Le Canard no. 2073: Duckling à la Rouennaise at Restaurant Le Cheval de Jade

Restaurant Le Cheval de Jade @ Mont Tremblant

I’ve seen the Pressed Duck of La Tour d’Argent in Paris featured in a few magazines and TV shows. I didn’t get a chance to try this when hubby and I went to Paris many years ago and the next trip will not be for many years yet. Imagine my excitement when, on our trip to Mont Tremblant, I discovered that one of the Master Canardiers in the world has a restaurant in Québec! Chef Olivier Tali, originally from France, is the vice-consul of the Ordre des Canardiers in Québec and owner of Restaurant Le Cheval de Jade. I made reservations and ordered the Duckling à la Rouennaise in advance.

We were warmly greeted upon our arrival in this quaint dining room by the Laurentian Mountains. While the patio was lovely, it was a bit chilly so we decided to be seated indoors. As hubby and I had already pre-ordered our meal, the girls and Grandma chose from the menu. They have Discovery menus (or set menus) as well if you can’t decide what to get from the À la carte menu.

For appetizers, the house served us a wonderful mango and shrimp salsa with a savoury whipped cream topping. 

Mango salsa,  Restaurant Le Cheval de Jade @ Mont Tremblant

We were also served bread with balls of regular and sun-dried tomato butter. 

Sundried tomato butter, Restaurant Le Cheval de Jade @ Mont Tremblant

Both were delicious and made us anticipate our main course even more.

Only hubby had the space to get another appetizer. He had the Mediterranean fish soup served with rouille (a Provençal sauce), croutons and grated cheese. I had a taste (as the server said I must try this) and it was lovely.

Mediterranean Fish Soup, Restaurant Le Cheval de Jade @ Mont Tremblant

We were then invited to watch Chef Tali demonstrate how to make the Canard à la Rouennaise using a 300-year old recipe originating from Rouen. The chef presented a roasted duckling, locally grown, from which he took off the breast. He placed the remaining carcass in the beautiful 100+ year old duck press to extract blood and juices. The girls were thrilled to be helping the chef on this. 

100 year old duck press, Restaurant Le Cheval de Jade @ Mont Tremblant

Using the extracted blood, he made a sauce combining this with butter, portwine, Cognac  and a little bit of lemon juice. He also used foie gras butter to thicken the sauce. We all got a teaspoon to try the sauce and It.was.heavenly.

Preparing Canard a la Rouennaise, Restaurant Le Cheval de Jade @ Mont Tremblant

We then went back to our table as he finished preparing our meals. Grandma ordered the Tiger Prawns with creamy sauce and garlic flower

Tiger Prawns, Restaurant Le Cheval de Jade @ Mont Tremblant

while DD#2 ordered the Duck confit with raspberry coulis. From my understanding, this would have been a second course in some Parisian restaurants serving the pressed duck, but here it was served and ordered separately. The leg quarters were tender and juicy and the coulis was perfect for the duck. The fam obviously and generously gave me a taste!

Duck confit, Restaurant Le Cheval de Jade @ Mont Tremblant

DD#1 ordered another house specialty, Mediterranean bouillabaisse (using sustainable Pollock and shrimp) and also served with rouille, croutons and grated cheese. While it was good, I've had better bouillabaisse (though not as authentic). I know it is quite hard to prepare but I did not find it as tasty as the other dishes. As DD#1 kept asking to have a bite of our dishes instead of devouring hers, it was probably underwhelming for her as well.

Mediterranean Bouillabaisse, Restaurant Le Cheval de Jade @ Mont Tremblant

However, it was our pressed duckling which was just divine. The duckling was so tender and the sauce was beautifully rich. Each bite just melted in my mouth with bursts of Foie gras singing in my taste buds. The side dish of ultra-light pommes dauphine (crispy potato puffs made of mashed potatoes and savoury choux pastry) was so delightful.

 Laurentians’ Duckling à la Rouennaise at Restaurant Le Cheval de Jade

While we were full, we couldn’t pass up even sharing a Tarte au Citron with babaco (sourced locally from the greenhouses of Les Serres d’Arundel) sorbet on red fruit coulis. It was a perfect palate cleanser to cap our wonderful meal.

Tarte au Citron,  Restaurant Le Cheval de Jade

The duckling sourced from the farm 'Canards, Delices et Pommes' in Prévost was also numbered. We signed a register to attest that we had duck number 2073. So as we were eating dessert, Chef Tali presented us with a certificate with the number of the duckling to prove our culinary experience—just like tradition in La Tour d’Argent which began in the 1890s.

Food was superb and the service was very friendly, not at all snobbish. Chef Tali visited each table even though the restaurant was full (and on a weeknight!). This was one of the best meals we have ever had! A wonderful experience overall. Highly recommended.