Coffee connoisseurs rejoice, Montreal is about to get a new café from British Columbia. 49th Parallel Coffee Roasters has chosen to expand outside BC and picked Montreal as the first café expansion. MtlRestoRap's Tony Medeiros had the opportunity to interview Sara Bilodeau the Café Director for 49th Parallel Coffee Roasters Quebec. She is very excited about the new location in Old Montreal this summer. 49th Parallel is going to be a very popular destination for coffee lovers. In addition to their coffee, the brand is bringing with them their oh-so-delicious Lucky’s Doughnuts (Beignes Lucky’s)! With mouthwatering doughnuts and irresistible coffee, Montreal’s first-ever 49th Parallel Café is set to become Old Port’s new go-to café this summer!
MTL Resto Rap
Back in 1966, Christos Kalogrias came to Canada, leaving his native Greek village of Arahova. He was only 26 years of age and had some family here. His first job was in manufacturing, earning 95 cents an hour. In order to build some savings, he relocated to Thompson, Manitoba to work in a nickel and mining company, returning to Montreal in 1971 with enough money to open his own restaurant on St. Viateur Street. In June, Arahova Souvlaki celebrated its 50th anniversary.
The appropriately dubbed Notre Boeuf De Grâce (https://www.notreboeufdegrace.ca) was an instant success and expansion happened quickly today there are nine locations (NDG, Downtown, St. Laurent, Pointe-Claire, Laval, Terrebonne, Le Village, Le Plateau and Saint-Jérôme) and one more in Blainville on the way later this summer.
My family has been frequenting the Firegrill Restaurant ( https://firegrill.com) for a few years now, enjoying some of the best steaks in town at their downtown Stanley Street and St. Laurent Sphèretech 14 (next to Cinemas Guzzo) locations.
One of the truly growing pizza chains in Quebec is Pizzéria No. 900 Napolitaine. There are now 25 locales across the province and if you are making a pickup you will not have long to wait as the pizzas are cooked in their special ovens in a remarkable 90 seconds. The oven is at 900 degrees Fahrenheit, hence the name of the chain.
The team at MtlRestoRap is in mourning following the sudden passing of our sales coordinator Mel Leitman, on Monday, March 22, 2021.
Mel joined MtlRestoRap in the fall of 2019. He was a perfect fit given his endless array of contacts in the restaurant industry. He was the beloved soulmate of Connie Dorfman; cherished father of Allison Dorfman (Rob), Heidi Dorfman (Jason), Rob Leitman (Harriet), Jeff Leitman (Mia), Tracy Leitman (Craig); treasured Zaidie of Alexa and Chloe Hamou; Brooklyn and Jax Toledano; Jenny and Madelaine Leitman; Elizabeth Leitman; Hudson, Cooper and Delaney Coulls; devoted Brother of Jack (Lily), Larry (Marie) and Patti Leitman; and brother-in-law of Marilyn and the late Perry Silverman; son of the late Ruth and the late Al Leitman and son-in-law of the late Ben and the late Sylvia Silverstein.
I was looking for a tasty, family-friendly take-out dinner and Casa Grecque in Chomedey was my next pick. My family and I love plentiful Greek salads and tangy appetizers, particularly during long, cold Quebec winters when delicious, plump red tomatoes are not in abundance. What I found at this spacious, well-decorated restaurant in Chomedey at the corner of St. Martin Blvd. and Daniel-Johnson Blvd. was far more than I could have imagined.
I have been a fan of Pasta Casareccia on Sherbrooke Street West in NDG for many years. The restaurant’s name is Italian for 'homemade pasta. What originally started out as making their own pasta, grew into distribution to many restaurants in the greater metropolitan area and availability of over 50 different kinds of pasta in their gourmet boutique for you to cook at home.
Cavallaro St-Jean has been in business for 12 years. Matthew Blanchette and his business partner took over in late 2020 at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. The two knew they had a tough road ahead of them, but both were ready for the challenge. Cavallaro is your one-stop shopping for European products such as pasta, tomato sauce, cookies and rare to find products at your local grocery store, priding themselves in finding the perfect gastronomic experience of imported products. They also believe in selling the freshest local products for their clients.