The first time I came to Sala Rosa was on New Year's Eve about five years ago. I didn't even know it was a restaurant then. I thought it was just a live music venue, which is still a lot of peoples' reactions when I tell them it's the city's best kept Spanish secret. My friend … [Read more...] about La Sala Rosa’s New Menu: Quality Spanish Classics at an Unbeatable Price
Restaurant Reviews
Gluten-Free Fine Dining at Three of Montreal’s Newest Restaurants: Hvor, Le Fantôme and Candide
Eating out is hard when you're gluten free. Even with a recent resurgence of heritage grains and healthy rice bowls, it's really nice to not always be stuck eating at home. Sure, it'd be nice to go to Patisserie Patrice and buy something gorgeous and flaky and creamy (life's … [Read more...] about Gluten-Free Fine Dining at Three of Montreal’s Newest Restaurants: Hvor, Le Fantôme and Candide
Living for Charcuterie, Chicken and Chenin at La Buvette Chez Simone
How do you define Montreal as a food city? We have a little of everything, but we specialize in a very open interpretation of French-inspired cuisine. We're grazers – a little of this and a little of that, all accompanied by a glass of wine or a beer. And we enjoy a place for … [Read more...] about Living for Charcuterie, Chicken and Chenin at La Buvette Chez Simone
Omnivore Grill and the Story of the Plateau Work Lunch
Has Yotam Ottolenghi taken over the world? Perhaps not, but he's certainly a big reason that Middle Eastern cuisine is big right now. And with a strong Syrian community in Montreal (and proud reps from the rest of the Middle East), the city isn't lacking hummus. Damas, Sumac, … [Read more...] about Omnivore Grill and the Story of the Plateau Work Lunch
The Great St-Henri Taco Crawl 2016
Okay, fine, the title's a bit ridiculous, because there couldn't have been a St-Henri taco crawl in 2015 – there weren't enough taco places! But like I said when I threw the "1st Annual Volk/Watson Christmas Extravaganza," there will obvious be more years of this awesome event to … [Read more...] about The Great St-Henri Taco Crawl 2016
La Mar Restaurant: A Peruvian Expat in San Francisco
La Mar is the bay outpost of Gaston Acurio's cevicheria in Lima, Peru. I fell in love with the open-air restaurant in a quiet area of Miraflores when I was there two years ago. The corvhina traditional ceviche with braised sweet potato and pale, large corn and a simple, perfectly … [Read more...] about La Mar Restaurant: A Peruvian Expat in San Francisco
Fine Dining in San Francisco: Sushi at Maruya
San Francisco doesn't lack for great restaurants, but what I lacked was enough days to eat everything! So after a lot of research (thanks, Tiberiù, Caterina, Cai and Google algorithm developers), I settled on one meal of Japanese oseki fine dining at Maruya, one happy hour and … [Read more...] about Fine Dining in San Francisco: Sushi at Maruya
Houston Avenue Bar & Grill Takes Over the Former Cavalli Space on Peel Street
Joe Mercuri might be known for the grill in his eponymous fine dining restaurant in the Old Port. But he's also been the man behind the menu at the Houston's chain of restaurants for years. Apparently they begged him. And he finally caved, as long as he could introduce a local, … [Read more...] about Houston Avenue Bar & Grill Takes Over the Former Cavalli Space on Peel Street
Yonaka Modern Japanese: Best of Vegas Off-the-Strip
Years ago I created a research document on the best, coolest, newest restaurants and chefs in Las Vegas off the strip for a travel spinoff of Bitchin Kitchen on Food Network US. It aired one season and I didn't get to travel with the production team, so while I knew everything … [Read more...] about Yonaka Modern Japanese: Best of Vegas Off-the-Strip
It’s Pronounced Poké: This healthy Hawaiian rice bowl is the next sushi (with gluten free options!)
That's what owner Allen Mouradian thinks, and so do a lot of restauranteurs in other cities – that poké is the next big thing in Montreal. We're the latest city to get on the poké bandwagon, and Le Poké Bar on Crescent St. north of de Maisonneuve is the first restaurant in the … [Read more...] about It’s Pronounced Poké: This healthy Hawaiian rice bowl is the next sushi (with gluten free options!)