French step
Maeve Haldane
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Le Margaux: Simply délicieux
photo: Joseph Yarmush
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Le Margaux, in new digs to satisfy a new neighbourhood
I missed Le Margaux the first time around, when it was in the space where La Montée de Lait is now. When the owners upped and moved out of town, I figured my chance was gone. So many restos, so little time and all that...But fortunately for me (and Mile End denizens) Le Margaux is back. The owners set up a mid-sized shop on Parc and St-Joseph, in a simple fashion. Some paintings on the wall, wood chairs, white tablecloths, good cutlery with a pleasing heft. The front is all glass so you can look out upon the (not so pretty) stretch of street, and if you're okay with traffic, there's an ample terrasse.
The menu's a nice size and range, offering French-based fare, much of it southwestern, with Euro twists like Basque spicing or gnocchi. The four of us ordered broadly, making tough decisions from among goat cheese and beet, rabbit with prunes, duck magret, beef onglet with mushrooms.
Simple salad and soup started us off. My tomato and red pepper soup had an unexpectedly sour edge, opening up my appetite.
Of the apps, my veal tongue with gribiche shone. Slices of the soft meat were topped with a sauce of finely chopped hard-boiled egg with a touch of mustard and capers. I slipped my mates some tongue and they agreed it was a winner.
My fellow's Landaise salad was a happy excuse for duck in three modes: gizzard, smoked breast slices and a bit of foie gras - varied and savoury. Another app of seared foie gras needed a more consistent crust, but was soft and unctuous within, and gloriously
appreciated. Squid rings in Basque sauce were too salty, but richly flavoured with red pepper. For the main I went bold, choosing the outlandish-sounding trout with foie gras. Though I could have happily eaten all the stacked dish, I shared. "It works!" exclaimed one pal. "It's better than 'works,'" said another. The musky foie gras went beautifully with the strong trout, and dabs of a rich sauce of Floc de Gascogne (a fortified grapey booze) married the two in a smooth union. Mashed squash provided a lovely sweet counterpoint. The squash appeared on all the plates, along with firm-toothed king mushrooms and bright young asparagus.
Another dish's lamb filets were tender and heavily accented with clove. Knobs of dense sweetbreads came along for the ride, and the lucky diner got an elegant spoonful of foie gras crème brûlée too! His white beans were disappointing, though.
The two other mains went surf - four seared scallops with sauces of parsley and Espelette pepper, and a nicely cooked swordfish steak. All platters were practically licked clean.
In the name of research, we squeezed in some dessert. The lavender crème brûlée lacked crackle, but had a balanced floral flavour and was richly creamy - the best of the group. An odd UFO-shaped coconut soufflé glacé didn't know what it wanted to be, at once fluffy and cool. A generous amount of Quebec strawberries in sabayon sauce came in a ceramic rowboat with mint chocolate "oars."
It's rare to have such a good meal for comparatively little cash. Le Margaux fills that oh-so-rare niche of a great mid-range neighbourhood restaurant, the kind of spot I'm always at a loss for when people ask for recommendations. Now I needn't hesitate.
Le Margaux
5058 Parc; 448-1598
Dinner for two, not including wine, tax or tip: $50-$60
I need to confess, I'm really not a big fan of the fancy French food. When I was in Paris a few years back, I never went to the French restaurants there. It's just not my thing. To be honest, I would rather pick up a baguette, some great cheese and wine and sit in a park and watch the city walk by. I'm just not a big fan of duck and rabbit. Despite that, I would make suck it up and bring my parents to Margaux one day, since they do enjoy French food. It seems unpretentious and reasonably priced.
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Reena Tabing
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{9 votes}
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French cuisine is not my thing, personally I find it very heavy and rich, so much so that I feel sick after eating it. Also, the different mix of ingredients is not really up my lane, so I prefer to stay away from French cuisine. Although their desserts are decadent, I still would choose any other restaurant over French. However, for this restaurant, from the picture, I have to say that the place looks very nice and clean...something older people would definately dine at.
But, my main concern is this: Why are so many of these restaurants that Hour reviews on Parc Ave.? Finding parking on this street is a total mess, and there's really no hope in looking by the side streets, since they are all sectored zones.
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Meghna Patel
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{32 votes}
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I gotta say, the review makes this place sound divine and frothy, enough that I'm willing to overlook the location (not a big Mile End fan myself...) but between you and I Le Margaux is just not my style of cuisine right now. The price is appropriate for the menu I guess but these days I'm into more visceral tasting cuisine. This is fine and delightful but I yearn for something with kick. For a pleasant evening this feels like the place to book but for something more basic and strong it doesn't feel like it to me. Just my gut call from what I've read so far.
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Pedro Eggers
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{33 votes}
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Well in reading this article I was thrown off by the location of this Resturant. Sometimes the location is enough to stop a business from going very far. Sa much as I enjoy French food , I also want to be in a pleasant area since I am paying to go out and eat then I want to enjoy the ambiance. Now in the summer time people like eating in the terrace, by the discription of this location it is a noisy place and probably full of car fumes. Le Margaux might have to move in the near future again until it finds the perfect little spot that will please their customers cause that is what it is all about.
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Maria Cecillia Silva
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{16 votes}
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| Mile End is where it's at! |
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Location, location, location. Le Margaux is yet another example of the richness our city has in being able to eat well in just about any area in Montreal. Granted Mile End is not just "any" area. The Mile End is definitely on the upswing and the place to be these days for good times and great food. Le Margaux also seems to have surpassed the critical location change that sometimes brings with it quality issues and failure to recreate the feel the original restaurant had.
Although we have quite a selection of French restaurants to choose from, le Margaux sounds like winner with daring dishes and affordable pricing. The "rapport qualité /prix" factor seems bang on and might push me over the edge to give this one a try. I'll skip dessert though...
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Ronny Pangia
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{21 votes}
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The area is surely giving the plateau a race for its plate. This new gem is amongst the many sprouting up in what's going to be the next plateau.
I like the sound of Le Margaux and the review has made me hungry already. Anyplace with a coconut souffle glace has got my vote. Definitly will be dining at Le Margaux.
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Eric St-Pierre
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{12 votes}
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