Hat trick

>> Joe Beef Inc. scores again with the
opening of their latest eatery McKiernan

by A.J. KINIK

Joe Beef had quite the auspicious debut back in 2005, but who would have guessed that this unassuming Little Burgundy eatery would grow into a veritable family of restaurants within the space of just three years? For that matter, who would have guessed that David McMillan and Fred Morin, Joe Beef’s owners/chefs, would manage to house all three restaurants within the space of a single block?

It’s safe to say that things are going well for Joe Beef Inc. Business continues to be brisk at both Joe Beef and at Liverpool House, their 2007 joint, and just a few weeks ago The New York Times ran a profile of four “quirky” Montreal restaurants that combine “personal tastes” with “regional ingredients”—both restaurants got reviewed and both got high marks. Now, with their latest gamble, McKiernan (a reference to the legendary figure behind the original Joe Beef), McMillan and Morin appear to have pulled off a trifecta.

The concept at McKiernan is “luncheonette and bar à vins.” There are only a handful of tables, the kitchen is tiny, menu items are written up on chalkboards, wines are stacked in crates in plain view and the emphasis is on finger food. Don’t let the casual setting (or the casual service) throw you, though—this is a serious restaurant that’s producing some seriously great eats.

Though sandwiches get pride of place, McKiernan’s appetizers include some of the city’s best. The charcuterie plate ($12), for instance, comes with four or five selections, including everything from a beautiful mousse de foie de volaille to a tasty chorizo sausage—all of it made in-house—plus some toast, some cornichons and some Dijon mustard. The smoked oysters with toast ($12) are pretty much just that—a can of smoked oysters (opened, thankfully) and a few diagonal cuts of toast, plus some celery as a garnish—but the oysters are artisanally prepared in the Gulf Islands of B.C. and they bear little resemblance to the supermarket variety.

Even better was the namesake McKiernan salad ($9). Our server had awkwardly described it to us as a “mish-mash,” so we were a little wary, but the arugula, pickled yellow beets, blanched green beans and asparagus, tomatoes and parmesan salad (okay, maybe it was a little busy) was an outright triumph—artfully composed, perfectly dressed and plenty enough for two.

McKiernan’s sandwiches (all of which are $10) are where things really get fun, though, and while all three sandwiches I’ve tried have been great, and I can honestly say that all you pork & cheese lovers (you know who you are) are in luck; two in particular really stood out.

The Ari Baikowitz “All-Beef Special” is McKiernan’s delirious homage to one of the city’s other “light lunch” classics, the Wilensky Special. Why would you pay $10 for a riff on a sandwich that you can still get for under $4 across town? Well, because they’ve both supersized it and accessorized it: they pile the bologna and salami up high and they add a length of karnatzel sausage, a slice of Kraft American and an onion bun to the mix. You also get extra mustard and a dill pickle spear, and you can actually take your time to savour it.

The true superstar was still waiting in the wings, though, and this time it wasn’t another riff on another Montreal classic (Schwartz’s smoked meat? Cosmo’s Creation?)—this time it was a little more modern, a little more allophone.

That’s right, the star attraction was a Chicken Tikka Sandwich, of all things, but the chicken was tender and bursting with flavour, the masala had kick, and it came with mint chutney slathered on the inside and a jar of homemade mango chutney on the side. Montreal’s Sandwich Hall of Fame is not without its heavyweights, but if McKiernan keeps it up, they might have to clear some room for that chicken tikka number.

We found the prospect of the “Maltesers brownie” advertised on the board pretty exciting too, but the international Maltesers shortage kinda threw a wrench in the works. No matter. The regular McKiernan’s brownie ($5) is an excellent example of the “chewy school” variety and worth every hard-earned penny (although a scoop of vanilla ice cream would really consummate the deal).