The Ultimate List of Shisha Places in Montreal City

I currently have this little voting list going on in another post that you guys may want to check out. Currently, the best shisha place in Montreal (rated by Montrealers) is Sherazad. If you don’t like how the list looks so far, then you guys better do something about it (which is: vote). Owners, take note of the following criticisms I have of your places!

• Toot Café: My first downtown shisha experience with friends. It’s a cozy place (last I visited) and might need to be renovated here and there, but still an okay establishment.
• Sherazade: Right now, this is my favourite place downtown. The service and the quality of the shisha is great. They’re not cheap on the coals either.
• Orienthé: My second pick when it comes to smoking downtown. I don’t like the seating system that much and the fact that you have to take your shoes off inside (but I’ll let it slide for now). The outside terrace is much better, especially during the summer time. Sometimes, it’s way too hot inside and uncomfortable after extended seating periods. What’s better than the shisha here is the Moroccan mint tea. This stuff is gold.
• Café Al-Dar: Shisha is… ehh, okay. The tea is quite good. Plenty of seating for all your friends. The crowd can be quite sketchy sometimes.
• Kafein: Turn down the music already! I want to enjoy shisha with my friends, not by myself listening to loud music. The shisha bowls are either underpacked or not properly prepared (too many holes in the foil, too dry, etc). Right now at the bottom of my place. Only time you’ll catch me in there is if I’m somehow banned from everywhere else.

There’s also the following places, but I have yet to try them out.

• Café Gitana
• Chez Zaza: I haven’t smoked there yet, but when I asked to buy Al Fakher tobacco, I was promptly told they can’t sell it to me. Instead, they gave me dried up Nakleh tobacco and charged me 20$ for a small box. Only reason I bought it was because of an emergency (smoking at my friends’ engagement party). Serious. I ended up throwing the box in the trash since there was virtually no moisture in the packaging.

Am I missing any places here? We need to create a master list of shisha places in Montreal or something.

The CCA – Architects do it with models

It is often a surprise to Montrealers when they discover that the CCA (Canadian Center for Architecture) is located in their own city. If you’re not an architecture buff and have no idea what I’m talking about, the CCA is “those three big stone buildings” on Boul-Rene-Levesque right across the entrance to the highway 720… and that weird floating chair.

The dying art of Architecture is an innovative, forward-thinking one that is best understood when analyzing it’s historical evolution. Exactly 20 years ago this year, the CCA was founded to promote the knowledge of architecture’s role in society in order to encourage design creativity and scholarly research.

The establishment makes this learning possible with one of the largest international research collections of models, plans, conceptual studies, and many, many other documents dating from the Renaissance.

The CCA has put into place Study centers, guided tours, exhibitions and an extensive library in order to create debate and a dynamic engagement with contemporary issues for people of all ages and levels of knowledge on this subject.

Along with the building (designed by Peter Rose with consulting architect Phyllis Lambert and associate architect Erol Argun in 1989), a large garden exhibiting landscape art is located across the blvd Rene-Levesque whose unique location allows its integration to the hustle and bustle of the city, while clearly defining a separation with a large open space. This helps create an ambiance of serenity and escape, while ironically having a location adjacent to a large highway.

Designed by Montréal artist-architect Melvin Charney, the CCA Garden is said to “restore the urban fabric of an area deeply scarred by mid-20th-century highway engineering.” – CCA

With all this information free and open to the public, I can only say one thing to those who have yet to visit and explore the CCA — Go culture yourself!!

Photos: Youssef

www.mysteryoussef.com

Island Illusions

      Close your eyes, picture the beach, you lying on the warm sand, sun shining in your eyes and a delicious tropical cocktail in your hand.  “Aruba, Jamaica ouhhh I wanna take you to Bermuda, Bahama, come on…”  That’s the feeling you get at Tango… a taste of the exotic right here in Laval.

Your mouth will be watering just by reading the menu. The names of their dishes, healthy French crepes and cocktails are those of the most beautiful islands and beaches of the world: Mykonos, Cayo Blanco, Aruba, and so on. Their menu includes salads, salty and sweet crepes, cocktails, delicious fruit plates, gelatos, hot drinks, cold drinks and alcoholic drinks. The prices are affordable too.

 

The decor is very modern with a hint of the Carribean: orange colored walls giving the illusion of a sunset, bamboo covered sections, palm trees, and comfortable sofas with flat screens in the lounge areas.

