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Perfect Portuguese >> Casa Minhota caters to the Fringe
by SPANKY HOROWITZ Three Sundays ago, the Portuguese church on the corner of Rachel and St-Urbain held one of their Sunday celebrations, blocking off the surrounding streets to have a good old-fashioned parade. I tagged along and noticed that some people were eating sandwiches. Like a salmon swimmin' upstream, I wove through the crowd in search of the source. Inside the church was a food lover's temple: plates of fresh fava beans, beer, homemade wine and the glory of Portuguese fast-food: the bufana (aka bifana) selling for a mere $2. During our 23-minute wait (which I'm sure was to weed out the weak ones), we were informed that the bufana is indeed a Portuguese treat and can be hard to find all year-round. Biting into the stewed-pork sandwich, which was held together by some sort of magic Portuguese sauce and served in a soft-on-the-inside-crusty-on-the-outside roll, I fell in love. The experience sparked my interest in Portuguese food and later, while having a drink at the Copa trying to think of where eat next, I realized that I was staring at the "sign" right across the street--Casa Minhota! Inside, you can choose to sit in the bar or the restaurant. The bar menu alone would put many restaurants to shame. They offer fava beans, fried calamari, shrimp, vegetables and an assortment of Portuguese delicacies, including the much-coveted bufana. I knew I had come to the right place! I started off with fried shrimp balls and fried cod balls, with a chili sauce for dipping. Then I sampled some fried calamari and an appetizer plate of sardines, grilled whole, served with a nice green salad. All were absolutely scrumptious. I'll never eat sardines from a can again. Of the various main courses, I sampled the "Alentesana"-style pork ($13.95), a Northern Portuguese stew made from potatoes, pork medallions and fresh clams in the shell. The sauce from the stew was the "magic" sauce I had tasted on the bufana; I would have soaked it up with pieces of corn bread, but in the end I was too full. I must be getting old. When we asked if the paella ($17.95) included shrimp, Miro (one of the owners) replied, "Yes, it has everything." Indeed, this paella included shrimp as well as lobster (whole claws and tail in the shell), pork, chicken and some other ingredients which I cannot even remember. Yes, this paella had everything. If you're really hungry, you might want to sample the table d'hôte ($16.9522.95). I tried the seafood plate, which was a tremendous platter of fresh seafood stewed in a sauce similar to the "magic" one, but suited for seafood. It included a whole lobster, calamari, scallops, clams, mussels and shrimps surrounding a mound of perfectly cooked rice, topped by a single olive. If one olive isn't enough, don't fret, they are in abundant supply on your table, along with cornbread and butter. I admit defeat. This restaurant stuffed me. I couldn't finish anything. Which gave me a chance to heat up the leftover paella and seafood plate the next day for lunch. Both dishes passed the "Day After Test" with flying colors. The owners let me in on a little secret, which I will pass on to you--if you promise not to tell anybody. During the Fringe Festival (June 1827), Casa Minhota will be selling food outside on the corner of Napoléon and St-Dominique while the Fringe will be selling beer. So if you get the desire to sit outside while sipping beer and enjoying some out-of-this-world Portuguese specialties, drop by the festival's Beer Tent. Comments: foodspanky@hotmail.com Casa Minhota Address: 3959 St-Laurent Phone: 842-2661 Hours: Lunch 11am-5pm; Dinner 5pm-1am
Best Features: Best bar food in town, Vegetarian friendly: Yes Wheelchair access: Street level Prices: Snacks $3-10; Lunch $9-10; Dinner: $13-27, before tax and tip Rating: **** out of **** |