Another fall season is upon us….. which means Harvest season at the Cabane à Sucre Au Pied de Cochon is back. One of the few things outside of football that keeps me from getting depressed at the fact that summer is over. Martin Picard and company continue to do amazing things at their wonderful Sugar Shack. For the past 4 years, I have tried to make it to each sugar and harvest season. I’ve now missed the past two sugar seasons so with this one, I’m now 6 for 8. Decent average if I do say so myself!
For the uninitiated, the sugar shack is a set menu for the season – alcohol and tip excluded. This season being harvest season, the focus is on ingredients from the garden here as well as from the local producers around the area. If you are not an adventurist eater, this meal is certainly not for you. Thankfully, I am and I can always find a group of 11 others to join me in the adventure.
Every year, the Cabane has an amazing selection of cocktails to enjoy. This year, the emphasis was once again on their Gin. I had a great rhubarb gin to start off the night and was ready to enjoy what was to come.
The meal certainly started off strong. First up was their play on elotes (or Mexican street corn): corn coated with popcorn, gouda and garlic butter served on a candelabra. Loved the tang and the creaminess of the sauce. The fresh corn was delicious and the addition of the popcorn was a cool texture switch.
Next was the Cabane’s caesar salad with lardon and fried capelins. A salad kicked up a few notches to say the least. A super rich and creamy caesar dressing, tons of cheese, tons of big bites of fatty lardon and crispy croutons to top it all off. Only at the Cabane could a salad come off this rich!
We were then presented with a hare and foie gras pâté with pistachios in a terrine of black pudding. A cool presentation creating the appearance of a plant growing. The pâté was excellent – equally parts fatty and rich. The blood pudding was great as well. Once cut up, it wasn’t the most appetizing dish to look at but who cares when it tastes so good.
The foie gras experience continued with foie gras poached in honey, served on brioche coated with goat cheese and topped with a cherry sauce. Excellent use of sweetness to soften the rich foie gras. The cherry sauce was so good – we finished off the jar despite being out of foie gras pretty fast. The brioche and the cheese was the perfect vehicle to enjoy the foie gras.
And now for something completely different: sushi! A combination of salmon tartare maki and salmon foie gras nigiri. I know the notion of foie gras and sushi sounds weird but it worked so well. The tartare was excellent as well.
More fish followed up the sushi. Miso salmon was put on the table – a whole fish smoked in their smoker and glazed with a mix of miso, soy sauce and brown sugar. The fish was smoky, sweet and so tender. We could simply pull the meat off the fish with a folk. Our table picked that carcass pretty clean… the fish was that good!
And after all that, we still had the meat to come. First was the lamb shank confit. Served with some cherry tomatoes and parsley, this lamb was oh so good. Fall off the bone tender and that lovely gamey rich flavour one looks for with lamb.
Next, we had locally raised chickens stuffed with mushrooms in a pesto sauce with gnocchi. The chicken were wonderfully moist and tender. Great earthy flavours from all the mushrooms. The gnocchi were very small in size but very enjoyable as well.
The final main was a salmon Mille Feuille. Very cool from an execution point of view. Composed of poached salmon, béchamel, creamy mashed potatoes and a spinach sauce with lemon confit. Personally my least flavour dish – it felt very dense which given everything else we just had made it hard to enjoy as much.
We needed to find room though because desserts were still to come. First up were apple doughnuts which were actually a little game for the table. One doughnut was supposed to a rhubarb one which would come with a Cabane a Sucre Au Pied de Cochon cookbook for the winner. However, we didn’t have one so our waiter just got us to pick numbers instead. It worked out either way.
Then, came the best carrot cake I have ever had period – so moist and sweet and flavourful. Thankfully, the cake was served on a sheet with the recipe on it. The recipe has been noted and will be attempted soon – turns out they used beets as well as carrots. Looking forward to seeing how it turns out at home.
Next was possibly one of the most beautiful apple pies I have ever seen. Topped with thinly sliced apples and filled with almond paste, this pie was very dense and rich. Definitely needed some ice cream which is why we were also provided three types of housemate ice cream – cherry, mint and chocolate. All were very flavourful and smooth.
Another trip to the Cabane and another insane meal. General consensus at the table was that this was one of the best meal at the Cabane we had had. Not a single dish disappointed the entire table and the meal, while very filling as always, felt more reasonable and fresher than in years’ past. Either way, we had another great time and once again I have been tasked with getting another reservation for the next season. I can’t miss out on Sugar season 3 years in a row!
Cheers!
Cabane à Sucre Au Pied du Cochon
11382 rang de la Fresnière
St-Benoit, Qc
Ramblings from the Complex Mind of a 30 Something 