Tour de Montréal alimentaire pt. 2

     Last week I posted about Montreal's interesting native cuisine, as well as my experiences trying them. From that post I'm sure you could gather that Quebecois cuisine lacks any level of healthiness, and would assume that I couldn't withstand a six month diet of just these foods. With that being said, throughout my time in Montreal so far I have enjoyed many foods that aren't native to the area. For the most part, Montreal is a very white area lacking much of any ethnic group. This means that unlike New York City or similar areas, Montreal lacks an abundance of ethnic food options. I personally prefer these types of foods generally, so I have been on a mission to find the best spots since my arrival.
     One interesting style of food I had not tried prior to visiting Montreal is Portuguese. Portuguese food could be most easily compared to Brazilian food, due to the large use of rotisserie or pit style cooking for meats. Brazilian food generally focuses on beef and lamb, however the Portuguese mainly use rotisserie style cooking for chicken. In last week's post I spoke about a restaurant named Ma Poule Mouillée that integrated Portuguese rotisserie chicken into the Montreal staple, poutine. After first visiting this restaurant I became interested in Portuguese food, and kept an eye out for other interesting places serving it. On a quaint road near my house I found a small, semi-formal restaurant serving Portuguese fine dining named Chez Doval. I waited a couple of weeks to try it, eventually deciding to go on the evening of my twenty first birthday. I ordered a traditionally prepared Portuguese steak, and waited excitedly to try it. After tasting the steak I was thrilled with my choice, the meat was wonderfully seasoned with a Portuguese mixture known as piri piri, and was topped with fried egg for added deliciousness. The plate was served with a side of fries and salad that rounded out the meal nicely.
     Along with interesting new finds, there were also certain types of ethnic foods that I consider a  necessary part of my diet. The two most important being Japanese and Pakistani food. I love all types of Japanese food, but I knew specifically that I needed to find a sushi bar that I could visit regularly. This proved to be a bit harder than it has in other cities, most likely due to Montreal's lack of nearby water actually clean enough to fish out of. The first few establishments I tried proved this point, all serving mediocre quality fish in uninteresting ways. Eventually though, with the help of Yelp, I was able to uncover a hidden gem on one of Montreal's most interesting streets, Duluth. The sushi bar is named Saint Sushi, and is owned by an interesting group of multi-ethnic friends that prepare sushi in untraditional ways. All of their rolls bear the names of famous musicians: Bob Marley, Michael Jackson and John Lennon to name a few. This theme doesn't matter much to me, however the way they integrate these rolls into their three course tasting menu does. The tasting menu starts with two wonderful small plates, before the finale of two intricate rolls are presented. I've gone back multiple times after my first visit, and still haven't been able to order anything different than the tasting menu!
     My search for Pakistani food was a bit easier, as I managed to find a great place on the first try. The Naked and Famous offices and warehouse where I work are located near one of the larger Middle Eastern neighborhoods in Montreal. This being said, it wasn't long before I ventured out on my lunch break in search of Pakistani food. I found a small family owned establishment named Sana, that offers an array of Arabic foods and sweets. I've gone back many times, with the standout items continuing to be the tikka grilled meats, garlic naan and the irresistibly sweet gulab jamun.
    These three restaurants are a few of my favorites, however there have been many more that I've enjoyed over the past few months. I look forward to my last few months in Montreal, and can't wait see what other new restaurants I can find.