Montreal 2014: Poutine and Pied de Cochon (Day 1)

The Merienda of Champions: Poutine from La Banquise

A weekend in Montreal is often synonymous to great food, good times, and fantastic company. This year's edition was no different. In fact, I dare say it was one of my best visits to the city, especially when it came to the food department. We started our weekend off with a bang in the form of poutine from La Banquise (994 Rue Rachel Est), the famed poutinerie located in Mont-Royal.

Famished after a six-hour bus ride, Diana, Sarah, and I guiltlessly ordered le Jaco (steak haché, oignons, champignons et sauce aux poivres), la Festival (steak haché, fromage suisse, piments forts et rondelles d'oignon), and la Savoyarde (bacon, oignons, fromage suisse et crème sûre). We undoubtedly ordered way too much for what was supposed to be an afternoon snack but we didn't care. We were just really hungry at the time.

Gorgeous Sarah! 

We resorted to walking after stuffing our faces with fries and found ourselves walking along the beautiful Duluth and the graffiti wall above (featuring my friend Sarah from the fifth grade!).

Beautiful!

We continued our walk southwest and made it to the parks close to McGill. We then made our way back to Duluth for our 9:00pm reservation at Au Pied de Cochon (536 Avenue Duluth Est), a restaurant that had been recommended to me by my former director Louise many years ago. They specialize in cooking pig-based dishes and are one of the most unique restaurant concepts in the east coast.

The bar

 
We couldn't get a reservation at the dining area but we did manage to snag seats at the bar -- right in front of the kitchen. They were arguably the best seats in the entire restaurant, apart from the terrace.

Slurp!

We ordered two things off of the menu: the tuna salad (a special for the evening) and the infamous pied de cochon farci au foie gras. We were told that the pied de cochon would take at least half an hour to make. So, we got a few drinks and had some house made bread to satiate us until our food came. I have to say that the grapefruit slushie concoction featured above was delicious.

Tuna Salad

As mentioned, we ordered the tuna salad for our appetizer and shared it between the three of us. It was a bit on the salty side for a salad but it definitely was fantastic. Moreover, it consisted of a great balance between texture and taste.

Serious Cutlery

After our salad, we waited for the famed pied de cochon and, at the same time, watched and marveled at the goings-on in the kitchen. A little while later, the server replaced our table setting with a new plate and serious cutlery (look at my yellow knife!).

Look at the Pied de Cochon!

After half an hour, the pied de cochon finally arrived at our area of the bar. It came with foie gras, mushrooms, and mashed potatoes on the side. We divided the pied into three massive slices and dug right in. It was well-cooked and definitely rich in every single way. I probably would not have it everyday but I am glad we got the chance to experience pied de cochon from au pied de cochon. There really isn't anything like it anywhere else.

Beautiful terrace