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Restaurant Toque

4.5 star rating
26 reviews Rating Details

Category: Restaurants  [Edit]

900 Jean-Paul-Riopelle Pl
Montreal, QC H2Z 2B2
(514) 499-2084
Hours:

Tue-Sat 5:30 pm - 10:30 pm

Good for Groups:
Yes
Accepts Credit Cards:
Yes
Parking:
Street
Attire:
Dressy
Price Range:
$$$$
Good for Kids:
No
Takes Reservations:
Yes
Delivery:
No
Take Away:
No
Waiter Service:
Yes
Wheelchair Accessible:
Yes
Outdoor Seating:
No
Good For:
Dinner
Alcohol:
Full Bar

26 reviews for Restaurant Toque

Review Highlights   

"We went for the 7-course tasting menu, and loved every course." (in 9 reviews)
"I had the foie gras tasting dinner while he had the regular tasting." (in 12 reviews)
"Wine pairing: 1998 macon late harvest chardonnay." (in 6 reviews)
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All Reviews

Restaurant Toque

Elite '10

19

78

Karin V.

San Francisco, CA

USA

5 star rating
8/5/2010 1 photo

For some reason, I had pictured a formal and reserved French restaurant, but Toqué was quite the opposite. The décor was contemporary and had an open feel with high ceilings and lots of light filling the dining room. The staff was youthful and friendly. The restaurant's vibe was one of relaxed elegance. And the same can be said about the food. It was sophisticated and modern French cuisine, but with more restraint and a lighter touch.  I had the chef's "surprise" 7 course tasting menu...

Amuse Bouche - chilled tomato soup with herb foam

Princess Scallops marinated with rhubarb water, radish, strawberries, wasabi mousse - colorful presentation. The rhubarb water enhanced the sweetness of scallops while also making it refreshing. However, if eaten with more than one piece of strawberry, the taste of the scallop was lost.  

Steamed Razor Clam, coriander, escarole, ginger, spicy soy vinaigrette - the clam was steamed to perfection and had the most amazing texture - soft and chewy without being rubbery. The clam's delicate sweetness was balanced perfectly by the restrained use of spicy and savory Asian flavors.

Foie Gras, green apple essence, potato confit, asparagus, peas, turnips - WOW, I never knew foie gras could taste like spring! The foie was amazingly light and elegant with just a hint of sweetness (as opposed to the usual additions of strong sweet or salty ingredients with foie gras). I was told that Chef Laprise doesn't season the foie with anything to keep it super plump and luscious. Beautiful dish!

Ribeye Carpaccio, white asparagus, popcorn powder, shitake mushrooms, miso, wasabi infused oil - the BEST CARPACCIO to have ever graced my lips! I don't even know where to start - there was so much complexity and layers of flavor in this carpaccio. I especially loved the earthy richness of shitake mushrooms with the beef and that hit of flavor from the miso. I also appreciated the cleansing bites of herb provided by the chopped scallions. The portion size was perfect for this robust dish.

Squab, turnips, heirloom carrot, pearl onion - it was bold move to include the squab's clawed foot in the dish and definitely made for a striking presentation. The leg was awesome with that lovely rich taste of dark meat, while the other parts of the squab were super moist and tender from being sous vide.

Hercules Cheese, mushrooms, asparagus, fried shallots, wildflower honey - much more fun than your ordinary cheese plate. I was impressed by the paper thin slice of cheese given how large the cheese wedge was. Lovely combination of flavors and textures - velvety cheese, juicy mushrooms, sweet honey, salty and crunchy fried shallots.

Rhubarb Sorbet, Meringue on Strawberry & Maple Foam - the meringue was light and sweet, but the rhubarb sorbet was too tart for my taste.

Overall, I was impressed by my dinner at Toqué. It was evident how much care and technique went into each course, and I could taste the freshness of the seasonal ingredients. The food was relatively light yet had so complexity. Each bite brought in different elements of the dish, continually building on the sophisticated flavors...and kept my taste buds intrigued. The ~$100/person price for the meticulously prepared 7 course Chef's Tasting Menu also kept my wallet happy. I have yet to find this caliber of food for that price in the U.S.

**For pics of each course, go the my blog linked under my profile. Enjoy!**

Listed in: Best Way to Eat Your Way…

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Restaurant Toque

 

12

61

SG D.

