ottawa foodies

My Duck a lot (from the Set Menu) was very very good. I would order this again.

I also like the deep-fried apple on the side. Very innovative!

This is the main course from the Set Menu. Duck a lot. Adding applewood cheddar poached P.E.I. lobster to the duck plate would cost additional $13.50.

This is the Potato wrapped venison loin (with steamed edamame, sweet pea, shallot pulse). $36.

This is the Wide-eye Ontario rack of lamb (with lobster brioche + basil + chevre cosmopolitan). This dish has the price tag of $51. Not cheap!

My friend told me that the lamb was good. But she prefers the lamb at Le Panaché, Le Panaché .

This is the A.A.A. three way (fillet, short rib, pulled cheeks, cranberry-toner) my husband ordered ($41). He told me that the taste was good, but the sauce is a bit sweet for him.

This is the Rotisserie poussin (香烤春雞) accompanied by Saskatoon berries and potato gratin (i.e., a cup of baked potato), charmingly presented on a white-bone plate.

This small chicken’s skin was coated by either honey or syrup. The meat was tender, juicy and delicious. I really wanted to eat with my two hands to enjoy this small bird. But thinking that this is an elegant restaurant and I have dressed up, I better behave like a lady. So, I have to enjoy this succulent young bird with knife and fork the traditional western way.

This is the Shell and Bone (pan seared sea scallops with slow roasted veal tenderloin). I didn’t have this dish. The majority of my friends (6 out of 8) ordered this dish and they told me it was succulent and scrumptious (hey, I have to write like a food critic, ha ha…)

Quail?

Trout?

Must be duck? My friend's dish.

The main course was supposed to be the highlight of our meal. But it turned out to be very disappointing.

Anne Desbrisay wrote, “Of the main dishes, duck impressed most, a bronzed confit, crispy-skinned and moist-fleshed, served in a creamy peppercorn sauce.” So, 6 of us went for confit duck without hesitation. But the menu indicates that the duck confit was served with oyster mushrooms, port and endives sauce (not peppercorn sauce). So, I don’t know if the chef had changed or twisted the duck menu. Anyway, two others ordered quail, confit with miniature mushrooms and savoury sauce.

Well, the duck leg confit had no crispy skin. The duck legs were certainly marinated with lot of salt (we all said the same thing) – very salty meat! The worst part was the sauce, so salty that I can only manage to eat few bites. 6 of us can’t continue to eat their ducks and had to STOP. We told our server that the ducks were too salty for us to eat. Actually, I didn’t like the aroma from the duck (whatever herbs they used or was it the aroma from the endives?).

When we told our server about our ducks, he immediately went to inform the kitchen and came back to tell us to order something else. This was very much appreciated. So, to make it easier for the kitchen, 6 of us ordered their pasta mixed with shrimps, and chicken with olive oil, dried tomato, garlic flower and basil. Unfortunately, the pasta we had was also salty. However, the pasta was better than the duck in terms of saltiness. But the chicken was overly dry. So, I ended up just picking up the shrimps and ate few bites of the pasta. At this point, we all lost our appetite to eat already. The other 5 also can't finish the pasta!

What about the quail our two friends ordered? They said the quails were okay, but a bit overdone and still edible.

P.S. My friend later talked to her Québécois colleague when she went back to office on Monday. I quoted what my friend wrote, “my colleague told me that Duck confit (duck legs slowly simmered and preserved in duck fat) is supposed to be salty (but not overly salty) – it is a classic French way of cooking and preserving duck legs. The process involves curing the duck legs in salt for several hours before scraping off any loose salt and gently cooking them in duck fat (could be slow cooking in an oven) for couple hours. Once the duck legs are cooked, leave them to cool in the fat. At this stage the duck legs can be sealed in the jar to be stored in a cool, dark place (such as a cellar or fridge for up to 6 months) before eating. If the duck legs are too salty, the sauce should not be cooked too salty.” Bingo! The problem was that both the confit duck and the sauce were all salty. I am sure shredded confit duck will make a good salad with fresh green mix. The saltiness will be balanced out well.

This is the Chickpea Enchilada with Monterey Jack and Chedder Cheese served with a green salad ($10.95) my hubby ordered. Both of us had very healthy lunch.

Another friend tried their wild boar ($32), grilled with apple, and braised red cabbage. After our dinner, he was away on business trip. So, I waited for his return for his feedback on his dish. He later told me that it wasn't good.

This is the grilled salmon ($29) my friend ordered. My friend finished the whole plate and she told me it was not bad.

This was the pan roasted grain fed veal tenderloin and sautéed sweetbreads, served on sour cream whipped potato purée. $31 for my husband's dish. He told me it was okay.

This is the chicken I ordered ($27). According to their website, the menu reads as "Pot-au-feu of Val-des-Monts grainfed chicken with lemon, caramelized onions and fresh thyme, deboned and served with Cendré de Lune cheese from Warwick on homemade Bekings egg pasta tossed with porcini, raddichio julienne and white truffle oil".

I have to tell you that this is the worst chicken I've ever tasted - extra dry meat with bland taste. I can't finish it. It tastes as bad as how it looks. Yuk!

This was their house chowder ($25). Not too rich and this was what my friend wanted.

This was their Warm House Smoked Ontario Rainbow Trout ($22).

My hubby's steak was perfectly cooked! Just the right portion for him.

Two of our friends ordered their Angus ribeye ($30) with brown butter cheddar potato puree. The menu states that the dish accompaniment includes Le Coprin mushrooms. But I don't see any mushrooms in the photo. I think it would be nice to add some vegetables on the side to accompany the big steak (very good portion!). My friends told me that the steak they had was tasty.

Sea scallops are always our favorite dish, so delicate. However, scallops are often overcooked and become a rubbery dish. Our sea scaloops were cooked to perfection. The accompaniment (lentils, Nagano bacon, savoy cabbage, overnight tomatoes, corn relish) was also very delicious.

Note: We didn't order this as our main. Instead, we ordered this dish ($25) as our appetizer for the group to share (since many of us ordered the soup of the day). My girl friend who went here for dinner the next day also ordered the scallops as her main. She said the same thing - "the scallops are cooked perfectly!"

This is the Nagano pork loin that my husband and one of our friends ordered. The meat was very tender and juicy. The meat does not have the texture like the typical Canadian pork. My friend (used to be an expat in Japan) told my husband that when you eat the Nagano pork meat, you have to cut it in a smaller portion, put the small piece in your mouth and detect the fine texture to enjoy this type of meat. Then you will see the difference. Nagano pork does not taste like pork at all. So, when you order this dish, try to eat it slowly to enjoy the taste and fine texture.

I told my another friend about this dish. She brought her husband with her to try our recommended dish the next day. Her husband also likes it.