Category Archives: Montreal Burger Report

The Montreal Burger Report visits Uniburger

Howdy!

A short video I made about the hamburgers at Uniburger

The Montreal Burger Report on CJAD

Howdy!

I should seriously discuss with the powers that be at Astral about turning this into some kind of regular paying gig. On Friday I was invited to be on the Tommy Schnurmacher show (guest hosted by James Mennie) so as to discuss hamburgers in Montreal. Somehow extraterrestrials got in the picture as well.

The Montreal Burger Report on CJAD

Listen (19:53):

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.


Download:
Ogg Vorbis 10MB, MP3 18MB, WAVE 402MB

If you would like to hear some of the previous times I have been asked to talk about hamburgers on CJAD: The First Time and The Second Time.

La Belle et La Boeuf prise deux

Howdy!

Yet another reason why not to go to a restaurant immediately after their grand opening. Back in June, a bunch of us went to La Belle et La Boeuf. Their grand opening 9sorry you need to be signed in to Facebook to see the pictures) was at the beginning of April, and my rule of thumb is three months to work out all the kinks, get the staff working together as a team and in general have it working as a well oiled machine.

While for most people the experience in June was fine, I ended up having to send back not one, but two burgers (and man do I hate wasting food) because they weren’t cooked properly, and for the most of our evening the service was nowhere near up to snuff. But word got back to management, and I received an invitation for a make over, a second chance, a redo, or if you prefer a chance to wipe the slate clean and start over. They were offering free burgers in order to show us that the previous time had been an anomaly.

It only took us a month to get our act together (and we almost didn’t!) but by then, La Belle et La Boeuf, had passed the three month probationary period and on the surface it seemed like everything would work out. The first sign that things would work out, was that my name had been circled in the reservation book. I wasn’t certain if I should be honored, scared or or if it was merely do alert the staff. I’m kind of used to being noticed and recognized in restaurants, but I do think that this was the first time I had been felt a tinge of embarrassment upon sitting down (I was the last one to arrive, and as a consequence everyone else pointed out and/or asked if I had seen that my name had been circled). I think I was able to stop the blush before it reached my Adam’s apple.

The second sign that everything would work out was immediately upon sitting down, I was asked what I would like to drink. The first time we had been there, they hadn’t received their liquor license. Liquor with my meal, while not a deal breaker, does go a long way to making bad situation easier to handle. Back in June without any liquor, it was kind of like they were flying without a safety net. I got a pint of Okanagan Spring which is distributed here in by Sleeman’s Quebec (aka Unibroue), which in turn is owned by Sapporo.

Okagnagan Spring Beer at La Belle et La Boeuf
Okagnagan Spring Beer at La Belle et La Boeuf

Some of my dinner companions decided to go all girly (it’s a good thing that they are all women) and ordered a pitcher of Rose Sangria. Thankfully my manhood wasn’t questioned and no one offered (or forced) me to taste it. I was told on very good authority though that it was delicious, but since I have hair on my chest that I am proud of, sing with the worst tenor voice you have every heard in your life and can grow both sideburns and a mustache (but won’t anymore) I wouldn’t be caught dead drinking something like that.

Rose Sangria at La Belle et La Boeuf
Rose Sangria at La Belle et La Boeuf

You can judge for yourself.

But we weren’t there for the drinks, we were there for the burgers. La Belle et La Boeuf makes their burgers from 8 ounces of Certified Angus Beef from Alberta that as they point out has never been frozen. They specify the shoulder, I would think Chuck, but translating cuts of beef from English to French is never an easy thing. So take whatever I say with a large grain of salt.

Since this was a free pass, I decided to leave my comfort zone and try something unusual that I would normally never ever order (kind of like the Rose Sangria, but in a meat form). La Belle et La Boeuf offers eighteen (18) different types of burgers ranging on price from $10.95 to $29.95. The low end of the price spectrum gets you a standard issue burger, with lettuce, tomato and onion. As you move through the range of offerings they offer additions like Monterey Jack cheese, fried eggs, peanut butter, Meyer lemon mustard, Brie cheese, an eggplant puree, grilled pineapple and a bunch of other things as well. I’m certain that if you wished you could get a burger with the items in the Calimero (fried egg, smoked bacon, lettuce, onion and mayo) with that of the Goldorak (Mozzarella, pepperoni, merguez, spiced ground beef(?), homemade tomato sauce and fried onions) to make some kind of Manga Super Chicken Robot burger. Or if you prefer the Calimero and the Billy Idol (caramelized onions, grilled pineapple, sunflower greens, blue cheese, guacamole and a dijon mayonaise) into a Funky Chicken burger. Personally, this time I chose a Calimero, there was something appealing about the fried egg, with peanut butter (I’ve been kind of going through a phase recently…). As you might expect I ordered it rare.

