99Le Papillon on the Park

Quebecois were eating well when Ontario was still paying homage to the overcooked beef and canned veg of the UK. Quebec cooking springs from the land; it's farmhouse delicious, and Le Papillon on the Park does it honour. Poutine, rural Quebec's soul food, is irresistible here. Ultra crisp fries with cheese curd so fresh it's sweet, melted just enough to ooze, and light gravy Tourtiere, Quebec's national savoury pie, is filled with ground pork, veal and beef with a hint of cinnamon and clove, its crust happily delicate, its garnish nicely balanced apple tomato relish. Quebec's two beloved desserts are both beautifully present here: Sugar pie is rich and not too sweet, its pastry light. But pouding chomeur must not be missed. Translated as poor man's pudding, this is a Depression-era compendium of flour with butter, sugar, egg and maple syrup. One would expect it to be syrupy-sweet and heavy, but it is merely rich, buttery and impossible not to devour.