L'Express: A Montreal Bistro Classic on rue St-Denis

There are Montreal restaurants, and then there's L'Express. Since 1980, devotees have watched the passing seasons through the glass facade of L'Express, housed discretely in a row of greystones on Montreal’s rue Saint-Denis. The dream of theatre-lovers Colette Brossoit and Pierre Villeneuve, brought to life by architect Luc Laporte, it's a Montreal institution, with a menu of classic French bistro dishes that are so well loved, the restaurant is packed every night, thanks largely to chef Joël Chapoulie who put L'Express on the culinary map: from his chicken liver pâté, bone marrow with coarse salt, calf liver with tarragon, veal kidneys in mustard sauce, homemade ravioli and onglet steak with shallot butter and frites. Everything is made in-house, from their cornichons that are prepared twice-a-day to their signature sauces garnishing each dish, L’Express puts a lot of love and attention into everything it serves.

However, after 32 years at the helm, chef Joël Chapoulie retired in 2012, leaving the culinary reins to his protégé chef Jean-François Vachon, who with his team carry on Chapoulie's repertoire of classic French bistro cuisine. Servers still glide among the tables with a shared sense of purpose, honouring the founder’s insistence on quality and professionalism, and whether you order a simple soupe de poisson or foie gras de canard au torchon, the staff take extraordinary pride in all that they do, including a remarkably enlightened owner who still writes the menus with a fountain pen. Chef Chapoulie once said that the L'Express' architect "created a fantastic setting of remarkable classicism. You can’t improve on its style. Everything is perfectly balanced, just the way it should be" — and you have to agree — the whole room is imbued with a intoxicating ambiance. Seated in the bustling dining room, it’s fascinating to know that thousands of bottles of wine are tucked away beneath your feet in the cellar below, tended for decades by Mario Brossoit. Alive with a lively buzz of people enjoying spending time together, the cosy 15 seats at the bar allows you to enjoy a meal alone or with someone else, a standing apéro bar at the side perfect for a cozy pre-dinner cocktail, and the 60-seat dining room set with white tablecloths and elegant stemware, adds the perfect touch of elegance to the whole L’Express experience.

Warm and friendly with an energetic buzz, the chic bistro-style interior of L'Express with linen tablecloths, black and white checkerboard floor tiles and palms trees

The autumn menu of quintessential bistro classics such as bone marrow, luscious sorrel soup, duck confit and their bestselling dish - Onglet beurre échelote e frites

Basket of perfectly fresh baguette

Mason jars of housemade cornichons are prepared each day,

and are set at each table for guests to help themselves with wooden tongs

Squash Soup with guanciale and nuts

Soupe de Poissons with garlicky rouille and toasted cheese baguette 

Our wonderful server Patrick, who took care of us all evening

Chateau Cruzeau St Emilion Grand Cru 2015

Onglet with shallot butter and frites with a pot of housemade mayonnaise

Pot of mustard for the steak

Grilled Salmon with spinach and lentils

restaurantlexpress.com

Parmentier d'Agneau Confit
Serves 4
Recipe courtesy of chef Joël Chapoulie

4 lamb shanks
2 cups of coarse salt
8 peppercorns
2 bay leaves
duck fat
2 1/4 lb potatoes
3 1/2 oz of butter
1 cup of milk
7 oz chanterelles
2 French shallots
5 oz sliced ​​onion
2 cloves garlic
1 cup tomato paste
salt and pepper
3 1/2 oz spinach sprouts
1 cup of lamb or veal stock stock
2 tbsp finely chopped chives, for garnish


The day before, place the lamb shanks in coarse salt with pepper and bay leaves, and refrigerate overnight. The next day, remove the salt from the lamb by rinsing with cold water and then drying with a clean towel. Dip them in hot fat and cook on low heat for 2 to 3 hours. Once done, put enough melted fat to cover the shanks, then remove and let cool.

