Montreal is full of wonderful surprises and for someone like myself who loves to go out and find cool new places to eat and drink, it is such a pleasure to be surprised by a restaurant I had wrongly judged. A couple of years ago I went to Rosalie for the first time. Having ignorantly brushed the place off as nothing more than another typical downtown Montreal m’as tu vu restaurant, I was humbled when I bit into my first piece of delicious pizza and slurped back one of my first oysters and smiled at being so very wrong; the place was, and still is, fantastic. You can read our original article here.
I try to return to Rosalie any chance I get. A couple of weeks ago I accompanied the evil Montreal Food Divas to a private tasting at the famous downtown eatery. When I say accompanied I mean that I crashed their party without giving them much notice. Diva 2 had let it slip a few days earlier that they were going to be at Rosalie to try a few items off the fresh new menu. Of course when they showed up I waved at them from their table and invited them to join me. Being the kind person that I am, I was simply warming the table up for them. Diva 1 was accompanied by her minion, Michelle (I mean Sweet Pea – I can’t keep up with all these secret names they have for each other…) who asked me for an autograph, again. I glared at her and set the white napkin on my lap. There we were, 4 pleasant people around the table, settling in for a wonderful evening of food and wine. Sure Diva 1 was scowling as she filled her purse with bread but that’s normal when she’s humbled by my presence. Now who’s the curmudgeon?
Over the last few years, Rosalie has made a couple of significant changes to their look and their menu. The outdoor terrasse has been completely remodelled and connects the restaurant directly to the sidewalk with illuminated steps and a sleek series of tables, all of which were full for most of the summer (and many of us can’t wait until it opens again). On the inside not much has changed about the decor in the main dining room. The area is very spacious and open which sits in the restaurant’s favour. The fantastic wine cellar still sits above the main dining room and the wood fired pizza oven still warms the place up all winter long. Some renovations are expected in the coming year but we will have to wait and see what the owners have up their sleeves.
The menu has slightly stepped away from its Italian roots. Though there are still plenty of delectable Italian to chose from like their pizza and Sicilian meatballs (pictured above), they now also serve a delicious variety of tacos, filet mignon spring rolls, piri piri chicken, Korean style chicken wings (pictured below) and more. The menu is largely focused on presenting a more contemporary North American vibe which works very well in the area. Because this is still Rosalie, you will also find a great selection of expertly prepared steaks and of course their wood fired pizzas. I think I could eat a Rosalie pizzas (or 12) every day, for the rest of my life and never get sick of it. The crust, the toppings, oy. I need a cigarette and I don’t even smoke.
So even though I was accompanied by the Divas and Uncle Fester Sweet Pea I still had a wonderful evening and it was good to be back at Rosalie. When you are running around the city, eating at a different restaurant every night, its tough to get back to your favourite places. When I do get back, I make it worth my while!
For more visit Rosalie’s website here.
Disclaimer: No Diva was harmed in the creation of this article. I truly love them and of course SweetPea has a special place in my heart.