Piscataway, NJ

USA

5 star rating
8/4/2010 4 photos 1 Check-in Here

I had heard so much about this restaurant, I had to try it out during my trip. Opted for the seven course menu. Selected the option with the Fois Gras. For the tasting menus, they seem to prepare the menu based on your food preferences, so you have no idea what you'll end up getting. They made a vegetarian menu for my wife.

Amuse Bouche: A brioche filled with Gruyere cheese. Not especially good (brioche was slightly cold, and the cheese wasn't that soft), but thankfully wasn't an indication of the food to come.

Course 1: Scallops in the shell with Rhubarb water and Wasabi Foam, with cilantro oil. Phenomenal. It was very light and refreshing. The foam wasn't overbearing and went really well with the food.

Course 2: Razor Clam: Sort of an Asian inspired version. They had a soy/sesame oil broth at the bottom.

Course 3: Fois Gras, Apple Water, Baby Peas. Excellent. I'd never eaten Fois Gras before, so I can safely say it's the best Fois Gras I've ever eaten :) The peas were perfectly cooked and the apple water added a nice sweetness to the dish.

Course 4: Rabbit and mushrooms. Delicious. The right amount of earthiness.

Course 5: Squab: Don't remember too much about this, but wasn't a big fan. Too little meat and a bit too gamey for poultry.

Course 6: Cheese Plate. It was melted Gruyere with mushrooms, whipped cream, radishes and a crouton.

Course 7: Dessert. By this point, I had eaten so much I can't even remember what I was eating. All I remember was that there was some sort of sorbet and white chocolate with a meringue on top.

Service: Excellent. Patiently explained all the dishes to us. Very knowledgeable. One of my wife's dishes had the famous popcorn powder on it. I asked them how it was made and it was surprisingly simple. I'm going to try it out at home. Hopefully I won't start another fire in my kitchen.

I also had a wine pairing with the dinner. All in all, definitely worth it, and Toque is going to be a stop every time I go to Montreal. For the amount of money that you end up paying this is a very good deal.

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Restaurant Toque

Elite '10

29

312

Chad T.

Sunnyside, NY

USA

5 star rating
7/7/2010

This may be the finest modern restaurant in Montreal, complete with some of those El Bulli style molecular gastronomy techniques.  We went for the 7-course tasting menu, and loved every course:

0.  Amuse Bouche: Cold tomato soup with herbs.

1.  Scallop with rhubarb water and wasabi foam

2.  Razor clam

3.  Foie Gras, apple water, potato confit, asparagus, radish, and almonds

4.  Rib eye carpaccio, shitake mushrooms, asparagus, popcorn powder (Yes!), parmesan, and garlic

5.  Duck filet, turnips, beets, carrot, pancetta

6.  Melted Gruyere, mushroom, whipped cream with pepper crouton sautéd in olive oil, radish, honey, with thyme on top

7.  Rhubarb compote, sorbet and chips, merengue, yogurt, and fresh strawberry

I would definitely come back here again.

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Restaurant Toque

 

3

60

Diane and Allen S.

Brookline, MA

USA

5 star rating
6/18/2010

Toque was freakin' fantastic!!!

I was here last week with my co-workers for a company offsite and our party of 12 loved it. Toque was extremely accommodating of our large and loud group! We started off at the bar with a few reds, whites, whisky and mojitos before moving to the table. Once we got settled, I ordered:

1. Sweet peas salad, foie gras terrine shavings, radish, white asparagus and pop corn powder - Amazing! Came with a light,fluffy brioche, which was the perfect vessel for the foie gras to go from plate to mouth.

2. Suckling pig cooked sous vide, Parmentier cream, shiitake mushrooms and fiddelheads - Equally delish! Fiddleheads were steamed to perfection and pork was tender.

3. Dessert. I sat at a table of four sugar addicts. We each decided to order a different dessert to share. Chocolate puff pastry, strawberries, whipped cream with yuzu, black currant souffle and maple mousse!!! EXCELLENT!

We will be back!

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Restaurant Toque

Jeff C.

