Veuve Chalet: a Review

Isis
Dec 22, 2019
7 min read

Some time ago, I was invited for supper at Veuve Chalet, a restaurant situated in the Mile-End neighbourhood. This mediterranean inspired restaurant truly feels like a cottage with its small and quaint space. I found it refreshing for a restaurant serving some high quality products to be in an unpretentious setting. As I was told, at Veuve Chalet they aim at offering excellent quality while still being warm and welcoming. Which I have to say, they did pull off. A characteristic of this restaurant that I find very original, is that their sommelier is also their waiter! Not only is it original, but it's also practical: while you and your friends are eating, you can get direct recommendations from a sommelier to select the perfect wine that'll have the honour of getting you guys plastered.

But enough chitchat, let the feast begin!

STARTERS

Coup de Coeur & Prosecco Cocktail

Raspberry Vodka, Galliano 1896, Prosecco, Cranberries

Half a Dozen New-Brunswick Oysters

Mignonette, Lemon, Tabasco

I started things off with a half a dozen oysters and the Coup de Coeur & Prosecco cocktail.

The oysters were fresh (made obvious by the fact that I haven't died yet), juicy and not too meaty. They came with a lemon quarter, Tabasco and a mignonette sauce as is usual. I particularly enjoyed their mignonette, which was very flavourful on its own: I didn't even touch the lemon or Tabasco. This type of sauce is typically made with red wine vinegar, rice vinegar, pepper and shallots. However, at Veuve Chalet they switched things up and used white wine vinegar instead. Interestingly, I found that their mignonette had some notes of garlic and zest to it, which I personally loved. If garlic isn't a flavour you're particularly fond of, I'd advise you to only put a small amount or to stick with the lemon and Tabasco.

For my first drink, I picked the Coup de Coeur & Prosecco cocktail, a sweet and fruity drink with a hint of cranberry to give it its red colour. Although I enjoyed the drink, I believe it was not the best fit for the oysters, as it was very sweet! Ya girl's got a sweet tooth for pastries, not drinks. However, I did find that it makes a great bubbly for when you're out with friends, or with a desert.

Warning: it is very sweet. If you enjoy sweet and fruity drinks - this is definitely for you!

1st SERVICE

Verre de Chablis, Château de Maligny 2018

Chablis la Vigne de la Reine, Bourgogne, France

Pain au Romarin & Sel

Rosemary and Salt Bread with Olive Oil, Modena Balsamic, Olives

Pieuvre Espagnol

Mediterranean Style Spanish Octopus

I was then brought their Pain au Romarin, which they bake themselves. This olive oil based bread is sprinkled with rosemary and sea salt, and is served with olives, olive oil and their homemade modena balsamic sauce. To make things even more authentic, their olives and olive oil are imported directly from Greece. They make their own modena balsamic sauce to mix in the olive oil - and wow it’s actually delicious! Honestly, I didn’t expect balsamic sauce to catch my attention (I mean it’s balsamic sauce... nothing new there right?), but theirs has a delicious sweet kick to it. Plus, I found this touch of sweetness fit well even with the other dishes (which I’ll discuss right after... patience my child).

Now comes the star of the evening: la Pieuvre Espagnol. Something you must know about me is that I. freaking. love. octopus. So I was really excited to taste theirs, because although I love octopus, I'm picky about it! I was not disappointed though. This mediterranean style dish was truly, truly delightful. The octopus goes through 3 rounds of cooking (poor octopus). The meat is first cooked for 3 hours in red wine and vegetables. It is then cooked on the grill and cut into small slices. Lastly, the octopus is sautéed on the stove with dill and lemon.

The octopus is finally ready to be served, with olive oil, fresh cherry tomatoes, red onions and capers. Honestly, when the dish was brought to me and I saw the quantity of capers in it, I got a little scared. I usually find the taste of capers to be overwhelming (I'm not the biggest fan of vinegar). But fear not!!! For these capers didn't taste like if they had soaked in vinegar for centuries! Thank god. They added an unseen taste to the mix. Okay, enough about the caper. The octopus melted in my mouth like butter! (not that I’ve ever eaten a cube of butter... ok this got weird real fast). As I was saying, the octopus was incredibly tender. If you’ve ever eaten some, you'll know that as the meat gets colder, it tends to get chewier. And as someone who eats very (very) slowly, I’m pretty used to it. Quite frankly it's a pain in the ass. Anyhow, this octopus was still tender even once the plate was cold! I was told the plate would be good either hot or cold, but I didn’t really believe it until I ate it (we can delve deeper into my trust issues later). Again, it was a delightful dish.

