If you aren’t going to ski at Mont Alta or Belle Neige, you might not want to take an 80 KM drive to the Laurentians for breakfast, but I did not long ago and I can rightfully say that it was well worth it. If maple cured ham, classic tourtière, cretons, and smoked bacon doesn’t sound appealing to you, do not read any further.
Au Petit Poucet met with great tragedy in May 2007 when it was burned down by a horrific fire. Since 2008, it has been rebuilt into the same rustic log cabin type of restaurant that it was before. The setting is a big part of the whole experience; not only is there a chandelier made of antlers, but If you look around you can spot a raccoon and other animals but don’t worry, they don’t bother you when you eat!
Now let’s talk about the food. I ordered a fairly simple breakfast; scrambled eggs, home-fried potatoes, bacon, ham and beans. What makes this place so unique is the way the ham is cooked; first they brine-cure it, then roast it with a maple glaze and finally slow smoke it in a maple wood fire. By infusing the ham with maple flavor, they create a luscious taste that would appease even a non smoked ham lover. They make their own beans and throw ham in them as well. The gravy that the beans are drowning in is to die for; it’s loaded with beef stock and that promotes joy with each bite. Perhaps my favorite side dish was their roasted potatoes which were fried to a golden crisp in leftover grease, offering outstanding results. I thought the eggs were excellent. The truth is, scrambled eggs are fairly easy to make, but I have failed at recreating the same texture as Poucet’s. The eggs are were perfectly beaten to a full and fluffy scramble. They wasted no time in letting the eggs start to set before stirring/scrambling because the eggs were small curds, rather than larger fluffier pieces which was different for me but so enjoyable. Surprisingly, the weakest part of the breakfast was the bacon. I am a huge bacon lover, so I would have regarded this breakfast as having a perfect score had the bacon been to my liking, but I felt that it had this really powerful smoky flavor that was overwhelming. Other than that, the breakfast was excellent.
The most important thing to know when going to Au Petit Poucet is that you must make sure to try the country bread with homemade jam which was the standout of the day. The strawberry jam is expensive but absolutely worth it because the rich taste of fresh strawberries actually bursts in your mouth. The jam is powerful; a sliver will taste like you’re eating a tablespoon. The soft country bread was the perfect accompaniment. This may have been my favorite part of the whole meal.
Au Petit Poucet sells their products inside the restaurant and online. They continue to make exceptional feasts for hungry individuals. I cannot wait to try other dishes on the menu. Do yourself a favor and head to Val-David, soon.
Au Petit Poucet:
1030 Québec 117 Val-David, QC J0T 2N0 T:(819) 322-2246
http://www.aupetitpoucet.com
JarredReviews is my personal weblog. The opinions and experiences represent my own. If you read that I didn’t particularly enjoy a meal or restaurant, that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t try it and see for yourself. Restaurants can have an off day, people make mistakes, we’re all human. My writing is mainly so that you can find out about great restaurants that you may have not heard about, and also to give you an idea of what I enjoyed that you can experience for yourself. Food reviewing is very subjective and you must take this into account and use your discretion when reading any review; If I have had a bad experience somewhere, do not let that stop you to try the restaurant for yourself.
