Best Meal Ever...

Ken and I went to Montreal on Saturday to go to Jeff's surprise bachelor party. We had wanted to go for dinner at this restaurant that is on like the 47th floor of an office building, but when we called we were informed that there was a dress code. With three of us wearing shorts, we weren't getting in there.

Instead, we went to this steak place that Mike had heard of from a friend. We called for reservations and were assured that there was no dress code. We got over there at 9:30 for our reservation. Our first clue that this would not be a cheap meal was that in the little deli that was in the front window the steaks were priced starting at $70/lb.

We were taken upstairs to the VIP lounge and we sat down to look at the menus. No entrees under $40. I ended up ordering the Philly cheese steak. Shortly after we ordered, a waiter came around to show us the actual steaks that were chosen for our meals. They looked amazing. Each was no less that two inches thick and they has perfect coloring. And leave it to Ken to order the biggest steak on the menu: the Porterhouse (which I found out later is a fancy name for a T-bone). That thing was just massive.

While we were waiting for the steaks, we had ordered some appetizers and drinks. Ken and I had ordered some spring rolls. They had chunks of steak in them and were very good. Mike ordered Steak Tartare and shared it around the table because no one else had had it before. Essentially, the dish is where they select a good steak, grind it into hamburger, and serve it raw mixed with a quail egg, dijon mustard, and various spices. Despite my initial skepticism, it actually tasted quite good, though I don't know if I could eat a whole order of it.

After a little while our steaks came. They looked amazing. They tasted even better. Mine was cooked to perfection and was incredibly flavorful. Every bite was ecstasy. And it was huge. It took forever to eat the whole thing while savoring every bite. And as if that wasn't enough, the side dish was just as brilliant. I had fresh cut french fries that were seasoned with sea-salt. Simply fantastic.

While we were eating, I ordered a Manhattan cocktail. It was as good as the rest of the food.

By the time we had left, we had been there for 3 hours. We were almost the last ones in the place. I'm sure that the average bill for the 7 of us was well over $100 per person, but it was worth it...