Bistro a Champlain Restaurant Review
75, chemin Masson 
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J0T 1L0 Ste Marguerite du Lac Masson Canada
450-228-4988
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Cuisine
Open
Dinner Wed.-Sat.Features
- View
- Romantic setting
- Reservations suggested
- Parking lot
- Casual
Wine
Great Wine List* Click here for rating key
 About an hour from Montreal, Bistro à Champlain is located on the foothills of the Laurentian Mountains. Housed in a heritage property, it has a curious creative connection to one of Quebec’s noted artists. In 1974, owner and wine connoisseur Champlain Charest teamed with abstract painter Jean-Paul Riopelle to found the restaurant in this bucolic area. This creative collaboration is a pleasing celebration of art, food and wine. Today the wine cellar boasts some 40,000 bottles and is, in itself, an attraction. The sommelier’s palate is decidedly light, and the chef’s passion for detail evident. There are minor missteps. Duck foie gras with fruit chutney is mellow but a tad ordinary while the marinated salmon or a roasted guinea hen served with mushroom crème sauce raises the bar. Duck breast with sweet-and-sour sauce inspires, but ultimately, risotto with green curry, crab and shrimp with its memorable sauce is the only plate that you can’t go home without trying. Between courses, visit the wine cellar, perhaps Charest will take you on a tour himself. The restaurant once adorned with Riopelle works is less so today due to security issues. But art remains, albeit that of young contemporary artists whose intriguing works can be appreciated with fine food and drink.
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