Montage

A few weeks ago I was in Portland for a meeting, and I traveled with a friend. We also met up with a friend of his afterwards, and we all went to Bistro Montage on the East side.

In a word... fabulous. It was the type of group where everyone shares bits and bites of their food. The menu has a great variety, focusing on Cajun/Bayou fare. They serve everything from frog legs and alligator to linguinis and jambalaya.

Initially I was disappointed because they were out of oyster shooters. (Yes, they are THAT popular and apparently are THAT good.) Others in our dining party tried the mussel shooter offered by our server as a substitute. (I declined.) I was very happy with my (very spicy) Bloody Mary. The drink by itself was a meal, and just about anything that could be stuck on a toothpick was in my glass. Including three HUGE and tasty olives. Now that's the way to kick off dinner.

Montage offers several varieties of Mac & Cheese. I was tempted to try the Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto Mac... but then I saw they offered Crawfish Etoufee and there was no going back from there. It was a great choice! The crawfish were a fair size and very flavorful. The rice and sauce and vegies were all delicious. The cornbread was rich and slightly sweet. It was a very filling dish, so I had some leftovers. Our server kindly wrapped the extra in a tinfoil creation that was shaped like a cat. (And yes, boys and girls, there were pussy jokes galore on the way back to the car.)

I also sampled the catfish which was very good. The mint juleps are the closest to authentic I have tasted this side of the Mississippi. And finally I had one...
delectable...
bite...
of...

Gooey Butter Cake

That bite alone made Bistro Montage worth the trip, and the price of admission so to speak. It was to die for. I don't care what kind of dessert person you are... you must try the Gooey Butter Cake. It's gooey, it's buttery, it's cake... and it's soooo good.