Dolcetto & Co. served an impressive feast for MTL à TABLE 2014. It was a girls’ night out, and I was joined by my friends who were equally excited as I was to try this place for the first time. The atmosphere is warm and inviting, every seat is taken, and there’s a lively din coming from the open kitchen. There’s a nautical theme of red, white, and blue that brings the seaside to Old Montreal. Even the waiters are decked out in matching striped tees. It’s definitely not your typical Italian restaurant.
L’Aromate, another restaurant that has been wowing guests during the event made a wise call by featuring its much-loved, most popular dishes on the restaurant week menu. Following suit, Dolcetto & Co. made sure to include their best dishes that have kept clients returning for years. The menu was different from most of the pre-set menus typically offering an appetizer, entree, and dessert. Dolcetto’s menu consisted of an appetizer and main course followed by a pizzette (Italian for a small, personal-sized pizza). But…gasp! No dessert!? My sweet tooth was highly disappointed. However, the courses were so delicious that I left without longing for a slice of cake.
The only appetizer option was duck magret with zucchini carpaccio, but I don’t think I would have wanted anything else. The duck breast was thinly sliced and done in a white balsamic sauce, which was very light and didn’t overpower the duck. From the crunchiness of the zucchini to the softness of the supple duck meat, the dish was full of textures.
For the second course, three of us ordered the braised lamb shank seasoned with thyme. It came with a side of asparagus and was topped with grapes. Meat and fruit is one of my favourite combinations. If it seems foreign to you, just think of turkey and cranberries, or pork and apples. For me, the lamb was the best course, as it was impeccably soft and fell right off the bone. No knife needed.
My friend ordered the butternut squash, spinach and parmesan lasagna, giving it two thumbs up and a few jaw-dropping “Oh My God’s”. What it lacked in presentation was made up for by its taste. (Mind you, it’s impossibly difficult to plate a lasagna well, trying to ensure that the layers don’t collapse into a pile of nondescript cafeteria food.) The sweet squash went well with the sharp parmesan. Instead of using tomato sauce, the chef created a creamy bechamel sauce that made this dish so rich.
I initially ordered the pizzette with foie gras, figs, and fleur de sel, eager to try foie gras on pizza for the first time. Unfortunately, the waitress told me they had run out of foie gras. What kind of Montreal restaurant runs out of foie gras!? (Kidding! She was very kind, offering me the choice of any other pizzette on the menu). I chose to substitute it with a pizzette with prosciutto cotto (cooked ham as opposed to uncooked and dry-cured), pineapple, and taleggio cheese. The taleggio has a mildly fruity taste which goes very well with pineapple. The dough was fairly thin and quite soft. I’d describe it as your typical Hawaiian pizza kicked up a few notches.
The girls all ordered the white pizzette with pine nuts, smoked cacciocavallo cheese and oyster mushrooms. The cheese had a buttery, nutty taste that combined well with the unique taste of oyster mushrooms — more nutty-tasting than most mushrooms. This was the milder of the two pizzettes, and if you’re a sweet-and-salty junkie, I’d recommend ordering the pineapple-prosciutto combo.
Although MTL à TABLE has ended, most of the dishes are still on the menu and will hopefully be for a very long time. I’m determined to return to try their outrageously popular foie gras pizzette. Dolcetto & Co. does a stellar job of putting your old pizza joint to shame. Too bad they don’t deliver.