourself not wanting lunch either.

If you are still feeling peckish, the food menu has Jamaican staples like beef patties and jerk chicken, perfect to enjoy on the benches out front or at one of the tables in the presence of Melvin, working his magic.

Indeed, the best thing about the Juice Box is Melvin himself. He is simply a joy to be around, and maintains a smile the entire time you’re talking to him. He is passionate about the juice he makes, and has definitely worked hard to make sure each recipe is perfect.

When I asked for a picture he responded sternly “Five dollars!”, but after waiting a few seconds he flashed his blinding smile at me, let out a hearty laugh and told me to take as many as I wanted as he continued chopping away at lemons and beets.

We’re hoping Melvin stays right where he is this time, though now that we’ve discovered his addictive elixirs, we would probably follow him wherever he might go.

- Ryan

P.S. Enjoy your weekend! We are off to Montreal on Saturday a little mini-vacation next week. We’re taking the Amtrak up, which we’ve heard is gorgeous. Anyone ever done it?

A Daily Dinner: Fettuccine with Nettles and Lemon

May 10, 2012 By Smith & Ratliff in Food, Living 1 Comment Tags: greenmarket, nettles, pasta, vegetarian

One of my favorite parts about getting New York Magazine every week is the “In Season” feature. In this one page feature, the magazine has a New York city chef pick an ingredient that’s currently available at the greenmarket and share a recipe using said ingredient.

Most of the ingredients are basic seasonal staples—overwintered spinach, broccoli raab, asparagus—but every so often they throw something a little more exotic into the mix. Last week: stinging nettles.

I try a lot of the recipes featured, but whenever I can get my hands on something out of the ordinary, I go for it. Just $1.75 later, I had a huge bunch of stinging nettles.

Now, as you might remember from childhood (and as I do very well from gorilla trekking in Africa a couple of years ago), stinging nettles aren’t pleasant. The leaves are covered with hundreds of minuscule spines that cause a rash and irritation. Surprisingly this goes away once they’re cooked, but I still donned my rubber gloves as tore the leaves.

Even after blanching in salted water, the nettles were delicious. They were soft, like cooked spinach, but had an earthy quality that I can’t really compare to anything else. I likely could have eaten them all on their own, but alas, the accompaniment of fresh fettuccine from Murray’s and bright mascarpone and lemon pushed the dish over the edge.

Fettuccine With Nettles and Lemon
Adapted from New York Magazine

6 oz. stinging-nettle leaves
1 lb. fettuccine
2 tbs. extra-virgin olive oil
2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1 tsp. black pepper
Pinch of chile flakes
Zest and juice of 1 lemon
2 1/2 tbsp. mascarpone
2 tbsp. Parmigiano-Reggiano

1. While wearing gloves, pick off the nettle leaves and discard tough stems. In a pot, blanch the nettles in boiling salted water and drain.

2. Roughly chop the nettles and reserve. In a large pot, bring salted water to a boil and cook pasta until al dente. While the pasta is cooking, heat two tablespoons of the olive oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add garlic, black pepper, and chile flakes, and cook until the garlic is golden brown. Add the chopped nettles to the pan and toss with the garlic until the nettles are warm. Add half of the lemon juice, and remove the pan from the heat. Stir in the mascarpone and half of the lemon zest with the nettles mixture. Finish cooking the pasta, reserving a little of the cooking water, and drain.

3. Return the sauté pan to the burner over medium heat. Add the pasta and toss with the reserved pasta water and the nettles mixture. Adjust seasoning with the remaining lemon juice and zest, and more black pepper. Finish with the Parmigiano-Reggiano and olive oil.

Despite the delicious plate of pasta, our meal wasn’t yet complete. I sautéed up some beautiful overwintered broccoli rabe (note the gorgeous yellow blossoms), also from the market, and we sat back and enjoyed both our meal and the Kentucky Derby, juleps in hand.

- Laura

P.S. If you want something a bit more “tame” (or simply don’t care for eating poisonous plants—completely understandable), the asparagus soup from this week’s In Season feature sounds excellent.

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