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| - My wonderful personal Yelp guide to Montreal, Mister O., and I met to try out Vargas on a cool evening last week--perfect weather for a carnivorous foray into one of the city's premiere steakhouses.
We arrived a bit early for our reservation, so decided to indulge in a drink at the bar. All beautifully polished wood, the bar (and restaurant itself) was quite large and the bartender, friendly. Unfortunately, she seemed not to be terribly familiar with how to prepare his martini or my lemondrop martini, which came out a bit frothy and not nearly citrusy enough for my taste. Still, my companion and I enjoyed sitting at the bar, chatting about hockey, and stealing glances at the NHL game on the bar TV.
When we were ready to be seated, we were led through the grand dining room to a table near the window. As I read through the menu, I realized there wasn't any sushi. I know, not odd for a steakhouse--except for one that touts having a sushi chef, as I'd read about Vargas in several places. In fact, the only sushi I saw was a roll on the appetizer menu.
Regardless, I was more than happy enough to stick with steak. After deliberating between the rack of lamb and rib steak, we decided to order both and share, with me selecting the Montreal-spiced rib eye. Both entrees came with a choice of potato (baked, twice baked, fries, Yukon gold mashed) or seasonal vegetables. Mr. O. went with the vegetables and a side order of fries, while I got the twice-baked potato.
We both started with a Caesar salad, which was surprisingly large for a side salad. The dressing was creamy and cheesy, and quite delicious. When the steak arrived, it seemed to overwhelm the plate, and the twice-baked potato was nearly obliterated by its 17 oz. heft. I had ordered it medium-rare, and to my taste it could have been a bit more rare. As I took my first bite, the Montreal spice (seasoned salt, pepper, various herbs, mustard seeds) hit my tastebuds--a little salty but very good. The shiraz we'd ordered was perfect with the steak, as it was able to hold its own against the spices.
Service was always attentive, but rather amusing. The waiter, for whom English was not his first language though he spoke it impeccably, had a catch-all phrase that he used throughout the meal, "The worst is over." When I placed my order, he said, "The worst is over," and again when he poured my wine, and at various other points of the meal. I had to ask Mr. O. if this was a Canadian phrase and he said it wasn't. But it was charming and funny.
In all, the evening and meal were very pleasant. For Vargas, I give 3 stars. The minuses were the bad martinis and slightly overcooked steak. The flavor of the steak was a definite plus.
If I were reviewing the company alone, I would give 5 stars to the experience of dining with Mister O.--a true raconteur and superb guide to Montreal, without whom I would have missed a lot of wonderful food. Merci!
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