Laurel, MD

USA

5 star rating
8/7/2010

The restaurant looks as comfortable and elegant as ever.  The new bar is pretty, but I think it's mostly good for decor.  The service this time lacks a bit of attention, perhaps because they are very busy.  I sat at the sofa against the wall, and had enjoyed my usual view of the wine cellar and most of the restaurant.  With an old familiar feeling of comfort, dinning alone here is quite pleasant.  For starters, the bread was as usual, not warm.  But it had taste...from the wheat or butter I don't know.  But it had TASTE.  The tasting menu started with tomato puree with some herbs - okay starter.  The lobster with foam of corn is absolutely stunning.  I can still taste the corn and lobster right now. The Fois Gras is thick, juicy and as usual, head and shoulders above any others I have tried.  The sea snail salad provided a sharp contrast between the snail and veggie.  Ribeye carpacio is okay as I am not into carpacio, but I give them an A for effort as there is at least 10 ingredients that went into the rest of the dish.  The meat was pigeon (squab?), which had a very tender breast.  The most memborable thing was the curled up claw on my plate.  I skipped the cheese for a salad, which was absolutely divine.  It had a citreous taste that was remarkable.  Again, there is taste is in every little dish.  The dessert is the usual pretty Toque style.  Finished with Oolong, which is very taiwanese in quality, quite rare to find such good tea in N. America.  This place has been an exceptional restaurant since they were on St. Dennis.  After 8 years, and many fine restauranI ts later, it remained the top restuarant on my list in which I judge all others against, as I collect Michellin stars.  I only wish I can one day gather my whole family to Montreal to share the spetacular food in this wonderful place together.

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Restaurant Toque

 

2

27

Rannie B.

Montréal, QC

5 star rating
4/25/2010

I have been at Toque twice. Both times I was blown away.

Everything, and I mean everything from the greeting to the decor and place settings, the service and of course the food is in a class by itself.

Every morsel of food that I put in my mouth had very obviously been thought out, prepared with mastery and combined perfectly.

Each visit also allowed me to discover new tastes. Something rather rare given my love for food and my constant quest for new and exciting culinary experiences.

The decor and service are both conducive to slowly savoring every bite of your meal.

There is no question in my mind that Toque is the best restaurant in Montreal. It's really in a class of it's own.

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Restaurant Toque

 

1

3

Jennifer M.

Markham, ON

5 star rating
6/18/2010

I dined here with some friends about a year ago. Did not plan to write a review because, as it was my first time trying a tasting menu, I thought it satisfied all the expectations I had: innovative & delicious dishes with top notch service. But alas, I recently had my 2nd tasting menu at another establishment and it disappointed to the point I felt compelled to join the yelp community and put in my two cents.

I don't remember the dishes I had here with detail but they were incredibly delicious! I just remembered the first dish: corned mousse because I never heard or tried anything quite like it... and ditto for all subsequent dishes except for the classic staples like foie gras terrine and lamb. The dishes were also well paced, so expect a good 3 hrs here. I would definitely go back if I happen to be in Montreal again.

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Restaurant Toque

Elite '10

193

392

Claudine C.

San Francisco, CA

USA

5 star rating
12/27/2009 10 photos

We've dined in many fantastic restaurants (French Laundry, Alinea, Mugaritz, Pierre Gagnaire), and Chef Normand Laprise's Toque definitely stands among the best.  We dined here in May, 2008 and though I've been remiss in writing up a timely review, our meal here clearly and memorably stands out as a highlight not only of our trip to Montreal, but of my collective dining experience...

Service is warm and friendly - we asked to be seated by the big picture windows that look out on the colourful Palais des congrès de Montréal ...

We opted for the 7-course "elaborate mystery menu" - a steal back then at $92 Cdn ($156 with 5 glasses of wine).  

Some highlights:

Strawberries with scallops, macerated in orange juice. I thought this an odd combination to begin with - but the dish worked perfectly, the fruit pairing superbly with the delicate scallops, nothing overwhelmed.

Seared Foie Gras strawberry gelee and aged balsamic vinegar - the best treatment of Foie even during our Foie-heavy trip to Montreal, when we also visited that Temple of Fattened Goose Liver - Au Pied de Cochon.  The sear was perfect, the outside delicately sweetly caramelised, the interior rich and nearly molten...

Suckling pig: uber fall-apart tender skin-on suckling pig surrounded with radishes, false morels, raw almonds & milk foam... fabulous contrasts in texture and tastes, the foam a light contrast to the richness of the pork...

We would definitely return on our next trip to Montreal...

Listed in: Splurging, Montreal

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Restaurant Toque

 

21

246

Debbie P.

