Bangkok Express

Tonight we went as a whole family for supper to Bangkok Express (on Monkland) to celebrate my Mom's birthday. I suggested the place because a) it's close to where we live (unlike the previous Express) b)I went there for the first time a few days after my recent trip to New York and was amazed by their quality considering the paltry sum of money my meal costed and c) I really wanted to go there again, simply as that.


Furthermore, I find that Bangkok Express tastes authentic. I'm not a thai aficionado, just a little obsessed with coconut milk, but having been to a Laos-Thai authentic restaurant for an anthropology project a year earlier, I can remember some of their traditional meals like sticky rice and papaya salad, all of which you can find on Bangkok's menu as well. I had a chicken green curry which had too much galangal to my taste. (The only reason I know what galangal is is because I was helping the cook during this). I gulped mouthfuls of my Mom's cashew shrimp and my sister's Pad Thai. And instead of the usual fortune cookie, they bring you coconut cookies for dessert. This makes me really really happy.

 Voga, one of my favourite white wines

 birthday girl

 spring rolls, as the menu says" with or without shrimp"... are you feeling lucky?

 peanut dumplings

 shrimp with basil

 chicken green curry

cashew shrimp

 pad thai

 I love you Mom!

Tri Express

I am so proud of myself. Last night, I finally went to Tri Express, Montreal's worst kept sushi secret. How many people told me to go there - I have lost track. We had a late 8:30 reservation and had I known the place seats only about 20 (+ worst kept secret = packed), I wouldn't have got lost by going West instead of East out of the metro. By the time we realized we were walking in the wrong direction (+ already late = not good), I called to make sure we still had a table... and was told we'd sit at the bar.

An eternity later, we take our seat at the bar and here I am, taking my trench off, explaining to the waiter that I've neeevvveeerrr been so East in Montreal in my life (out loud and all) when ...

I see, behind me, Denis Gagnon.

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And it's Karl all over again.

I turn around, quick, sit down and see Tri Du, the world-renowned sushi chef, in. my. face. Thank God he turned out to be funny, warm and unintimidating because all along I was smiling at him, thinking how will I have the courage to stand up, professional camera in hand, and ask Denis Gagnon for an internship autograph. Or picture. Then my Omakase 1 arrives. (The other fabulous thing about Tri is that unpretentiously their menu is online, so instead of spending half an hour in the restaurant making up my mind, I spend half the day at home thinking about what I'll want comes supper). And at the first bite, I understand why I spend so much energy locating this place, why I've been promising friends I'll go there, I even forget Denis Gagnon is behind me.

 Tri Du

sashimi à la manière de Tri

 all the orders passed in front of us and Monsieur couldn't help to take pictures

 hanging from the ceiling

 the bar, with all the ingredients in front of our eyes

 Buddha Maki and something else Saralina took

 my heavenly Omakase 1

 the Tri special sauce, the chef told me to use it as soya sauce

 St-Joseph, notice the white mushrooms

Monsieur took Quebec and Montreal, notice the asparagus

After all this bliss, we sipped some Japanese rice tea and I watched Denis Gagnon leave, red-faced and bombarded with texts about WHY I didn't talk to him.

Later I shared my excitement with the waiter, who said he's a regular but didn't know who he was. All I know is, next time I'm going to Tri, I'm ordering Omakase 3, CV in hand.

Qing Hua Dumpling

If you Google "Montreal" and "dumpling" together, your first find would be Qing Hua Dumpling. And that's because it is popular and people like it a lot.


I remember the first time I ate their dumplings at a friend's house (they do take out); I wasted no time and asked my friend about their location... and in vain searched for it for weeks. (At that time they were moving to their current 1676 Lincoln location).

When you come into Qing Hua, you right away notice through a window in the wall their kitchen, and the hands of Chinese ladies preparing the dumplings. You instinctively know that your meal will be fresh. 