Calimero Burger with Peanut Butter at La Belle et La Boeuf
Calimero Burger with Peanut Butter at La Belle et La Boeuf

As you can see I ordered mine with onion rings instead of french fries, and behind that behemoth is a quarter of a kool-aid pickle

My dining companions ordered La Boeuf (cheese sauce, jalapenos, red pepper and blue corn chips), the fish burger(!) – she also was the one drinking the Rose Sangria, The OMG burger (double patty, American cheese in both colors, onion rings, extra bacon, tomato, onion, lettuce and a mustard-y mayo), La Belle (Brie and Monterey Jack cheese, fig jelly, arugula and caramelized onions) and a Classic with bacon and cheese (onion, tomato and lettuce).

Half of a very rare Calimero Burger with Peanut Butter at La Belle et La Boeuf
Half of a very rare Calimero Burger with Peanut Butter at La Belle et La Boeuf

Judging from the time stamps on the pictures I took, it appears that the burgers took about 8 minutes to appear. There are benefits to getting your name circled in the reservation book. As you can see my burger came exactly as ordered and was particularly delicious, or if you will allow me, a particularly sloppy and messy delicious taste sensation that accomplished just about everything I asked of it. There’s nothing like reverting back to my inner adolescent while scarfing down a fairly decadent burger to put a large smile on my face (along with some egg yolk, peanut butter and spicy mayonnaise, thankfully there were napkins available).

While I am not 100% certain that everyone at the table was as happy, sated and satisfied as I was with their burgers, I believe it due more to the fact that I was kind of on top of the world, and in relative terms they were just above the arctic circle. Or in plainer language, I really really enjoyed the experience and I think everyone else only really enjoyed it. In speaking of the experience, I should mention that La Belle et La Boeuf is in a new building (as is everything at Centropolis) that has exposed brick walls, something like a 25 foot ceiling, and has been designed to evoke some kind of retro feel. Although it is not an age, era or period specific feel (or at least I didn’t think it was) more like, “there’s something old, lets put it on the shelves! It’ll add atmosphere.” It appears to be geared to young professionals and students living in Laval (or at least that’s what the crowd looked like on the nights I was there. I wasn’t quite the oldest one in the restaurant, but lets say the next oldest) and as a consequence the music can get kind of loud and there are TVs on the wall. They also have a small-ish terrace that looks out on Centropolis if you want to eat outdoors. My preference when eating outdoors is to eat someplace where there are plants and trees and grass, but that’s just me.

The address is 510 promenade de Centropolis. If you’re interested in other opinions, this is what is being written about them on Yelp, RestoMontreal and Urbanspoon. Their Twitter account is, sadly, underused and their Facebook page is not viewable to the general public, but I’m certain over time, like the food these kinks will be worked out.

And finally, if you’re still reading this far, on Monday the 13th, they are having a special Opening Party to celebrate their liquor license.

La Belle et La Boeuf Liquor License Party
La Belle et La Boeuf Liquor License Party

I think everyone is invited.

The Montreal Burger Report Visits The Nouveau Palais, the video

Howdy!

A short video I made about the hamburgers at The Nouveau Palais.

Le Dégueu Burger coming November 4! to Le Salon de Quilles 300 au Max

Howdy!

Normally I don’t do promo, but this one is too good to pass up. I’m definitely going to have to find someone to drive me to Longueuil in two weeks. See y’all there!

De la rue aux etoiles – The Eva Blue photographs

Howdy!

