Taste MTL is all about quality menu for affordable cost.

Early on, many restaurants were already fully booked. I can understand why as many up scale restaurants were offering a generous menu for only 40$!  It’s the perfect time to try out expensive restaurants where I usually wouldn’t go unless it’s for a special occasion.

Sadly, my top choices were fully booked. So Smoking Vallee was chosen. 19$ for 3 services and it’s a BYOB! Deal!

Smoking Vallee is situated on Notre-Dame, not too far away from Atwater market. It seems like this part of the street is slowly developing into something trendy.  Once I entered to the restaurant, I felt the ambiance of  a mixture of Old Port and Mont-Royal.

The menu was easy. 2 choices to choose from for every service. My table decided to try everything!

Potage du moment which was a pumpkin soup. It was good, but unremarkable. The play on the flavors was weak. But I really enjoyed the light yet creaminess of the soup. It could be served a bit warmer.

On the other hand, this appetizer was much more appreciated. The different layers of ingredients made the taste much more interesting. It has smoked saumon layered with a thinly sliced pear, that added crunchiness and sweetness. At the bottom, there was a slice of beet which was on top of the goat cheese, that added more saltiness.

For the main course, there was tuna tartar. The fried herbs made the tuna tartar very different from other tartars I had. Lightly battered and fried, the herbs added more texture to the tuna. And the little hint of caviars here and there simply made the dish very fun to eat.

The pork chop was definitely a surprise. Not only I rarely see it being served, it was perfectly cooked. I am too used to braised pork, where the meat is super tender without much structure. This pork chop was different. It was thick but juicy.

As desserts, there were parfait and creme brulee.

The parfait was ordinary. I felt I was eating greek yogurt with a few fruits.

The creme brulee was unique. Unlike traditional ones, it was orange flavored and very liquid except the burnt top.

Smoking Vallee was a fun experience. But to come back paying the full price, I will have to think again. But BYOB does help!

Zuuchini