a special birthday celebration deserves a special venue. auberge le st. gabriel is just the type of place for that special historian in my life. while doing research on the history of montreal, she discovered that the auberge saint le saint gabriel was the oldest inn established in quebec circa 1754. in the 1900 it was restored by ludger truteau and renamed auberge le st gabriel. since that time it has changed owners a many times and today as we know it was purchased a few years back by three iconic quebecers, rocker garou, guy laliberte of cirque du soleil and marc boulay. with talent and resources abound they have managed to change the image of le saint gabriel with the opening of the velvet club , as not only a historic place to dine, stay and relax, but a trendy spot to celebrate any occasion, from grand prix in june to new years eve with its cool thematic parties.
in the summer it has a private terrace away from the hustle of the busy streets of old montreal, where you can enjoy a quiet dinner or drinks. the inn is ideal for a staycation, completely renovated; the place takes you to back to bygone era of nouvelle france with its dark cavernous halls, wood beams and brick walls. the place has a mysterious aura and some say it is haunted, with an actual citing of a ghost on the third floor who walks the reception hall.
after briefi history of the auberge, we were greeted by our hospital waitress and seated in sabrevois hall; a dark cavernous dining hall which i discovered was re-designed by bruno baen who was also the designer for club chasse & peche. the two restaurants look identical; similarities can be found with the dark themed medieval décor, dark leather chairs, heavy wood tables and dark flooring. the massive stone wall back drop and wrought iron turn of the century chandeliers are a recurring theme in both restaurants.
we started with our favorites and our usual salmon tartar at $ 14.00 and the terrine de foie gras at $ 16.00. the tartar was fresh and savory, mixed with avocado it hit the spot. the foie gras which came served on a slate with a dab of sweet chutney was minimal and a little too chilled, but it did not take long to get it at room temperature. both were unctuous and very tasty and always a good start to any meal.
for two of our main meals, we ordered a plate of cavatelli pasta made with ricotta and rapini for $ 25.00.
instead they resembled large gnocchi in lieu of the small sized cavatelli she is so used too. also made with a mix of pureed ricotta cheese and rapini, they were green in color. her dish contained but a few pieces of rapini on the side; not served the typical italian way, which usually has copious amounts of rapini on top or mixed in with sausage.
instead they came topped with a schiuma “foam” and slivers of parmesan shavings.
i ordered the pot au feu for $ 29.00, which was a big dish for my standards. a little disappointed with my meal as i found it flavorless, but then what did i expect from boiled dinner. i have got to say it not one of my favorites. i like anything with red wine inductions and with more flavors. the consommé was too generic and bland for my liking.
the chef is ola claesson, a native swede coming from a line of chefs; he has worked in paris at meurice and le pre catalan, and has a passion for quebec market cuisine and our local products. therefore my pot a feu was as classical as it can get. so i am pleased in this respect that i got to sample it.
for dessert we had a tourteau au fromage for $ 12.00 and a glace vanille for $10.00 and two short espressos for $ 8.00.
the tourteau au fromage, resembled a boston cream pie filled with mascarpone, with quenelles of vanilla ice cream, compote of fresh strawberry and coulis. the presentation and freshness were good. the vanilla ice cream also resembled the tourteau platter with a more strawberry compote and strawberry ice cream on a bed of crushed nuts. a little unimaginative i thought. the dessert platters were similar in construction; a little variation was in order.
overall, i enjoyed the meal and the ambiance. it had become hipper to dine here as it started to fill up with late night patrons. the music got louder and the terrasse filled up with tourists looking for a bite to eat. after our meal we walked around the velvet and imagined what a new year’s party would be like here and vowed to give it a try soon. the mysterious aura would make for a good party, but one thing this foo-foodie will say, you would never catch me sleeping here at the auberge or having an event in the third floor reception hall. i am too superstitious.