236 St. Zotique St. E. (corner Alma St.); 514-273-5776; www.ilmulino.ca; wheelchair access; reservations are essential; valet parking; vegetarian friendly; major cards; price range: $$$-$$$$.
Photo The Gazette
Chef Tony De Rose and partner Aniello Covone
Ever have the perfect restaurant dinner? I've dined out hundreds of times but have only experienced a handful. What do I mean by perfect? Seamless service, welcoming ambience, appealing surroundings, skilled wine choices, and, most especially, flawless food.
6422 St. Laurent Blvd. (corner Beaubien St.); 514-276-0444; www.apolloglobe.com; wheelchair access; reservations recommended; major cards; vegetarian friendly; parking easy on surrounding streets; price range: $$-$$$.
Seafood Salad at Apollo Bistro
There is no Montreal chef I find harder to review than Giovanni Apollo. This is the fourth time I'm writing-up one of his restaurants, and I'm just as puzzled after this meal as I've been in the past.
The first review came in 2001, after I dined at Tentation, a restaurant with excellent if somewhat fussy food, located in a dreary space unworthy of its glitzy occupant. The next was for The Lychee Supper Club, where the surroundings were impressive, but the fussiness of the food veered out of control. Think bison tataki with sautéed Thai vegetables and grilled shiitake mushrooms. Get the picture?
6896 St. Dominique St. (corner Bélanger St.); 514-906-0765; www.rarebarandgrill.ca; no wheelchair access; parking: difficult; try Jean Talon Market parking lot; price range: $$$.
Published on Aug 23, 2008
Photo John Kenney, The Gazette
While squeezing nectarines at my local Metro store, I ran into a friend and frequent dining companion. After exchanging rain-soaked stories of our respective summers so far, we rolled our carts over to the vegetable section and glanced - with despair - at some rusty green beans.
"I'll pass," I said. "Anyway, I'm going out for dinner tonight."
My friend's eyes widened. "Where?" she enquired, with a sparkle in her eye.
"A new place in Little Italy," I answered. "I think it's called Rare."
77 Shamrock Ave.(corner Casgrain St.); 514-750-0774; Open: Tuesday to Friday,
11 a.m. to 11 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday brunch, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.,
and dinner 5:30 p.m. to 11 p.m.; Wheelchair access; Price range: $$-$$$.
Published on Jul 27, 2008
Three weeks ago I reviewed the West Island restaurant Trattoria Mundo, owned by a certain Vito Maiolo, who just so happens to be the cousin of one of the city's top chefs, Joe Mercuri of Brontë. My review finished with these words: "Here's hoping there are a few more Mercuri cousins out there willing to open a Mundo in a neighbourhood near us."
Hold that thought.
The weekend after that review, I was double parked on Casgrain St. while a friend picked up a few baguettes at the Jean Talon Market when I spotted a new restaurant in the space that last housed the coffee and sweets shop Spice Safar, and before that what I recall was a pretty mediocre panini place. The sign read Basi, and what caught my eye was an especially fetching 30-seat terrasse with elaborate banquettes and cushions worthy of a Ballet Russe production of Shéhérazade.
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