Orange County, CA

USA

4 star rating
3/15/2010 4 photos

Ordered the tasting menu with the wine pairing. I'm very particular in where I don't eat fruit not due to any allergies but I just simply don't like the taste or texture of any fruit so I was very pleased when they were able to accommodate my request without blinking an eye. They even came back to confirm the menu with my after speaking to their chef to make sure there wasn't anything on the menu that would displease me. The best part was the chocolate dessert which I devoured in no time.

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Restaurant Toque

 

1

25

Amy Z.

New York, NY

USA

3 star rating
10/6/2009

Toque, work in progress.

Setting -
Décor was a little dated and dining room was stuffy.

Food-
Amuse bouclé: corn soup had a flat flavor and lack of texture. No, it does not taste like popcorn!

Oysters: maybe it was our luck, the oysters were Not fresh that night and left us with a fishy taste to start our meal.

Foie gras Terrine: ask the server for a plate of sea salt, otherwise, the terrine was pretty good. I especially enjoyed the warm and EXTREMELY buttery brioche bread.

Scallops: cooked perfectly, but not very memorable.

Entrée Gnocchi cooked with Foie Gras was the star of the night! Perfectly flavorful Ricotta Gnocchi topped with LOTS of foie gras pieces. Although oily, it was very tasty.

Entrée suckling pig - bring your own knife, because Toque does not have steak knives. The waiter was really nice and offered to send back to the kitchen and have it cut up. But the pork was a little over cooked with very little flavor. I wish they could be a little more generous with the jus.

Dessert chocolate cake - plain, simple, nothing special.

For a restaurant like Toque, with a celebrity chef's name one the door, the price tag on the menu, and the ambiance it tries to create, we went with a lot of expectations, but it fell short in many ways. Overall, the food was good, but we found it safe and uninventive. Other than the gnocchi with foie gras, everything else, including the decor, still has a lot of room to improve.

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Restaurant Toque

 

2

22

Ross P.

Redondo Beach, CA

USA

5 star rating
7/14/2009

Expensive and perfect.  I was at Toque a few years ago, and it blew my mind.  There are dishes that are hard to reproduce, and you are treated like royalty.  At $300-500 per couple, you expect nothing less.

This is a once a year or every few year experience for us.  It is about perfection, and the waiters (who seem to outnumber the guests) make sure that you get perfection.  They clear everything between each dish (and we had 7 tastings).  They also explain the dishes in a way that is scripted.  

The food is so creative, I don't know where to begin, but some of these dishes obviously require huge preparation and special equipment.  I felt like I was a visiting chef on a food show, and they were doing this just for me.

I recommend this restaurant to anyone who wants to experience both food and service that is over-the top.  Save up and go - but it will set you back - be prepared.

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Restaurant Toque

Elite '10

15

117

Erin A.

Los Gatos, CA

USA

4 star rating
11/24/2008

Our evening at Toque was good and memorable but not the best meal or service I've ever had by far. We both ordered the 7 course tasting menu with wine flights.

There were some outstanding courses: the rabbit with pasta, the foie gras, razor scallops with mushrooms. My mouth is watering just thinking about the rabbit. But the service was off. Our main waitress was competent enough but several of the food runners did not have a good enough grasp of English to describe the dishes. This should not happen at a 5 star restaurant in a bilingual city. The staff who deals with customers should speak both of those languages fluently. There is a level of service at fine dining restaurants that I did not feel Toque met. It was no one thing but the entire evening. It was a fine evening but at $420 for two, not one that will be repeated.

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Restaurant Toque

 

11

38

Sable M.

San Francisco, CA

USA

5 star rating
4/23/2009

We first went to Toque years ago when it was still in the old location. We had the chef's menu (I had the one with Foie Gras and my husband had one without), which we did not know what to expect. Every dish was a pleasant surprise: the food was impeccable and the presentation was extremely impressive! It was by far our best dining experience ever.

When we visited Montreal again, we went back to Toque in its current location. It was much centered location and the dinning room was bigger, but it also became less personal. The food was still good but too much Asian influence this time. Because of my background, it was not nearly as innovative as the first time. Our expectation was so high that we were slightly disappointed.

It was still a very nice restaurant but with the exchange rate, we found it to be too expensive, especially considered the alternatives (there are tons of great restaurants in town). We will recommend it to someone who has a lot of money and wouldn't mind to spend on a meal. However, for us, it is no longer our number one choice in Montreal.

