Three Great Tastes

Okay, a brief interlude about food love. Yes, food love. For those of you who know me, the fact that I've tasted three new food items and decided to post a blog about it won't be a big surprise.

I left Montreal yesterday morning to spend a day in Quebec city, the capital of the province of Quebec. But I couldn't do it without tasting at least ONE of Montreal's culinary treasures. I decided on bagels, since I was leaving in the morning, and felt that a Montreal smoked meat sandwich would be a bit much for breakfast.

I went to Fairmont Bagels, which is an institution in Montreal. I was surprised; it's more like a teeny-tiny bakery with a tiny take-out window than the booming, 24-hour bagel place I was expecting. And it was super-hot in there with a huge wood-fired oven and no air conditioning.

Anyway, I ordered my test of a good bagel, pumpernickel. The bagel was smaller than I was used to in the States, and tasted differently, too. The texture was good, dense and chewy, but different than a New York bagel, since Montreal bagels are wood-fired. It also had an unusual sweet-sour flavor that I wasn't quite used to (apparently, Montreal bagels are boiled in honey-sweetened water before they're baked). But it was tasty, and I enjoyed it.

I made it to Quebec City that afternoon, and wondered around town for a while. It's super-cute there, like a European city, basically, with narrow cobblestone streets and lots of inns and cafes. But I was drawn to one with a big "Montreal smoked meat" sign out front (I'm such a sucker, aren't I?) I went into the restaurant, and it was a booming little coffee shop/sandwich shop. Anyway, I asked about the smoked meat, and the waitress said it was delicious, so I ordered it.

And she did NOT lie to me. That was one amazing sandwich. Rye bread, good dark mustard, spicy-salty-savory meat, and a French pickle on the side, along with some coleslaw and fresh-fried potato chips. It was food heaven.

Today, I left Quebec City and drove for 350 miles to make it to the Maritime Provinces (more on that later). But now that I'm on the Atlantic coast, seafood is the thing to eat. I went to a restaurant tonight that served it up in all manner of ways, but the waitress recommended the Lobster Roll.

Now, let me say this: I am Jewish, and so eating lobster is not something I've done a lot of. In fact, I've only had it once before, years ago, and then it was only to be polite. But since then, I've turned into a foodhound, and so I had a decision to make: avoid the bottom-feeder? Or take advantage of a culinary opportunity in its unique habitat? I thought about it for a few seconds, and then I decided to go with the Lobster Roll -- after all, this trip is both a journey and an adventure, and I figured I may as well suck the marrow out of it.

So, after eating a Jewish bagel and then Jewish smoked meat, I swung the pendulum 180 degrees and ate my first lobster roll. And it was outstanding. Sweet, creamy, delicate, on a fabulous buttered roll, served with coleslaw. It was amazing. I ate it as slowly as I could possibly manage, trying to savor it as much as possible.

So, there it is. In two days, I've had a Montreal bagel, Montreal-style smoked meat, and a lobster roll. Not great for the hips, but fabulous for the soul.