In the summer, take advantage of the heat on their terrace under Hawaiian tiki umbrellas and enjoy your shisha. Did I mention they have shisha? (Only available on the terrace).

 

 

 

There’s more! Music playing all day long: lounge music during the day and house music at night. Plus, it’s 18 and over! We don’t have to drive to the W downtown to enjoy a lounge anymore.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Events

• To continue with the Caribbean fever, every first Thursday of every month, you can enjoy the Cuban sounds of Ritmo Caribeño (yes! a live band) and dance the night away. Also enjoy the two for one special on all mixes and beers from 5 pm to 8pm.
• HOCKEY night just got better! Watch the game on their 200” big sreen tv. Three for two special on mixes and beer during the whole game (make sure you go early!)

 

   Flaws

Ya, so I’ve heard it too that the service tends to be a little slow, but EVERYTHING is made fresh the moment you order it. Can you blame them?

 

Whether you want to take a date, impress co-workers, or just hang out with friends, for a light healthy lunch, mouthwatering desserts, or just to grab a drink, Tango is the place to go.

If all this did not convince you, check out their website www.tangococktails.com and TRY IT OUT FOR YOURSELF!You can also look for Tango cocktails on facebook.

205 chemin Promenade Centropolis, Laval, Qc H7T 0B3

(450) 688-6588

Sharx Downtown Montreal: A Haven For The Indecisive

At first glance the small entrance and innocuous sign would not lead anyone to suspect what truly lies below. Found hiding under the newly acquired Concordia building on the corner of Guy and Ste-Catherine’s is an extensive playground for those of varied interests.

The small entrance and cavernous main room downstairs gives the impression that you have found a niche, away from passing eyes on the street, in which to party and let loose. This particular venue is great in the way that it provides three fairly popular activities all in one area, at a fair price. For the group of friends that can’t come to an agreement, the person who can’t have just one or the attention deficit, this is your haven.

The kitchen is open until 11 and snacks are offered all evening. This isn’t your place for fine dining after the kitchen closes, but more for late night drinking snacks.

The pool and snooker tables are in decent shape and are hardly ever all taken. Except for the odd busy day, it’s quite empty. They are charged by an hourly rate so for the pro’s that’s good news and those of us who take an hour to finally scratch on the 8… well, we’d better go more.

The bowling area with its black lights and bar close at hand makes for a real party environment. The bowling itself is as would be expected except for the, some times, reoccurring technical issues with the scoring screens.
Don’t want to be around all the hustle and bustle on their busy nights? Two private bowling lanes are also available off to the side but for the extra price you aren’t offered much more service or any seclusion except for a single pane of glass between you and other players, somewhat putting you in the spotlight.

The lounge with its overview of the surrounding pool tables provides a decent area for socialization and leisure. The low height, leather sofas and chairs are fairly comfortable albeit somewhat tricky to manoeuvre into an upright position with. For those of us who’d rather sit at an angle greater than 30 degrees, the lounge bar is right there and stocked predominantly with what seems to be  barmaids of  mid-east origin who, depending on the day, may or may not speak your language of preference.

Furthermore there is a VIP lounge with room for 50 people. This room comes with its own bar, pool table and couches and looks rather snazzy.

Service can be lacking in the pool and bowling section on quiet nights as they tend to under staff but in general it’s fair priced and well served venue.

If Reno’s on Your Mind, The GVT Can Be Kind

What is it? = HOME RENOVATION TAX CREDIT

The Home Renovation Tax Credit (HRTC) is a non-refundable tax credit on eligible expenses for improvements to your house, condo or cottage. It can be claimed on your 2009 income tax return and it`s for eligible purchases made after January 27, 2009, and before February 1, 2010.  A maximum amount of eligible expenditures you can claim is  $10,000 per family.

What does non-refundable tax credit mean?

A non-refundable tax credit, like the HRTC, reduces your federal income tax. If the total of all your non-refundable tax credits is more than your federal income tax, a refund will not be given for the difference.

What`s an eligible purchase?

Eligible purchases are those incurred for renovations/alterations to an eligible dwelling (which is usually your principal residence or land of principal residence) and are permanent in nature.

As a general rule, if an expense for the house will not be a permanent part of your home or property, it’s not eligible.

Obviously, there are some small exceptions  to this rule which we’ll talk about below.

