You can eat very well in Montreal.
Today’s highlight was Chokolantara, a chocolaterie artisanale, or artisan chocolate maker in Montreal’s Plateau district at 263 Mont-Royale Avenue (514-289-1790). The window lured us from across the street with its promise of chocolate drinks.
It was no ordinary chocolate milk that landed on our table in the small shop. In a cafe au lait sized cup two wooden coffee stirrers stuck out of steam milk streaked with brown. When I lifted the stirrers, the origins of the streaks became clear. Attached to each stick was a ball of dark chocolate slowly melting. A taste treat to be savored. Only C$2.25 a cup.
Other stops today:
*Schwartz’s for smoked meat — eight to 12 briskets sat in the window, as if lying where they’d fallen
*Le Reservoir for their locally brewed beer
* My cousin Anita’s for Montreal bagels, which are way too soft to be considered bagels by the standards of the northeastern U.S.