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Restaurant Toque

Elite '10

163

367

Merrill H.

Redondo Beach, CA

USA

5 star rating
8/7/2008

Toque is the best restaurant in Canada. There-- I said it, and I await the rebuttals. Bring it on!

Granted, my only meal here was over 5 years ago, but I dream about the salad I had here. Yes, the salad. (And I don't normally dream about food, either.) It was simple, it was evenly dressed, and it was the most delicious thing I've ever eaten. I really wish I could talk about the other items I ate, but everything else has been overshadowed by that delicious, perfect salad.

Toque emphasizes creativity. Looking at their recent a la carte menu, have you imagined serving caramelized mackerel with maple syrup? How about tuna belly with raspberry vinagrette? Sounds intriguing and guaranteed to be heavenly. I'd highly suggest getting the chef's 7 course tasting menu, as there will be even more creativity and suprises awaiting in each dish. In addition, Toque showcases their local suppliers. All of their food is locally grown/produced.

You'd think Toque comes with a hefty price tag, but it doesn't. The 7 course tasting menu (without wine pairings) comes in at $92 Canadian dollars, or $87 USD. Can you believe that?

Toque is definitely worth a trip to the lovely city of Montreal. If you come to Montreal without a visit to Toque, just realize you are missing out on THE best meal of your life from Canada's best restaurant.

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Restaurant Toque

Elite '10

29

724

Laur T.

New York, NY

USA

4 star rating
12/28/2008

This is supposed to be the best restaurant in Montreal. Or at least the best from what I researched and found. So we were excited to secure a reservation (albeit a pretty late one) on our weekend trip here.

Food was good, not phenomenal. I had the foie gras tasting dinner while he had the regular tasting. Silly me, I requested for the foie in the form of a terrine instead. The chef was able to accomodate my request and I enjoyed the terrine (thinking back now, I wonder if I made the right decision to swap...) but later on in the tasting, I somehow felt that the taste of dishes seem similar to that of the terrine (probably because he used the same ingredients e.g. strawberries etc). He said I can't really judge it since I requested  a swap... perhaps I should have stuck to the original menu. Oh well.

I'm not a big fan of their squab. The meat itself it too gamey for me. However, I did enjoy dinner here. My very first tasting! We spent a bomb here that night. I offered to split but he took on the entire bill. So sweet.

Listed in: Fine Dining & Michelins, Foie heaven's sake!

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Restaurant Toque

Elite '10

17

145

David H.

Boston College, MA

USA

5 star rating
12/22/2008

Toque is one of Montreals best restaurants. It is both consisent in the food and service. Having dined here over six times in the past two years I can truely say I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys fine dining.

The restaurant decor is modern and very clean lines; good size comfortable bar; nice wine cellar, open dining area. All service staff is very professional and polite.

I have had the tasting menu four time and everytime it was different and delicious. The other times I ordered off the menu. Menu is varied and has a very good selection. The salads, fish, seafood and game have all been delicious. The wine selection is very good.

You really can't go wrong eating here if you are entertaining. The crowd is a mix of professionals, business types, but mostly thirties to fifty year olds. Parking is available both on street and garage . Be sure to make reservations.

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Restaurant Toque

 

445

96

S L.

Outremont, QC

4 star rating
11/29/2009 5 photos

Dinner: November 27th 2009, 17:30

Some items of the 7 course tasting menu, I've picked:

-Foie gras poêlé, daikon poché au foin d'odeur, eau de pomme et gelées de miel et jurançon
Very elegant chunk of beautifully-textured pan-seared foie. Evenly cooked, deliciously tasty with an impeccable smooth inside consistency. It kept all it's fully inner flavors. Bathed in a light subtly sweet delicious apple jus, with dices of apples and heavenly delectable dices of honey gelée. That apple jus is very distinct and lightens the dish. Stunning!
-Effiloché de lapin, pâte à cavatelli,
matsutakés et craterelles, betterave et purées de rutabaga
The tender small cubes of sauteed rabbit were impeccably tasty. On top of being tasty, this dish was generously filling, nicely seasoned, flavorfully well balanced.
-Gigue de cerf rôtie, cerfeuil tubéreux, rabiole (rutabaga), topinambour (Jerusalem artichoke) et purée de poivron rouge
The chunk of deer was lean, perfectly tender, nicely peppery, warm through the middle with a perfect hint of red. Delicious fresh chunk of meat.

