One More Reviewer Smiles on Moleskine’s Pizza

The new-ish pizza spot from the people behind Pullman wine bar is four for four from the city’s reviewers, as Le Journal de Montréal critic Thierry Daraize drops by Moleskine to slap them with a bunch of stars. To be clear, Moleskine is sort-of two restaurants in one, with the casual pizza-oriented space on the ground level and chef Frédéric St-Aubin’s more formal dining room on the upper level, and the critics didn’t all review the same part, but all the words spilled about Moleskine have been almost uniformly positive. Daraize raves about the melon salad and the finest duck breast he’s had in moons, and deems the simple approach to pizza delicious. His only complaint is a caramel tartelette dessert that comes with a few too many caramel and chocolate bells and whistles. Four stars. [Le Journal de Montréal]

At La Presse, reviewer Marie-Claude Lortie seems to be having a frustrating month without any overwhelmingly positive eats, as she serves another tepid review after visiting St-Henri’s Restaurant 3734. You may remember 3734 from when their grocery store was ransacked by anarchists in the spring; over on their restaurant side, Lortie does have a slightly more positive take than the anarchist crowd. After a long digression that almost amounts to a review-within-a-review of the Ferreiras’ new casual Portuguese rotisserie spot Campo, Lortie declares the piri-piri chicken accompanied by “divine” fries to be the star at 3734, but finds “rien de spectaculaire” outside of that. She is semi-appreciative of the restaurant’s lack of pretension, but when that chill approach goes too far and a server is relatively unknowledgeable about the wine menu, it’s a little problematic. [La Presse]

At the Montreal Gazette, Lesley Chesterman approves of Mile-Ex spot Manitoba’s hearty meats and root vegetables just as much as her last visit over two years ago. Of course, Manitoba’s original chef Chris Parasiuk has since departed and Cedric Nolet, of the defunct L’Atelier, is now at the stove. Chesterman finds it more relaxed than she remembers, and is appreciative of Manitoba for not letting its menu get overly austere as the cold end of harvest season arrives. Her faves include the texturally varied cauliflower salad, a liver mousse with blueberries and pecans, and a “succulent” guinea hen main. Three stars. [Montreal Gazette]

And at Le Devoir, Catherine Ferland takes on Quebec City French spot L’Affaire est ketchup and heartily approves. Four stars. [Le Devoir]

• Juste du bonheur [Le Journal de Montréal]
• Restaurant 3734: poulet pas prétentieux [La Presse]
• Masked Mob Menaces, Robs New Montreal Restaurant and Boutique [EMTL]
• Manitoba still strong after fire and shifting chefs [Montreal Gazette]
• Reviews for Manitoba, Grain de Sel and More [EMTL]
• L’Affaire est ketchup dans Saint-Roch [Le Devoir]