There has not been much chance for us to go out to eat recently, hence the lack of a post until now, but good thing I have a few still in my recent memory that I do want to share and recount back to you all!
We decided to splurge a little and go out for a super fancy dinner and just really enjoy the night. I would have to say that this was my first real taste into finer dining. I was not disappointed.
Les Fougeres is located near Chelsea Que, about 15 mins north of Ottawa. I made reservations and we both dressed up to help with the atmosphere. The restaurant looks like a small country side inn. The interior was very nicely decorated in a "quaint french Canadian" style, something you'd expect to see in a nice bed and breakfast, just on a larger scale. The greeting staff was very friendly, and the table decor was subtle and not overly intrusive.
Since this was going to be a splurge meal, we decided to both order the tasting menu, with wine parings. I think this is the best way to really get a taste of what the chef can do, of course at a price. The menu can be found here.
The meal started off with some rosemary rolls with some butter with rosemary in it. It was very fresh, and the aroma of the rosemary really made it something to remember...and this was just the rolls!
I'm not going to go over each and every plate, but the ones to remember was the first plate with the duck. I've never had duck melt with so much flavor before in my mouth. There was so much food, it was hard to finish my desert. The someliere did a wonderful job at the wine parings. It was my first real experience where the food was good, the wine was good, but when you had the food with the right wine, it just brought out this extra burst of flavours.
So, over all, the atmosphere was excellent. The staff was knowledgeable, friendly, and they came out and explained everything about the current course. They will remind you which plate you are eating and tell you a little bit about the wine that is paired with it. The food was one of the best I've ever had. Much compliments to the chef! Sometimes you really do get what you pay for.
Review (out of 5):
Food: * * * * *
Value: * * * * *
Atmosphere: * * * * *
Service: * * * * *
Price Range (dinner): $30 - $150
Website: http://www.fougeres.ca/
