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Sarah Musgrave provides the first serious review of Café Sardine's izakaya and quickly homes in on what may well be Montreal's new food addiction: "Karaage chicken ranks high in the world pantheon of fried chicken. Iwashi's was a no-brainer. Served hot and crisped with aioli and cabbage, it delivered with gingery-salty marinade on the meat under the dry crunch of a deep-fried crust. (Danger: It can be ordered to go, tempting for a midnight nibble.)" [Gazette]
Saint-Henri's H4C earns an endorsement from Lesley Chesterman, thanks, in no small part, to one dessert: "Served on a long plate, the mix included an apple sorbet, an apple brunoise, apple jelly, muesli and a large quenelle of buckwheat ice cream. The way that gorgeous ice cream played off the muesli was brilliant, but the inspired addition of a slice of cheddar cheese in the middle of it all took this dish to another level." [Gazette]
Ludger is about as hot as it gets in Montreal and Marie-Claude Lortie is down: "Rien de gastronomique, rien de néo-créatif. Rien de post-moderne non plus. Juste de la bonne bière, de bonnes huîtres, des bons plats. Mais surtout, surtout, une atmosphère sympathique." [La Presse]
Jean-Philippe Tastet heads to Granby to check out the restaurant of a Joe Beef alum: "Quand on a du talent et qu'on travaille fort, en sortant de chez ces gens-là on finit rarement à la plonge ailleurs. François Côté a du talent, travaille fort et a ouvert son restaurant L'Impérial à Granby. Excellente idée, les bonnes tables n'étant pas légion dans la région." [Le Devoir]
Meanwhile, back in the city, Gildas Meneu considers Maghreb microresto La Petite Adresse a hidden gem: "Une cuisine parfumée, savoureuse, servie avec amour par une équipe passionnée." [Voir]
Gemma Horowitz likes Mile End's new pizzeria, Moteur: "The space itself has been given a trendy update and has the potential to turn that sleepy corner of Outremont into more of a destination. But, really, it's the pizza that matters." [Cult MTL]
Less review than synopsis, Thierry Daraize lists the particulars of the recent Massimo Bottura and Umberto Cesari collabo at Graziella from this past Monday. [Le Journal de Montréal]
[Photo: Randall Brodeur]