Restaurant review | Cabaret l’Enfer: work of a goldsmith

Through the good times and, sometimes, the not so good, our restaurant critics tell you about their experience, present the team in the dining room and in the kitchen, while explaining what motivated their choice of restaurant. This week, we are in paradise at Cabaret l’Enfer.

Why talk about it?

When the person who masterfully ran the kitchens of an exceptional restaurant like Le Mousso for years opens his own restaurant, we pay attention. For almost two years I have been patiently waiting for my turn to pass through the doors of Cabaret l’Enfer. I wanted to give the place, located in the heart of the Plateau, time to find its feet, because it’s quite a gamble that chef Massimo Piedimonte has made with this unique project.

Who are they ?

Born in Montreal to an Italian family, Massimo Piedimonte worked at Maison Boulud before finding an internship at the renowned Noma, which had a profound impact on his career. Upon his return, he joined Antonin Rivard-Mousseau as executive chef of Mousso. Under his leadership, the restaurant won the title of Restaurant of the Year at the Lauriers in 2018 and was included in the 10 best new Canadian restaurants in 2019. During the pandemic, he left Le Mousso to open his own project: a sown journey obstacles, but which resulted, two years later, with the opening of Cabaret l’Enfer. A small but tight-knit team supports him on a day-to-day basis, including sous-chef Adrien Guyonnet, “pastaiolo” Andres Monzon, pastry chef Rainiel Cruz and sommelier Blandine Laurent.

Our experience

One day, Massimo came across a photo of the Cabaret de l’Enfer, in Montmartre, opened at the end of the 19th century.^e century. Next door was the Cabaret Le Ciel at the same time. But on rue Saint-Denis, there is no need to choose between heaven and hell. Hedonism reigns, the pleasures of the palate and the senses, in an environment where no detail is left to chance.

And this is undoubtedly what attracted me the most to Cabaret l’Enfer: often, tables where ultra-precision reigns have the fault of their qualities, cold, austere; while conversely, those that focus on indulgence and good food sometimes disappoint us with a messy execution. Here, these two worlds coexist. There is both a ceremonial and relaxed side to the experience offered (special mention to the listening list, by the way). Magic? No, we rather suspect the hard work of a goldsmith. Twenty times on the loom hand in your work, they say.

Massimo himself says it, laughing, when we chat with him the evening of our visit, as he goes from one table to another, sitting on the bench next to the customers, telling them the story behind each dish: “At the beginning, we weren’t good! » But like the small producer from whom we buy ugly carrots to encourage him, knowing that soon he could supply us with exceptional vegetables, the chef salutes the people who believed in him, from the start, and he allowed us to grow.

But today, there is no doubt: the sauce is at Cabaret l’Enfer.

Here, everyone eats the same seven-course tasting menu. Let’s go ! The “anti-pasti” sets the tone. The plate is carefully composed. There coexists pâté en croute, chicken liver mousse, kohlrabi marinated in redcurrant juice, etc. It’s accompanied by a very creamy homemade buffala mozzarella made “five minutes ago,” says the cook who came to present the dish – because yes, it’s the team in the kitchen who serves you the food. It’s divine, with the soft sourdough bread and the house-churned butter. We taste each little bite with growing delight.

It’s been a long time since I’ve been so (pleasantly) surprised by a meal at a restaurant. The cardeau, a white fish placed on a castel franco drop (bitter red chicory) and a sublime Matelotte sauce, based on red wine, is a daring pairing, which makes my taste buds dance.

Homemade agnolotti, perfectly al dente, are garnished with barigoule artichokes. The light emulsion which delicately coats them is made with the cooking juices of the artichokes. Niagara hazelnuts and a little arugula complete this very well-balanced dish, with refreshing acidity.

There are some gems of discovery. The “Trou Normand” is incredible: a lemon-parsley granita with limoncello, served in a frosted lemon bowl. It’s vegetal, bitter, sweet, delicious, all at the same time! For dessert, the taste of molasses and cinnamon of the black apple cream, made according to the same principle as black garlic, intrigues and moves, combined with the buffalo milk gelato and the signature skull meringue.

It’s difficult to summarize the richness of the tiny details that are hidden in each creation. Tetela – a Mexican classic from the Oaxaca region, made with heritage blue corn from Ontario, stuffed with a French-style mole – demonstrates the influence of much of the kitchen team, of Latin American origin, and a happy meeting between two worlds. Moreover, for the Valentine’s Day menu, we will be able to taste a sweet finale of a project that the team has been working on for weeks: the “9 leches” milk cake. We won’t tell you any more!

In our glass

There is of course a wine list, but I strongly suggest that you leave the liquid side to the care of the sommeliers by choosing the pairing. The wines are really well thought out, always in the spirit of inventiveness that reigns at this table, and enhance the meal. Thus, Ferlat Rosa, a short maceration wine, with a dark pink color, a fruity nose, but dry on the palate, goes wonderfully with antipasto. Les Terres Rouges, a briny-champigny from Antoine Sanzay, enhances the koji-marinated beef steak, its Bordeaux sauce and salsify. On the cocktail side, creativity continues with several explorations in fermentation, for example, a sumac kombucha integrated into a negroni or by combining Lot 40 Canadian whiskey with smoked kombucha, hibiscus and ginger.

Price

The tasting menu is priced at $120 for 7 courses (extra $13 for scallops and $7 for frosted lemon). The wine pairing is $85. Cabaret l’Enfer also offers a three-course menu – pasta, main course, dessert – for $40 after 9 p.m.

Good to know

From February 13 to 17, the restaurant will offer a Valentine’s Day menu. On February 24, Massimo Piedimonte and his team welcome chef Ron McKinlay and pastry chef Raffaele Stea from the Canoe restaurant in Vancouver, as part of Montreal Highlights, with an eight-course menu – there are still a few places left!

Open Tuesday to Saturday, 6 p.m. to 11 p.m.

4094, rue Saint-Denis, Montreal

Visit the Cabaret l’Enfer website