Restaurant review | Stellina: for pasta

Through the good shots and, sometimes, the not so good, our restaurant critics tell you about their experience, introduce the team in the dining room and in the kitchen, while explaining what motivated the choice of the restaurant. This week: Stellina and its fresh pasta.

Why talk about it?

This week, fresh pasta is in the spotlight on our screens. A great opportunity to sit down at Stellina Pastificio e Vino, a restaurant in Old Montreal that has made fresh homemade pasta its trademark. During a first visit last March, the care taken in making the pasta – which comes in a multitude of shapes, some less common – impressed me. But what about the full experience?

Who are they ?

Massimo Lecas is a seasoned veteran of the restaurant and vie de Nuit Montrealers. He was one of the owners of the Buonanotte and the Globe, two establishments that had their heyday. In 2015, he opened the first Fiorellino in a small location on rue De La Gauchetière, which quickly achieved undeniable success, followed by a second address on avenue Laurier Ouest, and a very recent one, in Petite -Burgundy. With his partners Angelo Leone, Roberto Pesut, David Malka and chef Jonathan Agnolli, he wanted to offer Old Montreal a new address where fresh pasta takes pride of place.

Our experience

On this wintry Friday evening, the establishment is already lively for the first service, without being too crowded. The clientele is young, well dressed, probably prepared for a festive evening of which the restaurant is only the starting point.

The service is a bit disorganized. We wait before finally being taken care of by our server, who apologizes for the confusion. He briefly explains the menu to us, serves us his “ top 4 » in cocktails, starters and main courses. A slightly formatted formula, which undoubtedly has the advantage of being effective during a busy evening.

The dining room is modern and sleek, with its bare brick walls, mirrored surface ceiling, long banquettes and yellow accents, courtesy of the talented design duo Gauley Brothers. The map, shared between antipasti, first And sweet, made in the classics: crudo di tonno, vitello tonnato, burrata and, of course, a selection of fresh pasta of the moment, all homemade. You can also see the team at work in the open kitchen at the entrance to the room.

Ok, starters don’t have that ‘wow’ factor that was hoped for. The Bluefin tuna crudo lacks punch and cohesion. The quality of the fish is unequaled, and the olive oil, with its little green side, is sublime, but the rest is rather ordinary: the orange, cut into rings rather than supremes, the black olives, left whole, an escalation of sliced ​​onions, it all lacks finesse.

The description of cipolla rossini (layered chiffon cake, red onion braised in veal jus and pan-fried foie gras topped with black truffle sauce) fueled our gluttony. But as we wait for the wine to be served before plunging our fork into it – which will prove to be a bit long – the soft cake becomes soaked in sauce and the delicacy of the dish suffers.

Hopes are pinned on the pasta dishes. If the tonnarelli caccio e pepe have nothing to reproach themselves for in terms of flavor, the big plump spaghetti are a bit too much al dente. But expectations are met with agnolotti, a signature dish that lives up to expectations. Perfectly executed and flavorful, it features pasta stuffed with oxtail (oxtail) and bone marrow. A success, just like the tortelli stuffed with Swiss chard and mascarpone, bathed in a brown sage butter and sprinkled with ricotta salata, tasted the following week, at lunchtime.

Also tasted during this second passage: a rather disappointing branzino crudo – bland, lacking in salt and acidity, drowned under the slices of fennel and useless shoots, where you had to look for the nudja announcement. This second visit confirmed our first impression: while Stellina’s pasta program is solid, the place has yet to reach its full potential. There are very good, correct and bof. Consistency is to be worked on, both in the kitchen and in the service.

To end our snowy evening, rather than opting for the obvious – a tiramisu – the torta caprese is our choice. the budino (Italian flank) with chocolate, accompanied by caramelized hazelnuts, is well built, but not stunning. A bit like our evening.

In our glass

The cocktail menu offers Italian classics – negroni, spritz, rossini – and other variations based on well-known recipes. The Viva! 22, tangy and refreshing, is actually a Paloma where the grapefruit has been replaced by passion fruit. On the wine side, there is obviously a large Italian selection. After a few waltzes-hesitations, the maitre d’ offered us a dark rosé with character, Osa! by Paolo Cali, a short and slightly effervescent maceration, to be enjoyed chilled.

Price

As we know, the price of food has exploded recently. As Stellina uses noble products and does everything in house, the amount of the invoice reflects this. So plan on a good budget to spoil yourself here: between $18 and $29 for an antipasti, between $29 and $38 for a primi and around $13 for a dessert. For alcohol, count about fifteen dollars for a cocktail and at least $60, or even more, for a bottle of wine. At lunchtime, it will cost you $39 for an antipasti and a piatti.

Good to know

It will be difficult for vegans to eat at Stellina – hello eggs, butter and cheese! –, but vegetarians will have no difficulty in feeding themselves. Gluten intolerant should avoid. The toilets being in the basement, the place is difficult to access for people with reduced mobility.