Clean the lamb shanks by removing the fat, sinews and bones and then shred the meat. Caramelize the onion, garlic and tomato paste. Add the lamb and adjust the seasoning. Sauté the chanterelles with the finely chopped shallot and set aside. Cook the potatoes and make a fairly dry purée with butter and milk. Season and reserve.

To prepare the dish, grease four 8 oz ramekins and add about 5 oz of the shredded meat. Stuff well and add over a layer of mashed potatoes. Smooth the top and cover with plastic wrap. When serving, heat the ramekins in the microwave, put in each plate a bed of spinach shoots and un-mold a ramekin on it. Warm the mashed potatoes and chanterelles. Put a layer of mashed potato over each serving and add the chanterelles. Top with lamb or veal sauce, garnish with some chopped chives and serve immediately.

La Tarte au Chocolat de L'Express
Serves 8-10
Recipe courtesy of chef Joël Chapoulie

Pâte sucrée:
1/4 cup + 2 tsp softened unsalted butter
1/2 cup + 1 tbsp icing sugar
2 egg yolks and 1 whole egg, beaten together 
1 cup + 2 tbsp all-purpose flour

Ganache:
1 1/4 cup 35% cream
2/3 cup whole milk
10 oz of bittersweet chocolate
1 beaten egg
1/2 cup cocoa powder, for garnish

Chocolate Coulis:
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup 35% cream
1 2/3 cup cocoa
2 cups water


Preheat the oven to 325°F. For the pâte sucrée, beat together the butter and icing sugar, then add the beaten eggs. Whisk to remove lumps as much as possible, then stir in the flour by hand, until well mixed. Once the dough is throughly combined, form a ball and place in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.

Set the dough on a clean floured surface and using a rolling pin, roll out the dough so that is slightly larger than the fluted springform pie pan with a removable base. Lay the pastry over the pie pan, and using your fingertips, gently press the dough along the base and up the sides, so that the dough is evenly distributed. 

Lay a piece of aluminum foil over the pastry and fill with dry beans to blind baking the dough, which will prevent the crust from rising and bubbling during cooking. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until the dough is golden brown.

While the crust is cooling, increase the oven to 400°F. For the ganache, bring the milk and cream to a boil over medium heat. Add the chocolate and stir constantly so that it's well combined and melt, about 5-10 minutes. Once the ganache is very dark, remove from heat and add the beaten egg, stirring so that it does not separate. Pour the ganache into the crust and bake for about 15 minutes, then place in the refrigerator overnight. Once chilled, sprinkle the top with cocoa powder.

Before serving prepare the chocolate coulis, by placing each of the ingredients in a small saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly. To serve, artfully drizzle some coulis on each plate then top with a slice of tarte au chocolat.

Parfait Glacé au Yogourt et Vanille

Serves 6
Recipe courtesy of Chef Jean-François Vachon

1 cup sugar
1/3 cup of water
8 egg yolks
1/2 lemon

Compote:
2 vanilla pods
2/3 cup whipping cream 35%
2/3 cup yogurt
1 1/2 cups wild blueberries from Quebec
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup old balsamic
Mint leaves to decorate


Mix the water and sugar and cook at 245°F with a candy thermometer. Put the egg yolks in a bowl, add the zest of half a lemon grated and two cloves of vanilla split and scraped and mix everything. Pour over the boiling sugar, whisking little by little, continue to whisk until the mixture has cooled down. Whip the cream and gently add the drained yogurt, add to the mixture by mixing well but gently. Pour into a rectangular pan and leave in the freezer for at least 6 hours. 

Cook wild blueberries from Quebec with sugar and balsamic vinegar for 15 minutes over low heat and let cool to room temperature. Unmold the perfect by quickly passing the mold under hot water before turning it on a dish. Cut slices of frozen parfait, place each on a plate and add a good spoon of balsamic blueberries. Decorate with a mint leaf.