Went to Au Pied de Cochon at 9:30 on Saturday. They’d sold out of most of what I was going to order including andouillettes and white asparagus.
Bread was excellent. Great butter.
Foie gras cromesquis were fun. Breading seemed a bit heavy, never had another version to compare.
Fries in the regular poutine were great when they first came out. Got soggy fast. Curds were not squeaky.
Fiddleheads (not mentioned on the menu) were the best part of the amandine. Maple syrup worked better with them than the green beans, though I could have done without it.
Pork chop was excellent, mushrooms, onions, and wine sauce seemed excessive, but that’s kind of the point, right? Mashed potatoes would have been an excellent pairing.
The blood sausage in the tart was OK but sort of crumbling into the gravy. Pastry was meh, two bites were more than enough. Potatoes were overkill. I ate the boudin and foie and sopped up some of the gravy with the excellent bread.
Crème brûlée, the custard was great but the maple sugar on top was not caramelized so was grainy and too sweet. Similar story with the ice cream and the syrup on top. Couldn’t understand the chomeur at all, super-sweet sauce with gooey dough on top. Somebody has an insane sweet tooth.
The atmosphere was really fun, seemed like more locals than tourists. I suspect execution was better before it became an institution and Picard an impressario.