Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Global Traditions
188
Au Pied du Cochon
Meat Me in Montreal
Montreal, Canada
In the Plateau Mont-Royal neighborhood,
this storefront restaurant doesn't look all
that special. It used to be a pizzeria, and
with its white tile walls, honey-colored wood
trim, stainless steel counter, and refriger-
ated case, you could still easily mistake it for
one. But no pizzeria could generate the kind
of buzz that pervades this place. It's packed
to the walls every night (except Mon, when
it's closed) with giddy Montrealers eager to
delve into some of the most satisfying old-
style French-Canadian food around.
Chef Martin Picard's unabashed love of
meat, especially foie gras, is all over the
menu; give him half a chance and he's likely
to pour maple syrup on top too. Game
meats like bison, venison, duck, and guinea
hen seem to have displaced tame beef and
chicken, and like the early settlers, Picard
doesn't seem to believe in wasting any parts
of the animals—there's an entire section of
offal items listed. (The only pizza on the
whole menu is a tripe pizza.) Sure, there are
a few obligatory salads among the appetiz-
ers, even a classic French onion soup
grat-
iné,
but somehow what you find yourself
salivating over are items like duck carpaccio,
bison tartare, and roast suckling pig.
When the pizzeria owners moved out,
they left behind a brick oven, and Picard
uses it to roast his meats until they are
ready to fall off the bone. The namesake
pied de cochon
(pig's foot) comes in two
versions, with and without foie gras; the
pot au feu,
served in a portion for two, is a
savory combo of boiled beef, bone mar-
row, vegetables, foie gras, prairie oysters,
and Guinea hen. Picard also serves the
Québecois comfort food
poutine,
a yummy
mess of french fries, gravy, and cheese
curds, on top of which he'll also throw foie
gras if you'd like. Perhaps the most Cana-
dian dish of all is the ridiculously delicious
Plogue à Champlain,
a slab of foie gras
topped with a buckwheat pancake, bacon,
onions, potatoes, and maple syrup.
Reserve as far in advance as you can
(phone works better than e-mail, so you
can negotiate a time and date). Even with a
reservation, you may find yourself hustled
along once you've eaten; someone else is
sure to be waiting for your table. The joint is
exuberantly noisy and crowded, and when
you stand up after your meal, you'll proba-
bly take up more space than you did an
hour earlier. Blame it on the foie gras, eh?
536 Duluth St. (
&
514/281-1114;
www.restaurantaupieddecochon.ca).
(
Aéroport International Pierre-Elliot-
Trudeau de Montréal (14km/8
3
/
4
miles).
L
$$$
Hôtel Le St-James,
355 rue St-
Jacques oust (
&
866/841-3111
or 514/
841-3111; www.hotellestjames.com).
$$
Auberge Bonaparte,
447 rue St-
François-Xavier (
&
514/844-1448;
www.
Chef Martin Picard's Au Pied du Cochon.
