The Best Pizza In Town

Everyone that knows me knows how much I love pizza. Unfortunately, Montreal isn't really known for it's pizza. Actually, finding really good pies like the ones you'd find in the Tri-State area is pretty much impossible. I've tried many a pizza place only to come out of there saying "It's good... for a Montreal joint". The closest thing to the real deal here so far is Amelio's.

Located in the McGill Ghetto, Amelio's serves pies made with fresh products. The crust is delicious, crispy on the outside, quite flaky actually and yet chewy on the inside. The tomato sauce taste of garlic and fresh tomatoes. It has the perfect balance of sweet and acid, something most places here seem to think is not that important. The cheese taste fresh and it's laid on thick. Actually, if I'd have one complaint to make, it'd be that there's a bit too much cheese on the margherita pie. I'd have to try one with more toppings so see if it's still the case.

The pizza is a bit on the expensive side. Prepare to drop around $20 to $25 for a large. But to be honest, you can only eat so many crappy $1 pizza slices so treat yourself to something good for a change. They don't take reservations so get there ahead of time since waiting lines tend to happen. It's also B.Y.O.B. so you know the deal...

Amelio's Pizza
201 Milton street
514 845-8396

Is Tiger Coming Back Next Week?!!

The G.O.A.T.

So Mark O'Meara, Tiger's longtime friend, says that the greatest golfer, scratch that, greatest athlete of all time is ready to make a comeback. He didn't mention that he'd play in Arizona for the MPC, but everyone everywhere is speculating that he will.

Peep the golf.com article here.

And in case some forgot about last year's US Open...

Bar Cafe Gentile

Went to Gentile for lunch this weekend for the 1st time and let me tell you, I wasn't disappointed. Gentile is this typical little sandwich shop located corner Park Ave and Chabanel. Mostly renowned for their coffee, their food is actually really good too.

Their ice tea is ridiculous! I don't think I've ever had anything quite like this. It's a mix of ice tea, granita and lemon, but I swear, there has to be a secret ingredient in there. Make sure to take the G (gallon) size cause anything else is not enough.


Had the chef's salad for an appetizer. It's a mixed green salad with endives, carrots, olives, cucumbers, tomatoes and bocconcini cheese, topped with a balsamic vinaigrette. Simple but really good. Decent size enough for 2 if you're having a sandwich.


For the main meal, I opted for the sausage sandwich on white baguette. This thing was really good. It has mozzarella, sauteed onions, lettuce and mustard, everything pressed under the panini grill. Opted for the spicy option which wasn't all that spicy but still had a decent kick. All sandwiches are around $5 and are definitely worth it. Finished my meal with delicious coffee. It was a perfect lunch.

Check em out if you're in that area or just feel like taking a ride there. I hear they have amazing pasta on week days so if you work on Chabanel I suggest you hit it. Service is friendly and quick. It's a good spot, you won't be let down.

Cafe Bar Gentile
9299, avenue du Parc (corner Chabanel)
514 383-9299

Blaq Poet - Ain't Nuthin' Changed

That's some real good Primo beat right there. I'm officially obsessed with this track!

The Boys In Blue Are At It Again...

Apparently things will never change. But I guess that's what happens when you hire jocks to "protect & serve" the civilians. In the words of the mighty N.W.A., FUCK DA POLICE!!!

Braised Short Ribs

My buddy Simon and I tried this recipe a little while back. Never blogged about it cause I didn't have photos, but since it was something from Bon Appétit magazine, I figured I should just find it and post it.

It definitely was one of the best meals I had in a while. The meat was ultra tender and falling right off the bone. The flavors and aromas were pretty intense. The recipe calls for beef short-ribs and I feel its pretty important to stick to it even though it's a bit expensive. It's a fatty meat that has a lot of taste (fat and taste, see the link here?) and I think a lesser cut would probably not fare as well in this one. The recipe also suggest to serve with a good crusty bread, which really works fine. But I think a nice serving of parsnips mashed with basil, cracked pepper, butter and cream would do wonderful with it too.

So instead of going out for dinner, do yourself a favor and have this one with a nice bottle of Penfold's shiraz/cabernet. It's gonna be better than a night at the restaurant where you'll drop essentially the same amount of dough for a lesser meal.

Here's the recipe:

Ingredients

• 4 1/2 pounds 3-inch-long beef short ribs
• Coarse kosher salt
• 2 cups dry red wine
• 1 14.5-ounce can diced tomatoes in juice
• 1 6-ounce package sliced button mushrooms
• 1/2 cup finely chopped onion
• 6 garlic cloves, peeled
• 6 fresh Italian parsley sprigs
• 2 bay leaves
• Crusty bread

Preparation

• Sprinkle ribs with coarse salt and pepper. Place in even layer in slow cooker. Add next 7 ingredients, cover, and cook on low heat until meat is tender, about 8 hours
• Using slotted spoon, transfer ribs to serving bowl. Discard parsley and bay leaves. Spoon fat off top of sauce and pour sauce over ribs. Serve with bread.

Here's the link to the article on the Bon Appétit website.

Enjoy!

*Picture was taken from the website.

Homemade Cookies

I really like cookies. They rank as my 3rd favorite dessert behind ice cream and pie. But what's better than a bag of Chips Ahoy is a batch of homemade cookies. Not the store bought mix! I'm talking about the ones made from scratch.


These bad boys were filled with chocolate chips & chunks, almonds and M&M's. Helllloooo sweetness! I've been told that the trick is to take them out of the oven before they're actually cooked so that they stay chewy. And chewy they were. I'll try to keep that in mind if I ever try my hand at baking.

Shout out to the girls from downstairs (M, T and C) for baking these last night.

Now that you're drooling, here's the track of the day. Oh it's not much, only the best MC of all-time showing us a thing or two about rapping. I love the bass line in this one. So hard! Modern day MC's might wanna take note. Skills > production.

If You Like Photography

Peep my boy Ian's blog here. I love his stuff. Not just cause I'm friends with him, but cause I think he always comes up with interesting ideas and even more interesting results. Plus, unless I'm mistaken, he's keeping it real by still shooting on film. Check it out and give some love.

The Best Blog On Da Interweb?

If you're into late 80's, early 90's hip-hop, make sure to check out The Meaning of Dope. Definitely one of the best blogs out there. It's cool to see heads actually research footage and come up with stuff not so easy to find. Peep the rare Raekwon interview right now. Dude is on some next level shit.

Speaking of The Chef, how blown was your mind when Only Built came out? Yeah that's right, you just couldn't believe it. The bass was so grimey I almost blew my headphones.



Ghost rappin' in a Tommy Hill bathrobe?! No one else could pull that shit and still look cool.

Hopps Skateboards

Hopps is a new skateboard company that is 100% skater owned. Like most small skateboard companies, creativity, having fun and the love of skateboarding seems to be the driving force behind this brand. Not sure about who's on the team though. So far it seems to be only owner/creative director Jahmal Williams. Watch him get reckless in the streets of NY and peep the website.

Update: Upon further research, Hopps have been around for at least a year. I've been caught sleeping!



http://www.hoppsskateboards.com/