Named for the renowned French stage actress (and noted Dreyfusard) Sarah Bernhardt, this second restaurant from Zach Kolomeir (Dreyfus) is another convincing hommage to the cooking of his hometown, Montreal. This time, he has chosen to celebrate Montreal’s singular style of rotisserie chicken — à la Chalet Bar-B-Q. The local interpretation is both faithful and superior: Top-quality poultry is turned in a ne plus ultra French rotisserie by Rotisol, while potatoes roast slowly beneath it, collecting drippings. The accompanying gravy has the correct vinegary tang (and fortunately lacks the original’s scads of cornstarch). And there is so much more on offer in this cozy, quaint but stylish restaurant in an old west-end Edwardian home. Chef Liam Donato gives other meats like duck, pork and lamb the Rotisol treatment. An ode to bangers and mash features sausage made with Mangalica pork seasoned with sage and house-made paprika. Spring brings white asparagus with ginger-accented crème fraîche and beurre noisette. Look out for the crisp-fried creamy-fleshed steamed sweet potatoes with chili crisp, lifted with cilantro and basil. Vegetables and salads have great range and substance, and often lean Ashkenazi (mixed beets with grated horseradish) or Middle Eastern (with toppings like dukkah, zhoug and tahini). House-made ice cream — like “super-vanilla” with haskap berry, lemon zest and buckwheat sablé — is not to be missed.
Wine list
Naturally inclined, with innumerable other great old-world options.
Super-vanilla soft ice cream with haskap.
White asparagus, ginger crème fraîche and beurre noisette.
Buckwheat sablé.
Super-vanilla soft ice cream with haskap.
White asparagus, ginger crème fraîche and beurre noisette.
Buckwheat sablé.
