Coup D’Oeil (translation: a quick look around)

From the moment I pushed open the door to Les 400 Coups on a quiet evening in February, my breath crystalizing in the frozen air behind me, I knew I was in for a treat. The space radiated elegance and welcome. The lighting was bright yet cozy, groups of dinners chatted animatedly over glasses of wine, and a jaunty Edith Piaf tune played in the background.

To my right, the entire wall was covered with an enormous print of a street corner in the Saint-Germain-des-Prés neighbourhood in Paris. As I sank into the plush chair, a waiter appeared with a bottle of sparkling cider. “Bonsoir,” he murmured.

Coup De Foudre (translation: love at first sight)

We started our meal with a perfectly seared scallop, served with ratte potatoes, barbecued eel, fennel and black mayonnaise ($14), cutting the last bite into smaller and smaller pieces in an attempt to avoid the guilt of taking the last bite. Soon the mains arrived, saving us. As my fiancé tucked into his mackerel ($24), which came with braised beef ravioli and honey mushrooms in a matelote sauce, he started nodding. “You know the expression ‘holy mackerel’?” he asked. “I finally know where it comes from.”

But the dish that grabbed hold of my heart and still has not let go was the “green” desert ($10): little cubes of tart green apple in olive oil, topped with fluffy white chocolate yogurt, shaved pistachios, and shaved green apple ice.

Even the chocolate pot-de-crème that came afterwards, which I first tasted when the pastry chef worked at another restaurant (a layer of chocolate mousse, a layer of salty dark chocolate cookie crumble, and a layer of frothy white chocolate cream, served in a mason jar and eaten with a long-handled spoon, $10) couldn’t hold a candle to the beautiful freshness of the green desert.

Coup de Main (translation: a helping hand)

I needed a little help from some friends to discover that “faire les 400 coups” is a French expression whose meaning is somewhere between “having been around the block,” “having sown your wild oats,” and “having earned your stripes”.

It’s fitting for the restaurant not only because of the address (400 Notre-Dame street East) but because the chef, pastry chef and sommelier who co-own the restaurant, Marc-André Jetté, Patrice Demers and Marie-Josée Beaudoin, respectively, have honed their skills abroad and at other renown restaurants around the city. The level of refinement comes across loud and clear in the capable service and level of execution of the food.

Boire Un Coup (translation: to have a drink)

Though the wine list still focuses heavily on France and Italy, Les 400 Coups also has a few great offerings that are relatively local. We started the meal off with a beautiful sparkling pink cider from Cidrerie Michel Jodoin, located in the countryside East of the city, and also sampled a fantastic Pinot Noir from Les Clos Jordanne in the Niagara Peninsula.

Coup De Fil (translation: phone call)

Word is out about this place, so reservations at Les 400 Coups are a must, especially on weekends, which book up roughly a week in advance. Call or email to request a table.

Valoir Le Coup (translation: to be worth it)

With so many great restaurants to try in Montreal, it’s hard to justify visiting the same one twice, but I see a lot of meals at Les 400 Coups in my future. Or maybe I’ll skip the meal and go straight to my latest heartthrob, that apple desert. Hello, sweetie.