My friend Eva Blue takes much better pictures than I could ever hope to do. This is her batch from Wednesday night’s burger challenge.

kitchenette
Kitchenette‘s Chicken Fried Chili Cheeseburger with roasted peppers.

le boucan
Le Boucan‘s jalapeño smoked burger. A Stuffed smoked jalapeño wrapped in bacon and served in a bun with homemade condiments.

jolifou
Le Jolifou‘s smoked apple wood salmon with sweet cherry bomb pepper crystals and an aioli chipotle sauce.

chez l'epicier
Chez l’Épicier‘s double burger of seasoned duck and foie gras with figs.

pintxo
Pintxo‘s foie gras burger.

le st-urbain
Le St-Urbain‘s osso bucco burger. A braised veal shank burger on a smoked duck fat and pecorino bun.

le grain de sel
Le Grain de Sel‘s mini boudin burger with banana chutney, aioli, chocolate and ancho chiles.

barroco
Barroco‘s pork and truffle burger. Braised pork served on a homemade bun, topped with peppercorn pecorino cheese and a truffle and cauliflower remoulade.

bice
Bice‘s Angus beef and mozzarella burger.

ferreira
Café Ferreira‘s spicy three meat burger with Serra cheese on a Portuguese bun.

burger judges
Me looking pregnant with the other judges and MC after eating all ten “burgers.” From left-to-right; Jean-Philippe Tastet, Ryk “E Coli” Edelstein, yours truly with the eight month-old belly, Lesley Chesterman (looking lovely as usual) and Anne-Marie Withenshaw.

the montreal burger report
Discussing the finer points of cooked ground beef…

And there are tons more here.

De La Rue aux Etoiles – The Burgers

Howdy!

Last night I participated in the Dans La Rue fundraiser, De La Rue aux Etoiles as a judge because they were serving burgers. Or so I was told. In fact it was a phenomenal event, basically a cocktail dinatoire (doesn’t it sound much better in French?) where they served a bunch of appetizers (or as is the current style, tapas) that just so happened to be on a bun.

Thankfully, no one called them sliders. After 10 of them, I was just a tad stuffed.

We (Ryk ‘E Coli’ Edelstein, Jean-Philippe Tastet, Lesley Chesterman and Peter Iliopoulos) were served our burgers without knowing which restaurant made them. Although in certain cases it was fairly easy to identify a certain chef’s handiwork, however in other cases we were completely and utterly wrong.

From Le Boucan: A Jalapeño smoked burger. Stuffed smoked jalapeño wrapped in bacon and served in a bun with homemade condiments
From Le Boucan: A Jalapeño smoked burger. Stuffed smoked jalapeño wrapped in bacon and served in a bun with homemade condiments
From Le Boucan: A Jalapeño smoked burger. Stuffed smoked jalapeño wrapped in bacon and served in a bun with homemade condiments
From Le Boucan: A Jalapeño smoked burger. Stuffed smoked jalapeño wrapped in bacon and served in a bun with homemade condiments
From Barroco; a pork and truffle burger. Braised pork served on a homemade bun, topped with peppercorn pecorino cheese and a truffle and cauliflower remoulade
From Barroco; a pork and truffle burger. Braised pork served on a homemade bun, topped with peppercorn pecorino cheese and a truffle and cauliflower remoulade
From Barroco; a pork and truffle burger. Braised pork served on a homemade bun, topped with peppercorn pecorino cheese and a truffle and cauliflower remoulade
From Barroco; a pork and truffle burger. Braised pork served on a homemade bun, topped with peppercorn pecorino cheese and a truffle and cauliflower remoulade
From Le St-Urbain: An Osso bucco burger. Braised veal shank burger on a smoked duck fat and pecorino bun
From Le St-Urbain: An Osso bucco burger. Braised veal shank burger on a smoked duck fat and pecorino bun
From Le St-Urbain: An Osso bucco burger. Braised veal shank burger on a smoked duck fat and pecorino bun
From Le St-Urbain: An Osso bucco burger. Braised veal shank burger on a smoked duck fat and pecorino bun
From Le grain de sel: A boudin mini-hamburger with banana chutney, aioli, chocolate and ancho chiles
From Le grain de sel: A boudin mini-hamburger with banana chutney, aioli, chocolate and ancho chiles
From Le grain de sel: A boudin mini-hamburger with banana chutney, aioli, chocolate and ancho chiles
From Le grain de sel: A boudin mini-hamburger with banana chutney, aioli, chocolate and ancho chiles
From Pintxo: Foie gras burger
From Pintxo: Foie gras burger
From Pintxo: Foie gras burger
From Pintxo: Foie gras burger
From Bice. Angus beef and mozzarella burger
From Bice. Angus beef and mozzarella burger
From Bice. Angus beef and mozzarella burger
From Bice. Angus beef and mozzarella burger

