This text is part of the special Pleasures notebook
A new gastronomic experience comes to the restaurant of the Four Seasons hotel in Montreal.
The tasting menu at the Comptoir du chef offers customers, who make a reservation, a personalized evening adjoining the open concept kitchen of the luxurious hotel, where it is possible to see the magic happening and the dishes being prepared.
Jason Morris, executive chef of Marcus — the name of the brand comes from the famous chef and restaurateur Marcus Samuelsson, based in New York —, graduate of the Institut de tourisme et d’hôtellerie du Québec and two-time winner of the Canada’s Top award 10 and Canada’s 100 Best, takes its place in the centerpiece of the kitchen. Apron on, the person who is used to feeding 300 people per evening works with his team to create different dishes adapted to customers who have chosen the immersive option.
Taking into account tastes, but also intolerances and food allergies (an entire protocol is put in place to avoid contamination), the menu prepared by the chef promises to be satisfying and without a hitch. And in the face of challenges, the greatest works are sometimes born.
Each dish prepared before the eyes of customers tickles curiosity and makes them salivate. It is then in a surprising calm – in a setting of harmonious agitation where the role of each person is very well integrated – that Jason Morris presents what will be savored in the minutes that follow. A unique moment which allows you to learn about the chef’s inspiration, the reasons behind the choice of products such as the combination of flavors and textures.
Kaluga caviar on potato lakte, bucatini picadilly (pasta with lobster, crispy garlic and chili pepper), Pacific sea bass with peas and dill and champagne peach are some of the creations with simple ingredients, but oh how much thought that is offered in spectacle, individually highlighted by a featured product. For the parade of plates that will take place on the counter, a sommelier will make his suggestions – if desired – from a wine list made up of private imports and controlled appellations.
After three hours of delicious discoveries and culinary theater, the evening ends under the soft lighting of the dining room, which looks like an elegant brasserie. It is then well satisfied and with the desire to return to the room that we leave the establishment, located in the heart of the Golden Square Mile, in order to introduce others to the experience that is both intimate and lively.
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