Lloyd Restaurant
The Marriott Château Champlain downtown is now home to Lloyd Restaurant. The 200-seat venue, which includes a 60-seat private room, has menu items such as shrimp tartar with vanilla and exotic fruit gazpacho or pressed foie gras with Tahitian chutney. More classic dishes like the AAA beef flank steak with shallots or the decadent burger with caramelized onions and organic Comtomme cheese from Quebec will please all palates.
As for the desserts, the Pistachio (pistachio cream and mango confit, mango sorbet, green apple, coriander and olive oil) and Temptation (shortbread cookie, white chocolate cream, turmeric cookie, raspberry and tomato confit, and lychee and tomato sorbet) are the most highly touted. There is a wheelchair-accessible walkway leading directly to the restaurant a few steps away from the main hotel entrance. Washrooms are also situated at the same level as the dining rooms, and there are no stairs.
Lloyd is located at 1050 rue de la Gauchetière Ouest. It is open Monday to Friday, from 6:30 am to 10 pm and weekends from 7 am to 1 pm and 5 pm to 10 pm.
Salvatoré
With 61 franchises and counting, Salvatoré is one of my new pizza discoveries. I have visited the Dollard des Ormeaux and St. Léonard locations. They are both storefronts, designed for pickup and delivery only. For the latter, they use their own vehicles. Customers with mobility challenges can also choose a curbside handoff. The DDO and St. Léonard entrances are both accessible by wheelchair.
The business was established by the Abbatiello family in 1964, and today, five of the founders’ grandchildren are in charge. I chose one of their trademarks: a 12-inch Chinese Fondue Pizza. It was superb. The sauce was made with fondue broth and topped with mushrooms, cheese, marinated beef, red onions and broccoli. There are also three fondue dips.
I decided to order something to drop off for my mom and that turned out to be the BBQ Chicken Pizza, featuring spicy whisky BBQ sauce, chicken, cheese, red onions, fresh tomatoes and green onions. Since my plan was to order enough to have for supper the following evening, I also ordered six plain chicken wings (they have a variety of choices). These crispy wings are served with a side of ranch sauce for dipping. I also added a side of fries. The Poutine Tao tempted me, and so did some of the other pizza options. But those will have to wait until next time!
Oh, and I cannot forget about dessert: A decadent hot and soft eight-inch cookie sprinkled with crushed M&Ms. There were eight portions that lasted me all weekend.
Marathon Souvlaki
With three dine-in locations near Decarie Boulevard, in Dollard des Ormeaux and Chomedey and a takeout and delivery spot in Laval, this 45-year-old family-run operation remains noted for friendly prices, signature entrées, great salads, superb souvlaki and sizeable plates and combos. All the products are replenished fresh each day.
I recently enjoyed a delicious dinner at the Decarie locale, starting off by sharing some taramosalata with warm pita, a basket of garlic bread, a crispy plate of calamari and a large Marathon salad (lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, onions, Greek olives, feta cheese, oregano and their famous house dressing). I ordered the four marinated lamb chops with their trademark fries. My friend opted for the filet mignon brochette. We were both too full for dessert, so we took home decadent pieces of Marathon’s Chocolate Prestige Cake.
The Decarie location has an accessible entry and parking spots.
