Restaurant Aux Vivres - Montreal, Quebec

RETURN? If I had to

This too-cool-for-school vegetarian restaurant has scared me since its opening. No meat? I don't know... but I have to admit, the appeal of a restaurant like this, for someone like me, are without a doubt the trendy hippies. Earth-loving, recycling, peaceful hippies... Even if, unbeknownst to them, their hippie choices can sometimes cause more harm than good (Example: Google "recycling fraud," "problem with organic fruits and vegetables"). Lololol.

Despite this, a very good and old friend from high school became a vegetarian quite a few years ago, and she has been raving about this restaurant for some time now. It would be wrong of me to deny her the pleasure of even a single Aux Vivres experience, so we decided to try it out on a Tuesday weeknight.

The decor of the place is bright and colourful, and is populated by a young crowd who are mostly tall and thin. Do they look attractive? Absolutely. Is it a promising indication of the sumptuous victuals to come? Sadly no.

Because I was in an uber-umami-craving mood, I decided to opt for the Thai Bowl which would come with a savoury peanut sauce. I thought it would satiate my craving and be filling at the same time.

Thai Bowl

The dish came with julienned carrots, pickled daikon radish, bok choy and some peanuts, laid on a bed of brown rice. If you're an astute observer, you'll see that a sprig of parsley was also present in the bowl. Now, in carnivorous restaurants (??), this would be considered a mere garnish. In this herbivorous restaurant, however, it seems like rice toppings are made up almost entirely of what would be considered garnishes at a meat restaurant, so it's not a waste of herb. I'm loving it. Loving it. 

Anyways, I poured the sauce over top the vegetables and mixed lightly, very ready to tuck into my full-flavored, deep, nutty, peanut sauce...

Bleh. There was no depth to this sauce. It was full of ginger and other sharp notes, it was runny, and just plain weird. It wasn't *bad*, but it was a one-dimensional, light sauce that didn't satisfy my craving. It has nothing at all to do with any Thai peanut sauce that I've ever had. This lame sauce, coupled with a bunch of vegetables made me feel like I was eating a salad and not a complete meal. 

Now I was in a pickle. I didn't love the dish, nor did I hate it, but at the same time I didn't want to disappoint my friend. So, I did what I thought was best: put on a smile, told her the truth as politely as I could, and demonstrated that I was open to try something else. And that is how I ended up ordering the faux cheesecake.

Faux Cheesecake

This cheesecake was incredible. Creamy, not too rich, and full of dairy flavour, but without the dairy!! I couldn't believe my taste buds! The crust was flaky, firm, and deeply delicious as well. The two made a perfect combo. However, I wasn't nuts about that cherry jam compote thing on top. It was way too sweet, too sour, too firm, and just didn't belong with the other two elements. I removed it and thoroughly enjoyed the remainder of my dessert.

All in all, I would return to this place. Although my bowl sucked and I felt lied to (don't call it Thai if it's not anything remotely close to Thai!), the well-executed dessert leads me to believe that this place has promise with their other dishes. I'm not particularly eager to try another main course, but if I were with a vegetarian friend and felt compelled to do so, I wouldn't put up a fuss.

ADDRESS: 4631 Boulevard Saint-Laurent, Montreal, QC