Montreal Shut Out of enRoute's 2015 Best New Restaurants in Canada List

EnRoute, Air Canada's in-flight magazine, released its much-anticipated 'Canada's Best New Restaurants' list today. In contrast to years past, no restaurants from Montreal made the cut. Jatoba, Pizzeria Gema, Salmigondis, Lavanderia, and Val-David's La Table des Gourmets, were all eligible for the magazine's top ten this year. Food writer Andrew Braithwaite, however, preferred others. Two Quebec City restaurants, Ciel!, and Le Renard et La Chouette, were also shut out. The lone Quebec representative on the list was Soif, the Gatineau wine bar from sommelière par excellence Véronique Rivest. Here's the list:

Air Canada enRoute 2015 Canada's Best New Restaurants

1. Pigeonhole (Calgary, AB)
2. Port City Royal (Saint John, NB)
3. Pilgrimme (Galiano Island, B.C.)
4. DaiLo (Toronto, ON)
5. Bar Raval (Toronto, ON)
6. AnnaLena (Vancouver, B.C.—People’s Choice Award winner)
7. Adelaide Oyster House (St. John’s, NL)
8. Yasu (Toronto, ON)
9. Enoteca (Winnipeg, MB)
10. Soif (Gatineau, QC)

Jean-François Légaré, editor-in-chief at enRoute, responded to a query about Montreal's exclusion with this statement: "As you know, our writer never chooses restaurants based on their location. This is just the way it happened this year. We had good Montreal restaurants in our finalists, and I’m sure the city’s newest crop of dining spots will do great next year." Montreal restaurants have previously fared well on enRoute's popular, annual list; Maison Publique, Le Vin Papillon, Nora Gray, and Pastaga, most notably. To Légaré's point, there's every reason for optimism in 2016, what with quality contenders like Le Fantôme, Lili Co., Damas, Montréal Plaza, and Le Mousso in the mix. Fingers crossed.