Tea is served. Come for lunch and you get a cabbage salad and a miso soup gratis. Then order lamb w coriander dumplings and pork with mushrooms or beef with onions. That's my top three without hesitation. And when your dumplings arrive, mix in a bowl the soya sauce, the vinegar and the red chilli spices (I call this mix the Qing Hua sauce) and dip your food in it, one by one. Absolutely divine.

Savvy's Chilli

Guys, I'm too nice. I'm giving you away a recipe LEGEND. A chilli recipe, courtesy of my friend Savvy, so successful, whenever a party opportunity presents itself, I go...


"I'm BUYIIING TEQUIIIIIIIIILLLLLLLLAAAAAAAA"


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in the hopes of Savvy making her chilli.


Here goes:

1 onion

2 cloves garlic, minced

500g ground extra lean meat

1 can red kidney beans

1 can black pinto beans

2 bell peppers in the colour of your choice, chopped

1 can diced tomatoes

1 can corn niblets

1 package of “old el paso” chilli seasoning

4 tblsp tomato paste

4 tblsp olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

In a pan, pour the oil, let it warm, and throw in the onion that you will chop prior to this.

Red onions are always a nice twist to this recipe, but a regular one will do.

Once the onions have lightly browned, throw in the beef and let it cook slightly in order to cut it into small pieces with a wooden spoon. 

After the beef is thoroughly cooked, add the beans to the pan and let them warm up. A variation that can be considered here is adding chopped, boiled potatoes or sweet potatoes. They add wonderful texture and are good filler for the chilli. 

Next, add the chilli seasoning and one cup of water then stir it and let it simmer. 

In a pot, throw in chopped bell peppers, tomatoes, and corn and heat them up. Note that you can also spice things up at this stage with hot peppers but when serving many people, it is best to play safe and allow each individual to heat up their own portion as opposes to the whole dish.

Then, add the contents of the pan into the pot, stir, and finally, add 4 tblsp tomato paste to bind all the ingredients together. If the result is too thick, reduce it by adding water.

 Serve in a bowl and garnish with sour cream, shredded sharp cheddar or Monterey jack, and chopped cilantro or parsley if desired.

with freshly-made guacamole, it's a party!

cheers!

best. game. ever.

Chez Ennio

Whenever I go to the basement-level Maisonneuve and du Fort restaurant, I know I'll come out satisfied. Chez Ennio oozes coziness and comfort. The decor is kitschy and the music classic. The little often packed ristorante is filled with regulars, or group dinners, people who all know what they came in for. The prices might seem high, but in this BYOW place, the portions are huge. On the several occasions that I've been there, never finished my plate. Consider this and share a meat dish and a pasta dish with a friend or your significant other.
What to try: "Cordon Bleu" veal (the reason I go there), Ennio pasta, fish, eggplant entrée... ask for the choix du jour. Ennio will treat you to something you won't regret.


This time I tried the fettuccine Alfredo dish and have to say it is not your typical Alfredo cream-based pasta, this one has a pronounced cheese flavour. In other words, the real deal. If you're a cheese lover, go for it.
On another note, I never tried their dessert. Though I'm sure they're mouth-watering, I always end up being too full for dessert. If you try some, please report! And don't forget, the SAQ is just around the corner...

fettuccine Alfredo

"Cordon Bleu" veal

vegetables du jour

potatoes with garlic

minestrone soup

Jewelry Goddess

I'm not a huge jewelry fan. Everyone knows that. But my friend Lula...
She's a jewelry goddess. She has fifteen times more jewelry than I'll have in my life. God bless her, one day she'll have a jewelry museum to her name. I get so excited everytime I see her collection, I've been dying to share it with you...

Lula cites Forever 21, Winners, Aldo, Dehlia, Urban Outfitters and Olivia as shopping destinations but her most treasured finds come from all over the world. Whenever she's on vacation, she makes sure to come back with a few pieces (they have deeper meaning and more sentimental value). Sometimes, I daydream that she works for Dior Joaillerie. I already offered her to be in charge of my nonexistent (but someday!)brand's jewelry sector. Because apart from collecting these jewels, Lula makes her own ones as well.