Tag: restoslovedandliving

Restaurants loved and living: Côte de Boeuf


I love casual French restaurants. And my favourite thing to order in causal French restaurants is steak frites. That’s why  Côte De Boeuf is one of my Loved and Living restaurants. Ever since I left the sidewalks of Ossington Street to step inside, I’ve been a huge fan. I’ve lost track of how many times I’ve been there since that first time many years ago.

It’s a perfect little restaurant/grocer. You can stop and just purchase some of the beautiful meats they have in the window. During the pandemic, I would at least do that. But my preference is to go and grab one of their tiny tables along the wall with barely enough room for a plate and a glass and a single votive.

And what good plates and glasses of wines they have! While they do many things well, from oyster to charc’ to dessert,  I cannot resist ordering their steak frites. The fries are wonderfully prepared, and their steak is top notch.  Even when their steak prices leapt up, I still kept going, it was that good and worth the trip. Their wines? French, of course, and a perfect accompaniment for any thing you order.

If I lived nearby I’d go once a week. Alas, in recent years I have not  gone at all, due to it being overwhelmed with guests. Even in summer when they have a patio, it can take a long time to get in, if you can get in at all. And no they don’t have reservations. There’s nothing causal about that, I am sad to say.

This week my sadness turned to delight when I heard that they are creating a sister restaurant in my favorite neighbourhood in Toronto, the Annex. Even better, they’ll be taking over the space left by the closing of the By the Way cafe. That means more seating and more chances for me to go. I don’t think it will be once a week, but it will be with some frequency, that’s for sure.

Here’s hoping the new sister restaurant will be open come December. I can’t wait to go, no matter how big or small their table tops are. All I need is enough room from a plate, a glass, and a single votive.

"Steak

Restaurants loved and living: L’Express

L’Express restaurant: just the thought of being there again makes me happy. I’ve gone countless times in the last few decades. Whenever I am in Montreal, even if just for a day, I dine there. Everything about it is great: the bistro food, the great value French wine, the superb waiters, the classic decor, and especially the big jars of cornichons. I love the ravioli and the hanger steak, followed by one scoop of ice cream (preferably maple),  but I have never been disappointed with whatever is served.

I was worried about it during the pandemic, but they seem to have muscled through those lean times. No doubt because of its many fans who have been there since 1980, and who no doubt will still be going in 2080.

I suspect they will have even more fans now that Michelin has arrived in Quebec and awarded it a Bib Gourmand. While I am agree with Leslie Chesterman that Michelin got things wrong on their first swing at Quebec, the tire people did right awarding a Bib to L’Express. It truly is “good quality, good value cooking”.

So the next time you are in Montreal strolling the great street of St. Denis, pop in to L’Express, either to have some wine (it’s also a great wine bar) or better yet find a table, scan the wonderfully printed menu, and settle into a plate of savoury bistro food. You won’t be sorry.

For more on L’Express and it’s history, check out this piece in the New York Times.

(Photos here from the Times piece. For more restaurants loved and living, see here.)

Restaurants loved and living: The Senator

Like Okonomi House and Le Paradis, the Senator restaurant is a much loved restaurant I’ve been going to for a long time (the 1980s), though it predates that era by many years. It has the same 1930s ambiance of Le Swan and The Lakeview, two other Toronto restaurants I love. And while it has many fine things on the menu, the one reason I go there for is the breakfast.

The last time I went I splurged and got the steak and eggs (seen above), as opposed to the bacon and eggs, which was my Usual. Either dish is excellent. Also excellent: their coffee. Make sure when you go there to get some of their excellent brew: it’s hot and tasty and endless and served up in an old school diner mug.

When the pandemic hit I feared it would be one of the places to go under. Fortunately it held on, and the last time I went for brunch on a Sunday, it was packed with theatre people who planned to go to the Ed Mirvish show next door once they had their fill. That busyness was great to see.

When I was younger I would make my birthday a vacation day and I would start it with a trip to the Senator. I did that for decades. In all that time, the food and coffee and decor has been consistent and great. While they seem to no longer offer breakfast dishes on the week days, you can still get that and more if you hit them up for brunch on the weekend.

Whenever you go to the Senator, by all means go and soak up all that 1930s diner goodness. Get some coffee too. You’ll be glad you did.

Restaurants loved and living: Okonomi House

I’ve been going to Okonomi House since the 1980s. And what has changed over the years is…nothing. It was great then and it’s great now. They still serve pretty much the same food now that they served then, with the crown jewel being the okonomi style pancakes like the one below.

They serve other things too, but for me that’s what I go for when I go in. It’s sweet, it’s savory, it’s delicious. Just spread that mayo dollop all over the pancake and dig in!

There have been changes, but they are very minor. Young people seem to run the restaurant now, and they have tweaked the menu and added new things. Gone is the cup of soup that I loved even though it was literally Cup of Soup! In its place is a classier miso soup option. They have a nicer bathroom also: no longer are boxes piled up in it. Otherwise, the place is timeless. I hope it never leaves.

For more on it, BlogTo has a review, here. Read that, then go. I went a few Fridays ago and it was packed at around 7:30 pm. The good news is table turnover is fast (and service is great), so if you can’t get a seat right away, just wait for a few minutes and you’ll be soon eating okonomi in no time. 

 

 

Restaurants loved and living: Le Paradis

Starting during the pandemic, I wrote a series of posts on restaurants loved and lost, inspired by a piece in the New York Times on places that vanished due to the pandemic.

I’d like to go in a different direction and talk about restaurants loved and living. These are places I’ve loved long before the pandemic that are still going strong. First up is Le Paradis.

I’ve been going to Le Paradis since the 1980s. Back then it was known for reliable French bistro style food and great prices. Jump forward 40 years and…it’s still the same.  If anything, I’d say the cooking in the last year has improved greatly. Before you could excuse the so-so cooking because it was so inexpensive. Now you don’t need an excuse, because the cooking is really good. And still inexpensive.

I was worried about it during the pandemic, and even went and dined in the alley near the restaurant just to give them a chance to stay in business. Lucky for me they made it. Lucky for you, too.

So ignore reviews like this and go and have a $12 cocktail, a $45 bottle of wine, and a steak frites dinner almost half as expensive as other places in the city.  If you’re by yourself, take advantage of the zinc bar up front. Or sit at the banquettes near the kitchen (my favourite spot).  There’s plenty of places to sit — it’s a fairly big place — though a reservation is still a good idea. Especially if you want to sit outside when the weather is warm.

Did I forget to mention that the service is great? Well, it is. So tip well. You’ll have no excuse after all the money you save.