Marcus Samuelsson Restaurant, Four Seasons Montreal to Open Earlier Than Expected

In a surprise twist, Montreal’s luxury new Four Seasons hotel and its restaurant from acclaimed American chef Marcus Samuelsson are now set to open almost a month earlier than planned.

The hotel announced Thursday morning that its official opening is now scheduled for May 8 — previously, the hotel was only accepting reservations for early June. Marcus, the in-house restaurant, will have the same official opening date.

Samuelsson’s offerings at the de la Montagne Street hotel will be two-fold — there’s the main restaurant and its large, breezy terrasse, taking a brasserie approach, but also Marcus Bar + Lounge, with a relatively casual vibe.

Samuelsson, known for his work at New York’s Michelin-starred Aquavit and his own Harlem restaurant Red Rooster is one of the biggest imports to Montreal in years. But details about the offerings at his eponymous restaurant are still fairly slim — renderings of the space (with elaborate design work from Zebulon Perron) are available.

The restaurant will lean into seafood and vegetables and feature a raw bar, but beyond that, few precise details about the restaurant’s offerings have been released yet. In an interview with the Gazette last week, some potential dishes were unveiled — for example, there should be robata-style (Japanese grill) items such as salmon belly with uni butter, nori, maple, and shiso leaves.

That Gazette piece also unveiled some of the key staff for the restaurant — the chef de cuisine is Nicholas Bramos, a curious selection, given his last post was at Taverne Moderne 1909, the large restaurant owned by the Montreal Canadiens. Then there’s sommelier Gabriel Bélanger, who has worked with the famed Burj al-Arab hotel in Dubai. Marcus’ pastry chef, Frank Vilpoux, also appears to hail from abroad, coming from the Institut National de la Boulangerie Pâtisserie in Paris.

Note: Marcus Samuelsson is hosting a show created by Eater and PBS. This does not impact coverage on Eater Montreal.

• Big Name American Scandinavian and Soul Food Chef to Open Montreal Restaurant [EMTL]
• Harlem Chef Marcus Samuelsson’s Montreal Restaurant Should Be Here in June [EMTL]
• Chef Marcus Samuelsson hopes you’ll think of his new place as your place [Montreal Gazette]