One month after opening its doors for the
first time in Quebec, the new P.F. Chang’s China Bistro is bringing in the
crowds at its gorgeous Montreal location on Rue des Jockeys next to the former
Blue Bonnets Raceway and off of the Decarie Expressway.
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| Aronovici (right) and director of operations Cary Mausner. |
I was there for a daytime visit on the eve of
its formal opening to meet the founder of the international chain, Philip
Chiang. But other commitments prevented me from attending a couple of VIP
celebrations. My family and I finally
got to try it out on May 17 and it was everything we expected it to be and
more. We have always been huge fans of P.F. Chang’s, dining there every chance
we came close to one while travelling in the States. In January we ate at the
first Canadian location in Toronto. It
was cold mid-week evening and the place was packed. Well, Michael Aronovici,
the man who has brought P.F. Chang’s to Canada, really thought this over very
well. You know what they say about “location, location, location.” In Toronto,
a trendy shopping plaza in Don Mills was chosen. Rue des Jockeys here is centrally located and
it has already attracted a loyal following of regulars. On June 17, Aronovici’s
Interaction Asian Restaurants will debut the next P.F. Chang’s at Carrefour
Laval.
We arrived at 7:30 p.m.
Outside, the valet parking attendants were busy while inside sat dozens of
people with pagers, patiently waiting for tables. I saw many familiar faces.
One of them was Aronovici, who was there with his own family.
Manager Emile Haykel was
supervising the busy kitchen, the bar and the two levels of seating. Our waiter
was Eric, an enthusiastic young man who treated us to the chain’s traditional
creation of a special dipping sauce, done right before your very eyes. Each
server has their own mixtures.
Each dish on the P.F. Chang’s
menu is prepared to order using the freshest and highest quality ingredients.
The environment at each location combines influences of Chinese and American
cultures. A panoramic, hand-painted mural depicting 12th century China, is
visible from the main dining room and commands attention as the restaurant’s
centerpiece, while several terra-cotta warriors stand guard. The majestic 11 foot
tall horses grace the entrance to many of the restaurants, including Montreal.
This horse symbolizes the original Forbidden City in China, which was built for
China’s first emperor Qin Shi Huangdi.
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| The trademark lettuce wraps. |
I
started off with some won ton soup,
containing pork wontons, mushrooms, fresh spinach, water chestnuts, chicken and
shrimp in a savory chicken broth. Then it was time for P.F. Chang’s signature
chicken lettuce wraps: wok seared minced chicken, mushrooms, green onions and
water chestnuts served over crispy rice sticks with cool, crisp lettuce cups.
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| Crispy honey chicken. |
This
is a place where sharing dishes makes the most sense. My recommendation is the
Mongolian beef (tender flank steak wok-cooked then quickly tossed with
scallions and garlic), crispy honey shrimp (lightly battered and tossed in a
sweet and tangy honey sauce with green onions), crispy honey chicken (lightly
battered and served in a sweet sauce over a bed of crispy rice sticks), double
pan-fried noodles (crisp egg noodles stir-fried with mushrooms, bok choy,
carrots, celery and onions and comes with a choice of beef, pork, chicken,
shrimp or vegetable) and a bowl of steamed rice.
We
had just enough room to share some mini-desserts, served in shot glasses. Not
too filling. We sampled the triple chocolate mousse, the tres leche lemon dream
and the tiramisu,
When
we got ready to leave, towards 9:45p.m., large groups of people were still
filing in. P.F. Chang’s does take reservations, but leaves about 25 percent of
the availability for walk-ins.
This new Montreal locale can
seat 280 people, plus 50 on the unique terrace which even has heaters for when
the weather turns a bit nippy. There is a staff of 170.
You can log on to www.pfchangs.ca to see the menu. Takeout is
available. You can call 514-731-2020 for reservations. The restaurant is also opened for lunch, with some great deals.
Here is the interview I did with Aronovici and Philip Chiang last month.