Bustling bistro

Chef Marc-André Royal returns home with le St-Urbain’s accessible, affordable French

by JOANNA FOX

There’s been a lot of talk recently about the direction of French cuisine. From the criticism flanking the Michelin star guide and its outdated approach, to the philosophy of Le Fooding guide, with a more liberal, convivial dining perspective, the lines that once distinguished one cuisine from another, or a high-end restaurant from a lower-end one, are being blurred. Here in Montreal, we’ve been experiencing a similar wave of change, with local, seasonal produce, more casual décor, rustic plating and the chalkboard menu. There is no question that although classic French restaurants remain, Montreal chefs are trying to bring something new and accessible to the table.

When I heard about le St-Urbain, located on Fleury just off St-Laurent Blvd. in Ahuntsic, I was immediately piqued. The chef, Marc-André Royal, has a resume that is impressive, to say the least. From Araxi in Whistler to Blue Water Café and Raw in Vancouver, one Michelin-star Club Gascon in London to a stint at Thomas Keller’s three-Michelin Per Se in New York, Royal also worked here in Montreal at l’Express, the private member’s club 357c and la Brasserie Brunoise. Royal recently returned to his old neighbourhood to open up something all his own. But most impressive about Royal’s culinary vision is by far the prices. From the wine list caped at about $80 to mains under $30, you don’t often see this chef/price pairing.

Revamped in the best of ways to distract from the linoleum floors and the office-style ceiling panels, le St-Urbain looks like it might have been an old storefront. They’ve used an entire wall for the chalkboard menu—the biggest I’ve seen to date and easily discerned from every seat—added antique wood pieces used as waiters’ stations, and have a beautiful wood-accented open kitchen at the back. The tables fill the room with a perfect balance of space and warmth and the service is seamless.

We started with a chacuterie plate ($16) and Matane shrimp ($13). The chacuterie came on a large round dish artistically scattered with various impressive options: maple smoked duck, veal tongue, pork rillette with pine jelly, pork liver with calvados, a liver mousse and smoked deer. Far from what we expected, this ensemble was a myriad of well thought out tastes and textures, served with warm brioche bread on the side. The Matane shrimp ($13) were piled in a line along a rectangular plate mixed with celery, onions and chives with small dollops of Meyer lemon mayonnaise to one side and red pepper puree smears to the other. Delicious, with that salty hit of the sea, it was presented in such a dainty way, I felt barbaric with my prodding fork. Accustomed to current food presentations, more loose-handed and fancy free, I enjoyed this slight step back to higher end French style.

For the mains, we tried the pork belly ($23), the rib roast ($22) and the smoked halibut ($25). The pork belly had been slow-cooked for 24 hours and although a bit dry on the bottom layer, it melted in the middle and had a perfect crispy skin with a black truffle paste on top. Served with carrots and white beans, this dish would woo any truffle lover. The rib roast was two generous medallions atop a pile of creamy spinach, chickpeas and a bone marrow sauce. Served on the side was a truffle whipped mash—perfectly pink, tender and swimming in the delicious marrow reduction, it was definitely a meat and potato dream.

The halibut came with celery root puree, asparagus and chunks of chorizo in a vierge sauce (olive oil, lemon juice, chopped tomatoes and basil). The smoky flavour of the halibut married the sausage beautifully, along with the welcome crunch of this season’s fattest asparagus and the light, zesty sauce. For dessert, we had finger-like donuts dipped in a salty caramel butter ($6), a perfect sweet and salty finish to our meal.

I can’t quite tell you which side of the coin the style of cuisine le St-Urbain falls on. Although the dishware feels oversized, clunky and outdated, and some of the plate presentation is overly ornate and fussy, the atmosphere is simple, fresh and bustling. Regardless of trends, cutting edge food movements and what “food experts” are saying, sometimes good food is simply that, dressed up or dressed down.