And as a strict rule, if the expenses are not in writing (invoice or contract) you can forget about it`s eligibility. The CRA (Canada Revenue Agency) is pretty severe on this point.

Examples of eligible expenses

• Renovating a kitchen, bathroom, or basement
• Windows and doors
• New carpet or hardwood floors
• New furnace, woodstove, fireplace, water softener, water heater, or oil tank
• Permanent Home ventilation systems
• Central air conditioner
• Septic systems
• Electrical wiring in the home
• Home Security System (monthly fees do not qualify)
• Painting the interior or exterior of a house
• Building an addition, garage, deck, garden/storage shed, or fence
• Re-shingling a roof
• A new driveway or resurfacing a driveway
• Permanent swimming pools (in ground and above ground), hot tub and installation costs/ Pool liners
• Solar heaters and heat pumps for pools (does not include solar blankets)
• Landscaping: new sod, perennial shrubs and flowers, trees…
• Associated costs such as installation, permits, professional services, equipment rentals, and incidental expenses
• Fixtures – blinds, shades, shutters, lights, ceiling fans, etc.

Examples of ineligible expenses… SORRRYYY!

• Furniture, appliances, and audio and visual electronics, tools
• Carpet/house/pool cleaning
• Maintenance contracts (i.e. furnace cleaning/snow removal/lawn care)
• Financing costs

Other useful info about the eligible expenses:

• Work performed by electricians, plumbers, carpenters, architects qualifies as long as it`s in writing (invoice or contract)
• If a family member is hired for renovations the expense can ONLY be eligible if that person is registered GST/PST.

How to calculate your HRTC?

Basically you can only claim the HRTC if your eligible expenses are more than $1 000, but there`s a cap of $10 000. So that maximum you could possibly get in HRTC is as follows ….don`t worry it`s not that complicated:

=($10 000 − $1 000) × 15% = 1 350$ maximum HRTC (I MEAN IT`S SOMETHING !)

Here`s a cool comprehensive simulation:

Joe & Annie just got married and bought a condo. They plan to renovate it this  summer. They expect these expenses for the reno which will take place from September to November 2009:

• New windows: $3,000
• Labour – installation of windows (no invoice) :$1,500
• Carpet cleaning: $200
• Buying tools: $500
• New roof: $3,500
• Interior painting: $500
• New toilet and tub: $600
• New deck: $1,000

To save money, they will do most of the home renovations themselves. Joe’s friend Rob will install the windows for them for $1,500 cash, BUT he won`t give an invoice (duhhhh).

The $200 expense for carpet cleaning and the $500 expense for tools are NOT eligible for the HRTC. And the $1 500 in window installation is NOT eligible either because it`s not in writing.

Basically, this is how they would calculate their HRTC:

Eligible expenses	Amount
New windows	$3,000
New roof	$3,500
Interior painting	$500
New toilet and tub	$600
New deck	$1,000
Total eligible expenses(TEE)	$8,600
Maximum eligible expenses (lesser of TEE or $10,000)	$8,600
Base amount	- $1,000
Maximum allowable home renovation expenses	$7,600

Either Joe or Annie can claim the total home renovation expenses of $7,600 or they can split these expenses between them as long as the total amount claimed is not greater than $7,600. Their maximum HRTC is $1,140 ($7,600 x 15%).

Why is this suddenly only available this year?

Well the CRA wants to get the economy rolling by encouraging investments in Canada’s housing, giving employment to trades people and increasing sales of building products. And because claiming an HRTC implies getting things in writing, the CRA is also cracking on the renovation black-market by creating a disincentive to chose the “Cheaper for cash” option.

So if you were thinking about renovating… TRY TO DO IT NOW! This tax credit is only temporary (i.e. only for 2009 so far) so help stir up our economy.

Reference: http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/hrtc

Georges Laraque et Shaun Monson présentent Earthlings

Le 16 Octobre dernier, Georges Laraque présentait le «documentaire qui a changé (sa) vie», comme il le précise sur sa page web. Végétarien depuis quelques temps, il est maintenant végétalien. (Il ne mange donc plus non plus de produits dérivés des animaux comme le miel, les oeufs et les produits laitiers).

«Earthlings» se veut un film de sensibilisation principalement quant à la relation qu’entretiennent les humains envers les animaux. Parfois choquant et difficile à regarder, ce documentaire se veut réveiller notre conscience quant aux marchés de l’alimentation et du vêtement entre autres.