2nd SERVICE

Verre de Cabernet Sauvignon, Roso Del Camul 2013

Cabernet Sauvignon, Vénitie, Italie

Mix Grill

Calamari, U6 Shrimps, Lamb

The second dish I was presented with was their Mix Grill plate, which comes with a giant U6 shrimp, calamari and a lamb chop. The meats rest on a bed of grilled corn and is surrounded by a ring of arugula pesto. Now, you might be wondering, "What the hell is a U6 shrimp?!", which I totally understand, because quite frankly that sounds like some sort of secret code. But it's simpler than it sounds. Shrimps are categorized depending on their quantity per weight (such as per pound). The "U" stands for "Under". A U6 shrimp means that there are under 6 shrimps per pound. So yeah, it's a pretty chunky shrimp. I googled colossal shrimp images and... yeah it kinda freaked me out. Don't do that.

Back to the subject. This plate is perfect for anyone who's got a "carnivorous" tooth. I also liked that this plate was composed of a mix of both red meat and seafood. The shrimp and calamari weren't overcooked, and the lamb wasn't too... lamb-y. Although I love lamb, it really has a strong taste, so if it isn't well seasoned its taste can be a little overpowering. Thankfully this wasn't the case. However, I did find that it had a strong "grill" taste (you know, that taste food gets from the charcoal on the grill?). I did point it out when I was tasting the food, and was presented with another, slightly less grilled, lamb chop. (I definitely was not expecting that, it was actually really awesome.) I actually didn’t enjoy the slightly less grilled lamb chop as much: it tasted way more lamb-y and was chewier. The first lamb chop was perfectly cooked, juicy and didn’t have a strong lamb taste.

The grilled corn added a crunch and light sweetness to the meal. The arugula pesto though, added a really interesting taste! I really liked it! It had a sightly spicy (as in black pepper spicey), nutty and liiiiiight bitter taste. It was really interesting, and I find it elegantly completed the plate. This was a delicious, and very filling plate.

DESERT

Hier Encore Cocktail

Stock Vermouth Rouge, Pear Cognac, Chocolate 70%, Orange Zest

Tartelette Nutella & Praline

Chocolate, Nutella, Praline

You guys must think that I must’ve been freaking stuffed by now, but the answer to that is: “There is no such thing as being full when it comes to desert”. So when I was asked if I wanted desert, I absolutely said yes. And when I was asked if I wanted another drink to go with my desert, I obviously said yes also. Can you really blame me?

At Veuve Chalet, you won’t see a fixed desert menu, as the desert selection regularly changes. Instead, when asked if you would like to see the desert menu, you are presented with a platter of the evening’s available deserts. Indeed, the deserts are chosen and picked up from Little Italy’s oldest pastry shop, Alarti Caserta.

The desert and drink I picked were the Tartelette of Nutella & Praline and the Hier Encore cocktail. Obviously I had to go with this one, I’m a total praline nut. Badumtsss. No really, praline is life. Anyways, I totally loved this desert. The praline was on top, making every bite a ’lil crunchy, and unlike any of those disgusting desert Facebook videos, the tartelette wasn’t an overflowing mess of Nutella. It was a VERY consistent and heavy desert though, and I was unable to finish it on my own, which made me uber sad. If you pick this desert, I recommend sharing it with a friend, because on itself it’s way too much, especially after a meal.

The Hier Encore cocktail fit very well with my desert. since it's kind of a desert in itself. This cocktail comes with 70% Lindt chocolate. I don't mean that it had some flimsy chocolate shavings in it, I mean that it had a piece of chocolate on it! Sign me up. I'd say the general flavour of the drink was a mix of sweet and bitter, although I did find it to be more bitter than sweet. It didn't bother me though, as I generally prefer strong drinks to sweet ones. Interestingly, the cocktail really brought up the chocolate's taste. Hence, the drink fit really well with my chocolaty desert, because it enhanced the flavour!

FINAL THOUGHTS

All in all, I truly enjoyed my experience at Veuve Chalet. I even went back with a friend for some more oysters and wine to celebrate the end of the semester (oh yeah, I'm a fancy b). The place is small and lovely, the staff is warm and friendly and the food & drinks are delicious.

Boys, if you want to treat your girl to a fancy, yet quaint supper, I definitely recommend! Spoken from a woman, I'd love to go on a date at this restaurant. Plus, the menu is pretty varied, so there's definitely something for everyone.

P.S. Wondering how Veuve Chalet got its unusual name? There's a nice story behind it, which I'm counting on you to ask when you go visit, because this restaurant is most definitely worth it.

I would like to thank Aladdin for inviting me and guiding me through this feast