Chez Sophie Revisited
Sister #3 has visited Montreal and New York City in the last couple of months. This is wonderful for her but poses a problem when you are trying to decide where to take her out for a birthday supper that is special, unique and will delight her. I was thinking that the warm and cozy ambiance of Chez Sophie at 248 avenue de la Cathédrale would do the trick.
The extensive menu is full of surprizes. She had decided upon quiche when she discovered that there were also crepes and opted for the latter. The crepes themselves were perfect in their thinness and lightness and were bulging with smoky, rich salmon and then topped with drooly slices of Camembert.
Sister#2 ordered the Alsatian pizza, at my prompting. The Alsatian region of Europe brings together France, Germany and Italy. Alsatian wines have long been our favourite because they taste to us like a perfect blend of French and German white wine. So too, the pizza has a regional French twist with the inclusion of a creamy bechamel sauce instead of a traditional Italian tomato based sauce.
Our Mom had her eyes on the accompaniments more than the entree itself. The three sisters love the fine taste of bread and this trait could certainly come from Mom, as the little pan buns fresh out of the oven were a big attraction. The big mixed salad was also tempting and so we helped her chose a quiche which would deliver it all. She took most of her quiche Lorraine home for her next day lunch.
I too had eyes bigger than my tummy. Having savoured the bun, the salad and the beautiful little casserole of potatoes in cream and topped with cheese, I could only manage a single bite of my fried Camembert. That taste was delicious but was even better when I took it home and had intermittent nuggets of it all through the next day, for the dish was so very rich.
Service was perfect as usual. I almost always have the same beautiful, bilingual server take care of me. She is proud of the food served at Chez Sophie’s and is willing to be translator between we Anglaise and French Chef/Owner Stephane in the kitchen. The restaurant was absolutely jammed early on a weekday night so pick your times carefully. But do not miss out on one of St. Boniface Winnipeg/s little gems.
It turned out that Sister #3 had a heavy cold and just wanted to get home to bed. But did she enjoy her birthday treat? I am sure of it because one of her beautiful and unique character traits is that she is so easy to pamper and delight.
Kath’s quotes: “The smell of good bread baking, like the sound of lightly flowing water, is indescribable in its evocation of innocence and delight…”-M. F. K. Fisher
Love-that is all.
[…] tarte flambée (French) flammekueche (Alsatian which sounds German to me) because we have Chez Sophie where they dub their version “French-style Pizza” to avoid confusion. They still use […]