For pictures and fully detailed review, see the review on my food blog at:
http://aromes.xanga.co...

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Restaurant Toque

 

4

7

Aaron S.

Arlington, VA

USA

5 star rating
11/11/2009

Excellent staff, food's quality and presentation was perfect.  It's a great place to take a business group.

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Restaurant Toque

Brian M.

Glenmoore, PA

USA

5 star rating
4/14/2009

One of my favorite restaurants, and absolutely worth it. The wine pairings really did compliment the food, and the food was exquisite.

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Restaurant Toque

Elite '10

380

669

Holly T.

Long Beach, CA

USA

5 star rating
12/12/2008

This place gave me a whole new perspective on molecular gastronomy. I'd had it before, but never executed quite this well. I was a little skeptical of all the great reviews, but this place lived up to its acclaim.

This was one of the few Montreal restaurants on Open Table, so reservations were a snap. This is also one of the more elegant restaurants I've dined at in Montreal, so I'd recommend dressing up a bit.

We got the 7 course tasting menu, along with the vintage wine pairing (there were two wine pairing options, vintage and regular).

Amuse: Tangerine juice, served in a shot glass, topped with fir foam.
First course: Scallop served in the shell, with apple foam & cranberry water. Wine pairing: 1998 macon late harvest chardonnay
Second course: Monkfish liver with sake gelée and organic soy sauce. Wine pairing: 1993 soave
Third course: Seared foie gras with chili jelly, groundcherry, daikon, apple water, sugar/salt on flower petal. Wine pairing: 1996 sauternes.
Fourth course: Chicken topped with a sheet of homemade pasta with green onion oil. Wine pairing: 1996 Morgon beaujolais.
Fifth course: Venison with elderberries, red pepper chips, garlic, root vegetables, brussels sprouts, Wine pairing: 1970 Rioja Faustino (bottled in 1974).
Sixth course: Cheese plate with melted local cheese, homemade potato chips, pine nuts, red bell peppers, quince. (Wine pairing: didn't come with the tasting menu but we got a N.V. aged Tokai)
Seventh course: Baked cored apple with apple sherbet, coconut/sour cream powder, cranberry reduction.

Needless to say, it was a pretty impressive dinner. The colors and presentation of each dish were a work of art to behold, as well as to taste. The service was impeccable throughout the evening; the kind of service where your every need is anticipated. At one point a busser poured tap water into our sparkling water glasses, and even though it wasn't that big a deal our server immediately noticed and whisked those glasses away, bringing out a new bottle of sparkling water. Of all the meals we had on our last trip, this is one of the ones that was the most haunting; days later I'd still be thinking about some aspect of this meal. Montreal has so many excellent restaurants, so this is yet another one that is worth trying at least once.

Listed in: Yelp-inspired Excursions

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Restaurant Toque

 

3

5

Ji Y.

Wilmington, MA

USA

5 star rating
7/27/2009

I have been to quite a few French restaurants in Montreal. This is definitely by far the best. Food here comes with big price tags. This is not your weekly eat-out place, where you fill your belly with gigantic portions of comfort food. This is the place where you eat food that can only be seen on Iron Chef. This is the place where you satisfy your eyes and taste buds with culinary artworks.

My wife and I went there two days ago. We tried the 7-course tasting menu, which changes regularly. I chose the one without Foei Gras(I hate Foei Gras). My wife chose the one with Foei Gras. Every dish was very creative, w

The first two were cold sea food courses. The first was Sea scallop salad with Wasabi foam. The second was Sea snail with quail eggs and cabbage salad. They were both amazingly refreshing and tasty. I especially loved the sea snail. The light vinaigrette and mixture of finely minced pickled vegetables, complimented the sea snail meat extremely well.

The third course was Foie Gras for her and Monk fish for me. I liked my monk fish in its wonderful sauce.

The next two courses were both meat courses. The forth was Rib eye steak and the fifth was pork meat combination. Both were cooked to perfection. It was amazing how they made the fatty meat taste not fatty at all.

The sixth course was a cheese dish cooked with cauliflower and hazelnuts. The seventh was dessert. Both were good, but not as impressive as the previous ones.

Every dish was creative, well executed, beautifully presented and most importantly delicious. The flavors were sophisticated and delicate, not too strong or overwhelmingly rich. The service was adequate. The whole experience was absolutely worth the money.

