Squaresville

>> Put your money where your mouth is at Taverne sur le Square

by SARAH MUSGRAVE

If you’d travelled somewhere exotic, then came back to Montreal looking for a homey meal I can’t look at Westmount Square without thinking of the movie version of Ayn Rand’s novel The Fountainhead. Specifically, the scene where her ruggedly individualistic architect Howard Roark throws a hissy fit about proposed changes to his ruggedly individualistic housing project, shouting “No balconies! No balconies!”

An icon of modernist architecture and affluence that would have been right at home in the film, Westmount Square was designed by Mies van der Rohe in the mid-1960s. It’s fallen on hard times in recent decades, as its shopping concourse became incredibly desolate. With the opening of Taverne sur le Square about six months ago, the building finally got the kind of restaurant it deserves.

Employing the same chef as the Monkland Tavern, this eatery uses the formula made popular by its NDG cousin to great success here. The place was packed during a recent lunch hour, full of manicured women and businessmen unleashing a cell phone symphony. The lounge area, accent lighting, smooth wood surfaces and booths around the perimeter make it look like an upscale Plateau bar. Through the windows, the occasional Filipino nanny could be seen chaperoning some local brat along Ste-Catherine street.

Of course, it ain’t cheap, but the Taverne has one of those menus where everything seems really appealing. The burgers, pastas, meats, and salads all have extra touches that set them apart from the usual fare.

The soup of the day ($4) was tomato, gorgonzola and rapini. The different elements were expertly blended to give it a cohesive, rich flavour and a silky smooth texture. The addition of chipotles made the Caesar sound really different ($6 or $11). These wonderfully hot, smoky peppers didn’t do much for the salad, though—they were barely discernible. In fact, although there were no anchovies in evidence the creamy dressing on the romaine lettuce had a fishy taste to it. Even with the fresh parmesan and the fluffy croutons, it just wasn’t my kind of Caesar—my preference is for more garlic.

For the main courses, I debated between the grilled portobello mushroom sandwich and the plate of farfale pasta with Italian sausage. I finally decided to splurge on the grilled salmon, offered at a hefty $18. The strip of pink fish sat atop a mellow but pungent mixture of cabbage and pancetta. Around the edges of the plate were new potatoes sitting in a coarse mustard sauce. It was a really good dish, just unusual enough to be special.

Taverne’s kitchen can also do the simple stuff well. My friend’s $7 Taverne burger (also available with gorgonzola or Brie) was cooked exactly to the medium-well she’d specified. The fries were a cut above the usual too, crisp and meaty. The bun looked like sourdough, light-coloured and dense, but was apparently a ciabatta.

There’s a huge wine list here and quite a few are available by the glass. I opted to get a glass of white with the meal, which set me back another $7. Desserts also cost as much as a meal other places, ranging as high as $12 or $16. We opted to share an $8 caramelized apple tart with ginger spice ice cream. It contained a deliciously spicy mix of raisins, walnuts, pears and calvados. Also on offer were a lemon tart, chocolate mousse and a gourmet ice cream sandwich.

Overall, Taverne’s food was excellent, which is almost a shame because it’s not that often that I’ll be able to blow almost $30 on lunch. It’s definitely a great place to go if someone else—preferably a Rand fan—is footing the bill.:

Feedback? restoagogo@hotmail.com

Taverne sur le Square
Address: 1 Westmount Square
Phone: 989-9779
Hours: lunch Mon–Fri 11:30am to 3pm;
dinner Mon–Sat 6–11pm
Best features: quality food,
sleek surroundings
Alcohol: yes
Vegetarian friendly: limited
Credit cards: yes
Wheelchair access: yes
Price: $25/person before tax, drinks or tip
Rating: HHH out of HHHH