Voici la présentation du film par Georges Laraque et Shaun Monson.

Voici aussi la bande-annonce du film.

Le narrateur du film est Joaquin Phoenix, et nous aurons bientôt doit à une version doublée par Georges Laraque lui-même.

p.s. Georges St-Pierre, champion de UFC, était lui aussi présent à la présentation. Est-ce que Georges aurait incité Georges à devenir lui aussi végétarien?

Juliette et Chocolat: Chocolate Paradise

Attention all chocolate lovers… paradise is right here in Montreal!

Picture this: a hot chocolate brownie topped with a scoop of delicious vanilla ice cream covered with melted chocolate. How about a big crepe filled with fresh fruits and a lot of chocolate topped with a scoop of ice cream?  From chocolate fondue to delicious salads or meal crepes, whether you are going for lunch or for dessert, Juliette et Chocolat will leave you coming back for more…

Should I continue? White chocolate, dark chocolate, milk chocolate, sweet, semi-sweet or bitter, something for everyone’s taste. You want hot chocolate, you’ve got choice. In the mood for a drink? How about a Choco-Mojito? THEY HAVE IT ALL!

During my last visit I had the fruit bowl: vanilla ice cream, strawberries, bananas, pears, topped with whipped cream and meeeeeeeelted chocolate… Portion was huge and the presentation mouthwatering; though I couldn’t finish it, I didn’t want to give it away!!

A very cozy space with very friendly staff. I love the big bright red chef hats they all wear. As you step inside, the smell of chocolate is so strong that it makes you want to jump over the counter to satisfy your craving (I knew writing this article was a bad idea… I NEED Juliette et Chocolat!!!)

The ingredients and chocolate they use come from all around the world.

To keep up with the growing number of fans, Juliette has two locations, one on St-Denis and one on Laurier.

But don’t take my word for it… try it out for yourself!

Check out their website for pictures and for more information www.julietteetchocolat.com .

Tout le Monde Écoute

Dimanche 4 octobre 2009, cotes d’écoute au Québec:

simultanément à 20h:

Occupation double: 1,7 millions

Tout le monde en parle: 1,5 millions

1,7 M + 1,5 M = 3,2 millions, la population du Québec étant de 7,8 millions.

Est-ce qu’il y a vraiment la moitié de la population qui écoute sa télévision à cette heure là!?

p.s. parlant de chiffres, un dont on sûr par contre, c’est le plus d’un million de visionnements pour le lipdub de l’UQAM!
Et ça n’arrête pas d’augmenter et on en parle partout ! Hier encore, je me promenais dans l’université et deux professeurs la présentaient à leurs étudiants! «On aime le U surtout le Q, À Montréal !»

Montrealers With Curry Fury

After eating a “curry’licious” meal at Devi (a great Indian restaurant on Crescent) a couple of weeks ago, I keep craving curry. I can’t help but put it on any meal I eat right now. I love this stuff!

At first I thought I just liked the taste, but this didn’t really explain why I liked it on almost anything. So I did what any normal person would do at this point… I Google’d it.

Sure enough, this little powder of joy is freaking addictive to some people. Who would’ve thought!

Numerous studies have shown that curry awakens, incites and stimulates the senses, by releasing endorphins. A meal with curry increases our heartbeat by an extra 3 beats. A number of studies even reported that it provides a “natural high”.

As mentioned, although some researchers claim that curry is addictive, others claim that the use of the word “addictive” may be too excessive.

Addictive or not, there are some major health benefits to curry. In fact, turmeric (the yellow spice that gives curry its yellowness) may:

• be used as an antiseptic to treat skin for cuts, burns and skin damage (commonly done in India)
• stimulate immune system cells
• prevent Alzheimer’s symptoms
• prevent colon cancer

So get on the curry bandwagon: try it on your next bowl of rice or chicken wings or even steak… all the cool kids are doing it!

For delicious curry recipes: http://www.curry-recipes.info/

Restaurants which serve curry’licious food:

• Karma in West Island: www.restaurantkarma.com
• Devi on Crescent street: www.devimontreal.com
• Le Taj on Stanley: www.restaurantletaj.com
• Taste of India in Westmount: www.tasteofindiarestaurant.com
• Chef Akbar on boul. Pierrefonds corner Jacques-Bizard in West Island

Garde-Manger in Old Port Montreal: If It Tasted Any Better, It Would Be Illegal

This review can be summarized with the following two words: lobster poutine. Eat your heart out, La Banquise.

