Wilfrid sur Laurier Chef Michel Ross Names His Top Montreal Spots

This week The Gazette / Urban Expressions profiles Michel Ross, the ex-Brunoise and MAS Cuisine chef who recently took over the old La Petite Ardoise with Wilfrid sur Laurier.

In the interview with Amie Watson, Ross cites Claude Pelletier (Le Club Chasse et Pêche) as a crucial mentor: "Claude gave me my first break. To this day I still have a lot of respect for him."

Ross also talks about the menu at Wilfrid sur Laurier and how it differs from his previous stints in Montreal. As for his favourite food spots in the city, the likes of Balconville, Wellington, Le Club Chasse et Pêche, L’Express, Leméac, Pâtisserie Rhubarbe and Les Chocolats de Chloé all get nods. Notably, the chef feels like Jonathan Lapierre-Réhayem of Laloux deserves wider recognition.

As for how Montreal stacks up in the restaurant world, Ross says:

Montreal isn’t as big of a metropolis as we think.

"I think we have nothing to envy, except maybe that Montreal isn’t as big of a metropolis as we think. The key thing is our audience would have to be larger to compete with cities like New York and London. There’s something called a transient clientele—business people and other people coming through town regularly. Toronto has that. But Montreal’s share of that is limited. Keep in mind our size. But it makes us more resourceful."