Bless this place for being open late AND for being delicious, as the two rarely go hand in hand. \n\nOur flight to Montreal had arrived around midnight and we were starving. Luckily I had a whole list of Montreal bistros that I had researched before arriving, and this one was not only just down the street from our hotel but was also listed as being open until 2am. We never would have found it it without the address, since there's no sign other than the lettering on the sidewalk tiles. I thought it might be a problem that we were coming in so late and ordering so much food, but our service was absolutely fantastic. When 2am rolled around, our server told us there was no rush, that in fact only the kitchen closed at 2 but actually they were open until 3am, so we could take our time. \n\nNow onto the food, which was so good we ended up coming here again a few days later to try some more. We started off with appetizers of bone marrow, chicken liver p\u00e2t\u00e9, and an octopus lentil salad. Not to mention that the table came with a big jar of cornichons and mustard. Everything was great, but I think we all really liked the octopus lentil salad the best. Next up, we had hangar steak w/shallot butter & frites, steak tartare, and a duck confit salad. Again, everything was delicious, and the steak was cooked perfectly. They had a very good wine list, so we had a couple good bottles to go with all of that. Finally, we closed with a plate of local Qu\u00e9bec cheeses (one raw blue cowmilk cheese, and one raw sheepsmilk cheese), which we had accompanied by honey and a 1/2 bottle of Juran\u00e7on dessert wine, and espresso. We loved our food and the way they took care of us so well. \n\nWe went again for lunch a few days later, and it was extremely crowded, but they managed to find a spot for us although we didn't have reservations. We repeated a few dishes from before, but we also this time tried a goat cheese salad, the rillettes, the roasted quail and the sole dor\u00e9. My quail was so meaty and tender, and it had a nice honey glaze, and Mike's fish was excellent. For dessert we got their famous \u00eele flottante (a big scoop of meringue coated with hardened sugar) and a parfait. Service was once again excellent, impressive considering how busy it was.\n\nOver all, we were very pleased with the food and service coming from such a humble place. I think that's the challenge of French bistro cooking, to do simple food very well, and L'Express manages this marvelously.
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