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Restaurant Toque

 

4

8

Leo H.

MA

USA

3 star rating
8/19/2008

My ladyfriend and I went to Montreal for a long weekend.  We agreed that I would pick two restaurants and she would pick the other two.  Toque was one of my picks.  

As big fans of the tasting menu at Radius in Boston, we both decided to get the 7 course tasting menu with wine pairing and Fois Grois addition.  The courses consisted of:

-Tomato soup shooter
-(Don't remember)
-(Don't remember)
-Poached halibut with potato foam
-Fois Grois
-Rare duck slice with zuchini
-Goat cheese with berries

Overall impressions on food and drinks:

I wished the bar was stocked a bit better.  I wanted a dry Hendricks Martini with cucumber, but they didn't have any Hendricks.  Upon further inspection of their bar, they didn't carry too many spirits.  This seemed to be a theme in Montreal; understandably, I think they focus more on wine than their US neighbors.

The wine choices were excellent and matched the food perfectly.

The duck and fois grois were very good, though I felt the portion of duck was far too small to represent the primary meat course.  

Unfortunately, the other dishes were forgettable overall (you can see I actually can't remember two of them).  The portions did not match up against the price and the selections were just a bit too boring for me.  Everything was presented very well, but I think I needed at least one more meat course.  

I should mention that my girlfriend was very pleased with dinner.  She particularly liked the tomato soup shooter, which was excellent, but once again suffered from being too small a course (Radius would give something away like this as a bonus).

The service was also only okay for a restaurant in this price range.  The wait staff was not very attentive, requiring you to chase them down for water refills or bill paying.  This might just be a culture issue though; other restaurants in Montreal seemed to follow suit.

Overall I give Toque a 3 out of 5.  I expect better service for my money and I was not impressed with the tasting menu.  I think perhaps I would have been happier with something from their main menu.  

Toque is good, but it's not great.

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Restaurant Toque

 

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9

Adeline C.

Brooklyn, NY

USA

2 star rating
7/27/2009

We were celebrating our anniversary so naturally we want the best restaurant a city has to offer.  So when we were in Montreal this was the only restaurant that's certified Relais & Chateaux.  We have been to a few of them so we expected nothing less.  We both ordered the tasting menu with the wine pairing. First, the sommelier missed the wine for one of our courses and we had to remind our waiter to tell him!  The 7 courses was on and off.  One of the waitstaffs ( there are many that served us, don't know why but it seems everyone rotate serving all th tables) was so callous when she was describing the course that it actually made me not want to eat it.  Then the bill came, it was a R&C price but not the service nor the food.  I am so disappointed that I am writing to R&C about this. Don't waste your money because for this price I expect a lot more and this is merely a very good bistro and nothing more.

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Restaurant Toque

 

7

62

Cheng S.

Cambridge, MA

USA

5 star rating
2/25/2009

This was one of the best meals I've ever had in my life.  It's in the same league as French Laundry, Le Bernardin, etc.

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Restaurant Toque

 

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13

M. W.

Central District, Seattle, WA

USA

5 star rating
3/21/2009

We dined here during our honeymoon in Montreal in March 2009.  Unlike some of the other reviewers, we found the service to be outstanding.  Each of our servers were fluent in English and explained each dish perfectly.  We elected to have the seven course meal with the wine pairing.  The wine was excellent and the food was superb.  My favorite was the shrimp with crispy bread (course 4).  I would rate this as the best meal I have ever had topping restaurants in both New York and Las Vegas.

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Restaurant Toque

 

2

9

paul r.

San Francisco, CA

USA

5 star rating
3/20/2009

You can't go to Monteral without eating at Toque! I was actually a bit hesitant about going because my girlfriend told me its a 3 hr experience (it is) but I'm glad I went. We both had the 7 course tasting menu and it was the best meal I've ever had. Period. If you go, just get the 7 course tasting menu. I guarantee every course will be delicious and an explosion of textures, flavors, and experiences for your mouth. What made the experience even better was Fabian, one of the head waiters allowed us to visit the beautiful kitchen and showcased each station - pastry, frying, vegetables, meat - and even the lockers were an entire suckling pig was hanging from the ceiling. Afterwards, he led us down to the 7,000 bottle wine cellar. The wine menu changes each week as they add / rotate wines in and out of the cellar when they are ready. Truly an amazing experience and I look forward to returning.

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