Month: August 2008

Supermarkets are lying about their opening hours, and we want the Prime Minister to put a stop to it!

miscellany

Tesco supermarket sign: We're open 24 hours

This is just brilliant. I took this photo last year at the Tesco’s in Hackney central, which (since moving this summer) I gladly don’t have to see on my way home anymore. Every time I cycled passed this sign I couldn’t help have an inward rant about the sheer nonesense of its message. It clearly says, “We’re open 24 hours”, which I knew was a lie because I’d seen them closed of a Sunday evening. And sure enough, in the small print, it gives their opening hours – they close early Saturdays and Sundays. So OK, they don’t say “We’re open 24 – 7” but that’s what they’re leading us to believe right?

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What and where to eat in Montreal

food, miscellany, travel

A friend of mine is going to be visiting Montreal on her honeymoon soon, so I thought it was a good excuse to get my recommendations for where to eat there out in the open. Though I moved back to the UK in 2003 so I’m afraid they might not all still be there, but from what I’ve seen online, they mostly seem to still be going. (Please add comments with any corrections or further recommendations you have!)

There are many wonderful things about Montreal, that would require several posts here, but what I tend to focus on most is the food. Eating out in Montreal is cheap, easy and absolutely delicious. I think it is quite impressive that I only went up one clothes size in the 3 years I lived there, because the food is irresistable!

On “the Main” or St. Laurent, just south of Duluth is Schwartz‘s Smoked Meat Deli. I’m afraid my friend’s vegetarian husband is going to have to close his eyes and nose while she indulges in this most delightful sandwich. Mounds of steaming tender smoked beef quivering between two slices of sour dough bread. STUNNING.

Just next door, at Mondo Fritz, is something for meat eaters and veggies alike. If you like chips and gravy, you will just adore this Quebec speciality, Poutine. Poutine from Mondo Fritz Poutine is chips served with gravy and melted cheese curds, which are like lumps of cheese. You get this dish at all fast food joints in francophone Canada but Mondo Fritz has a gourmet version which I’d say is unbeatable. You might want to go for the Gardinier version which has some green vegetables like peas or brocolli in it. Their gravy is vegetarian, but they also do Poutine au Steak and other meaty delights. Or you can just go for their chips straight up with a choice of about 6 different mayos. All this washed down with a nice big pitcher of beer! YUM!

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