Otto

Description:

• The new upscale hotels opened in the city since the turn of the 21st century have made a point of creating desirable in-house restaurants, many of them recommended in these pages. This one, in the glossy W Montréal hotel, hit the ground running. It was a proper reflection of the modish thrust of the building surrounding it, in design, clientele, and cuisine -- hot, hot, hot. Now, mark it lukewarm. The chic Armani-clad crowd appears to have moved on, and there have been things you shouldn't see in a place of these pretensions -- chipped china, film on tabletops, tears in upholstery. Fortunately, the food is still good. The largely Italian repertoire is given fresh interpretation, from antipasti to il dolce. All the current Montréal faves are usually at hand, some with a special twist like the beef tartare topped with poached quail eggs. Among the dinner preparations you don't see everywhere else are black cod with shitake crust and pistachio sauce. None of the prices are a bargain, although the table d'hôte lunch comes close.

• © Frommer's 2013