Party in my Mouth.

While I've managed to kick my massive shopping habit that I spent the last 8 or so years carefully cultivating thanks to the UK high street, the main thing I find myself spending my dollars on in Montreal is food. Montreal has far too many great little cafes and restaurants to possibly list or visit, but since I've got here, me and the lads have made a pretty good dent in the Mtl food scene: Banquise? Check. Schwartz's? Check. Romado's? Check. l'Avenue? Check. Aux Vivres? Check. This entry will be dedicated to l'Avenue.

I'm a firm believer that poached eggs are possibly the greatest of all God's creations, and that any variation on them is a guaranteed win. l'Avenue on Mont-Royal is commonly regarded as the best breakfast/brunch joint in town, and their Eggs Benedict are legendary. So last Saturday Emma, Marianna and I braved the 40 minute queue (a standard wait on weekends) and were finally rewarded with a table. Feeling unadventurous, I opted for a bottomless filter coffee, but Emma had a moment of madness and chose a hot chocolate. Most people drink hot chocolate out of a mug. At l'Avenue, it's a soup bowl. The photo doesn't quite show the sheer size of it, but it does display how pretty it was.

For actual lunch, it could be nothing other than Eggs Benedict. But instead of playing safe, I went for a variation on my favourite theme. A spiced-up Eggs Benedict, with chorizo and peppers, served with a ramekin of comforting, herby potato homefries appeared before me:

Now, I'm usually a food machine. I have no problem putting away large quantities of unhealthy/carborific/sugary foods. But at l'Avenue, in their brunch, I met my nemesis. It took me a very long time to plod through this dish because it was just so rich. It was also amazing. Spicy, tasty chorizo; creamy Hollandaise sauce; perfectly cooked eggs. As some concession to health, all breakfasts are served with the fruit kebab you can see the end of in the hot chocolate photo, so I would definitely recommend only going to l'Avenue when you're genuinely hungry. For brunch, it's definitely worth a visit, and I'd say it's even worth the wait for a table. I'm going to make it a personal mission of mine to actually find the best breakfast in Montreal. A tasty mission if ever I heard one.
xx