Always on the lookout for something different and experiential to try among Montreal’s thousands of restaurants, I recently happened upon a great find tucked in among the eclectic, unique spots in Montreal’s Mile End district of Plateau Mont-Royal. And of the many eateries I’ve experienced in our great city this was my first outing to an African restaurant (northwestern Africa to be more specific, and Mauritanian to be pinpoint accurate).
MTL Resto Rap
On December 15, 1999, John Drymousis and wife Carmela opened their first Lesvos Restaurant on Mount Royal Street, at the corner of Brébeuf.
John had been a waiter for years, but always dreamed of having his own dining establishment. Carmela was not in that industry at all, having earned a living the previous 12 years at the credit bureau of the Royal Bank of Canada. A decade earlier the couple had relocated to Fort Myers, Florida, where John had been offered a senior role by some Montreal businessmen at a 250 seat family restaurant. At the time their only child, daughter Mia, was a toddler.
I think one of the first food items I learned how to make myself was a grilled cheese sandwich. We had one of those grillers at home and all I needed was a slice of cheese, two pieces of bread and some margarine. Over the years I learned different variations: buttering up two sides of bread, slipping in the cheese and making it on the frying pan and or toasting two pieces of bread, applying the margarine then sticking it in the microwave for 30 seconds.
I have been to Kahnawake a few times in my life, but it was my curiosity over a tempting relatively new restaurant called Two O Seven Steak and Seafood which closed the deal for me to venture over the Mercier Bridge for dinner one night. I was joined by my friend Mel Leitman, his wife Connie Dorfman and his sister-in-law Marilyn Silverman.
The city of Laval has some terrific restaurants. Add Westwood Grill & Bar to the list. Recently opened at Place Bell, the venue can accommodate 180 people aged 18 and over.
When I sat down with Groupe Sportscene President Jean Bedard recently, he spoke glowingly about the restaurants under the company umbrella: La Cage, Brasserie Sportive; Moishes Steakhouse; PF Chang’s and Avenue.
We were chatting at the now-former PF Chang’s on Decarie, which will be converted into a state of the art Cage facility by next spring. Bedard asked whether I had experienced the newly renovated Bell Centre location, urging me to do so. On a recent Sunday afternoon, I did just that.
While I have loved Japanese cuisine for years, I generally dine at the same places. In recent months though I have been looking to explore and did my family ever hit the jackpot when we stepped into Maïko Sushi on Sources Boulevard in Dollard des Ormeaux.
When my friend Glenn and I recently had to attend an event at the Ramada Plaza Hotel on Decarie near Plamondon, I suggested we try the Luzzatto Kosher Restaurant.
I have been driving by this location for years and noticed previous incarnations of this dining establishment and hotel. It was recently rebranded a Ramada Plaza from Quality Inn and got a complete facelift –inside and out.
There are restaurants in Montreal which merit being compared to a “unique dining experience” and Gibbys certainly qualifies for that category.
In 1969 Gilbert (Gibby) Rosenberg and two partners established a steakhouse in St. Sauveur. His nickname stuck and would soon become legendary. Three years later a second Gibbys opened up in a historic former stable in Place d’Youville in Old Montreal. The rest is history. Today, both locales continue to thrive. For a brief time, there was even South Florida locale in Fort Lauderdale.