My good friend Dave calls me up two weeks ago; “Want to go check out Garde-Manger? I managed to secure a table for four people. Kriss and Lindsay are coming along too, and we need a fourth participant.” There was no way in hell I was passing this opportunity, so I hastily agreed. I kept hearing about this place from friends, and I wanted to review it for Montrealing ever since I first witnessed it across from Santos.

Getting a table at Garde-Manger is a bit hard, as the restaurant is constantly packed with people. Dave had to call in a week and a half in advance to reserve a table for four people. This says a lot concerning Garde-Manger: they must be doing something right if they’re always this full. Most of the publicity this place gets comes from the cooking show Chuck’s Day Off (seen on FoodTV). Don’t let this fool you though, as the quality of the food alone would be enough to sustain their business without the extra publicity.

Friday night rolls around, and our reservations are for 9:30 PM. Since Montreal city loves digging up their roads constantly, we decided to leave early to curb traffic and cut through the mess Old Port is currently in at the time of writing this review. For reasons unknown, there was no traffic and finding parking was a breeze. This resulted in arriving at our destination half an hour early. Luckily for us, our table was already ready and we were seated immediately.

Looking around the (packed) place, it reminded me of a time where restaurants were actually in business to please their clientèle. Garde-Manger is quite warm and cozy. If this place could talk, it would say: “sit down, relax, have a coffee… there’s no rush, stay for as long as you like”. With that said, Garde-Manger is small in size. I think the whole place can roughly handle 40 seated people at a time. But great things come in small packages, right?

The only menu you’ll get here is a wine list, so you’re going to have to glance at a nearby wall that has the specialties scribbled on a blackboard. This leads me to realize that their menu changes constantly. On the left side of the blackboard are the appetizers, while the right side features the entrées. There were so many dishes I wanted to try as they all sounded great, but I settled on the short-ribs with barbecue sauce as I had a craving for meat. Right before the waitress moved on to ask what Dave was ordering, two magical words that were at the top of the appetizers list just hit me in the head: lobster poutine. Rudely cutting off my friend placing his order, I screamed it out: “LOBSTER POUTINE!”. That’s when Dave and Kriss looked at each other and said “make that three”. The waitress, smiling, wrote it down on her pad.

Lindsay, who is not a big seafood fan, decided to try the salad with cheese-balls.

Since my friends are the kind of people who love sharing, I managed to savour a few dishes in one sitting. From top to bottom, the images below feature the short-ribs, pork & mushrooms and duck meat. I can’t describe what the dishes were mainly composed out of, but what I can confirm is that everything just tasted so damn good. The pork was very tender (properly cooked) and the duck… well, I’ll simply quote Kriss: “They didn’t even ask me to cook it medium-rare… this is how it’s supposed to be. They got it right on the money.” I couldn’t have agreed more when I tried it.

I thought the meal I was having was the bomb, up until I glanced over to the table next to me. I cannot describe the monstrosity of this tray, so I will let the picture do the talking.

Finally, our night was coming to an end, but there was desert on the horizon. The four of us didn’t know what to expect in terms of sweets. Before the desert, our waitress asked us whether we wanted any coffee or tea. Kriss and I tried the espresso, Dave had Earl Grey tea while Lindsay had a cappuccino. It was a machine that prepared the coffee, so it was good, although my espresso felt a bit luke-warm. Now, choices for desert were banana cake with caramel, fried Mars bar, and the classic chocolate brownies fused with marshmellows. All three of these dishes were served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on the side. In the order they were introduced, take a glimpse of what you will experience should you have a chance to check out Garde-Manger.

If there was a list of places I would take my first date out on, Garde Manger would be at the top. The place is small and cozy, and dimly lit for that seclusive factor when you’re with friends or a loved one. I had one of the finest dining out experiences in a long time. I’ll be coming back to this restaurant very, very soon.

Pros

• Delicious meals, all original
• Cozy atmosphere
• Great wine list
• Excellent service
• Lobster poutine

Cons

• Somewhat pricey
• Loud, but you can still have a conversation
• Reserving a place is difficult, so think in advance!
• Get ready to add on some unwanted weight with all the great food

Address: 408 Saint-François-Xavier, Old Port
Telephone: (514) 678-5044

Next Page »