Here we go, our last dinner in Montreal for this trip. Instead of a heavily awarded spot, we opted for something upstart and new with Panacée. Nominated for Air Canada's Best New Restaurant, they are also Michelin-recommended. Chef Catherine Couvet Desrosiers, formerly of Foxy and Bouillon Blik, uses only seasonal ingredients that are vegetable forward. There is only a tasting menu available either in 3 or 5 services (courses), but the bonus here is that you can choose your own adventure. For every course, there are at least 2 options (some with a surcharge). This way, you can tailor make your experience and also have something different than the rest of your party.
On that note, we decided to have 2 completely different tasting menus. That was achieved by each of us taking a different item for each of the 5 courses. Yes, that also meant we weren't paying the base $80.00 per person. Our tasting menus ended up to be $99.00 each as a reasult of choosing surcharge items. Regardless of that, we were both served the same Amuse Bouche being the Beet Tartlette with herbed cashew cream. This was a good start to the meal as it was light herbaceous and sweet with a crispy shell. As another surcharge, we added the Bread from Boulangerie Aube for an extra $5.00.
For our first course, we had the default choice in the La Pelletée Tomato. This featured super fresh and vibrant marigold tomatoes with saffron jelly and buttermilk with herb oil. These tomatoes had a mild natural sweetness as well as a light tang. We find some skinless cherry tomatoes that were super sweet while the little dried tomatoes were super concentrated in flavour. Our other dish, which was a $7.00 supplement, was the Gaspésie Tuna. The slices of bluefin akami were buttery and sweet while sitting on a cilantro puree that was bright and not too pungent. Ribbons of crunchy Kohlrabi added texture and brightness. Some herbaceous shishitos completed the dish.
Next up, the default dish was the Oyster Mushroom with corn sabayon, Jimmy Nardello peppers and almonds. This was fabulous where the mushroom was grilled over charcoal. Smoky with some crispy bits, the mushroom was already quite tasty itself. However, the corn sabayon added such intense sweetness, especially with the pops from the niblets. Nice crunch from the almonds and sweetness from the peppers. With a $4.00 surcharge, the Grilled Artichokes were worth it in my opinion. They were also smoky from the kiss on the grill while still tender. Extra smoky nuttiness was provided by the pine nuts. We had some aromatic shallots and some sweetness from the gooseberries. Underneath, we had yogurt with cilantro for some brightness.
Onto the "main course" we didn't opt for the default option in the Cappelletti and went for the meat dishes instead. The first was the Kenauk Trout for an extra $8.00. It actually took the place of the cod (which was originally on the menu). Further proof that they only cook with fresh ingredients. It was surely fresh with a buttery texture from the rare centre. It was beautifully plated with one side holding a bright and only lightly spicy habadoux sauce. We had some intensely smoky carrots also prepared on the charcoal grill. Some pickled carrots provided acidity while basil completed the plate. With a surcharge of $4.00, we got the Ferme D'Orée Pork. It was fatty while still a bit pink in the middle. The result was juicy and tender meat with an exterior that was the beneficiary from the charcoal grill. Hence we had smokiness complimenting the well-salted pork. Even the beans were smoky due to the mix with the charred pumpkin seeds. Tanginess was thanks to the pickled and diced wax beans. Sweet gooseberries complimented the pork well.
For our pre-dessert course, the default item was the Olive Oil Ice Cream with concorde grape, laurel and hazelnut. I thought this was really good where the ice cream was silky while being aromatic. The grapes were sweet and impactful manipulating the EVOO ice cream into being sweeter. Crunch was provided by the nutty hazelnuts. Some herbal notes were added by the laurel leaves. At $4.00 more, the Beurrasse consisted of sheep's milk yogurt, cherries, salted almond and Avonlea cheddar. Definitely a bit savoury due to the cheese, but plenty influenced by the tangy sheep's milk yogurt. The sweet cherries were the dominant component to this as it was intensely sweet. Crunch and a burst of salt (to heighten all of the other flavours) was thanks to the salted almonds.
Last course had the Peach for the regular dish with opalys, brown sugar and sheeps milk yogurt. Everything on the plate sat in a rich and thick opalys cream. Some crispy sweet crackers added texture and aromatics. In the middle, we found macerated peaches with brown sugar where things were richly sweet. Again, the sheep's milk yogurt provided the necessary bright tanginess. The Mignardise was $4.00 more and consisted of Earl Grey Ice Cream Sandwich, Chocolate Macaron, Financier, Lemon Tartlette and Blueberry caramel. Really nice bites with the ice cream sandwich being that "it" factor of the bunch. Creamy and light with the aroma of earl grey. Not too sweet either. Macaron had a crispy shell and the chocolate inside was also just sweet enough. Of course I loved the lemon tartlette as that is always my favourite. Nice tanginess on this one. Overall, we really enjoyed our meal at Panacée. The food is on point and the use of a charcoal grill affords rich flavours that are smoky and full-of-depth. Pricing is reasonable and the fact you can customize each course helps appeal to a wider audience.The Good:
- On point execution
- That charcoal grilling!
- Reasonable pricing and the option to customize
The Bad:
- Most of the best courses we had were subject to an supplemental charge (but worth it IMO)
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