This was the first ‘real’ burger…

From Chez l'Épicier: A double burger of seasoned duck and foie gras with figs
From Chez l'Épicier: A double burger of seasoned duck and foie gras with figs
From Chez l'Épicier: A double burger of seasoned duck and foie gras with figs
From Chez l'Épicier: A double burger of seasoned duck and foie gras with figs
From Kitchenette: Fried chicken chili cheeseburger
From Kitchenette: Fried chicken chili cheeseburger
From Kitchenette: Fried chicken chili cheeseburger
From Kitchenette: Fried chicken chili cheeseburger

The roasted peppers with cheese were delicious.

Fom Café Ferreira: A spicy three meat burger with Serra cheese on a Portuguese bun
Fom Café Ferreira: A spicy three meat burger with Serra cheese on a Portuguese bun
Fom Café Ferreira: A spicy three meat burger with Serra cheese on a Portuguese bun
Fom Café Ferreira: A spicy three meat burger with Serra cheese on a Portuguese bun
From Le Jolifou: Smoked apple wood salmon with sweet cherry bomb pepper crystals and an aioli chipotle sauce
From Le Jolifou: Smoked apple wood salmon with sweet cherry bomb pepper crystals and an aioli chipotle sauce
From Le Jolifou: Smoked apple wood salmon with sweet cherry bomb pepper crystals and an aioli chipotle sauce
From Le Jolifou: Smoked apple wood salmon with sweet cherry bomb pepper crystals and an aioli chipotle sauce

Ryk ‘E Coli’ Edelstein ended up in knots as his vote was the tie-breaker between Barroco and Ferreira. Le St-Urbain, Kitchenette and Barroco were the top vote getters by the public.

The Montreal Burger Report on CJAD

Howdy!

Episode 308 [15:55]
Download: MP3 (Part 1, Part 2) / Ogg Vorbis (Part 1, Part 2) or Stream

Last week I was a guest on the Barry Morgan show on CJAD to talk about hamburgers. If you missed it, you can hear it here.

Le Jolifou, 1840 Rue Beaubien Est
Pataterie Chez Philippe, 1877 rue Amherst
Mr. Steer, 1198 rue Ste-Catherine O
Brasserie T!, 1425 Rue Jeanne-Mance
Lawrence, 5201 boul. St-Laurent
Bagel’s etc., 4320 boul. St-Laurent
Helm, 273 rue Bernard Ouest
Laura suggested the Burger Bar, 1465 rue Crescent
Tim suggested The Burger Bistro on Saint Jacques
Ryk suggested Tous les Jours, 1689 Avenue du Mont-Royal Est & Nouveau Palais, 281 Rue Bernard Ouest
Wayne suggested Dilallo, 2523 rue Notre-Dame O & Bun’s Hamburger House, 3673, boul Saint-Laurent
Barry suggested Decarie Hot Dog, 953 boulevard Décarie
Michael suggested Moe’s (aka Casse Croute du Coin), 2214 Maisonneuve West
Michael suggested Mama’s, 1805 boul. O’Brien & Paulo et Suzanne, 5501 boul. Gouin Ouest
Christine suggested La Belle Province
George suggested Burger de Ville, 59 Westminster N

Information on Dans la rue’s From the Street to the Stars is here.

The Montreal Burger Report’s (incomplete) Map of Burgers in Montreal:

And if you’d like to hear the previous discussion about burgers in Montreal on CJAD, click here.

The Montreal Burger Report on CJAD

Howdy!

Episode 291 [17:41]
Download: MP3 24MB / Ogg Vorbis 9MB or Stream

Last week burgers were the topic on the CJAD program Delmar at Night. If you missed it, you can listen here. Mr. Lew was also a guest.

Listen

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Balkan Foods [The Montreal Burger Report]

Howdy!

Episode 277

Balkan Foods
7333, rue Saint-Hubert, Montreal, QC H2R 2N4, Canada
(514) 273-7239