Madame Duquet's Organic Vegetables

One of Toqué!'s golden rules is that products used in the kitchen must meet the highest standards of freshness, flavour and quality. Last season, Normand discovered the baby vegetables of Madame Duquet, a faithful customer who recently traded a city career for country living. Her small farm, located in the shadow of Mount Sutton, is run with old-fashioned intuition and patience. One taste of her aromatic herbs and vegetables, such as Jerusalem artichokes and baby carrots, and Normand was hooked. Picked daily and handled with care, the pesticide-free wild garlic, spinach, leeks, Charlotte potatoes, and turnips meet organic farming standards. In 2003, Madame Duquet will turn her talents to field berries and other wild plants. Don't be surprised if next spring Toqué!'s menu features young dandelion greens and other such long-forgotten delicacies.

Press Cuttings

In an interview in La Presse by journalist Judith Lachapelle, Normand explained why veal gets top billing at Toqué!. The veal produced by breeder Andrew Stairs is "tastier than milk-fed", because the calves are weaned on their mothers' milk before being set loose in the meadow to graze on clover. The October edition of the prestigious and über-trendy magazine Wallpaper quoted Lesley Chesterman, restaurant critic for The Montreal Gazette, as saying that Normand paved the way for a generation of chefs, who use local ingredients to craft a "distinctive" and "imaginative" Quebec cuisine. In September, seduced by the subtle flavour of a Malpèque oyster in raspberry vinegar, Margot Pfeiff in The Los Angeles Times claimed that after having dined at Toqué! frequently, it is now her favourite Montreal restaurant. Since then, dozens of Californians have introduced themselves to Christine, shown her the article, and asked to be seduced in turn. The magazine Taste hailed Normand as "the genius behind Toqué! ... the chef who raised Quebec homegrown cuisine to the heights of fine dining." In the August issue of Actualité, Yannick Villedieu wrote about "chefs who reinvent Quebec cuisine in tandem with local producers," and cited Normand as a driving force behind the revolution. The Royal named Toqué! one of the two best Montreal restaurants for business meetings. Very "who's who," the magazine went on to list celebrity patrons, including David Bowie, Steven Spielberg, Patrick Bruel, and Prince Edward. BMW Magazine featured a long interview in which Normand expressed his commitment to the bold, beautiful and multiethnic Montreal he calls home. Lastly, the magazine The Robb Report praised Normand's spirit of adventure, most apparent in the five-course mystery menu where, on the inspiration of the moment, the dishes change subtly from hour to hour.

The Women In His life

Coming this winter…Denise Bombardier wanted to know all about the women in Normand's life. In "Parlez-moi des femmes; parlez-moi des hommes," he is reticent, but freely pays tribute to the women who have raised, protected, supported and loved him.

Apple At Its Best

Neige, the ice cider produced by La Face Cachée De La Pomme, has found a spot in Toqué!'s wine cellar. Chosen as a "Découverte" at Sélections Mondiales, Neige was also a gold medalist at Quebec's Coupe des Nations. To brighten up your dessert course, Toqué! offers this bittersweet, amber-coloured ice cider by the glass.

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Calgary Dining

In mid-October, Normand was invited by Michael Noble, chef of the Calgary restaurant CATCH, to take part in a dinner to raise funds for multiple sclerosis research. Normand arrived with a large variety of Quebec's top products including scallops, venison, heirloom fruits, flowers and vegetables. To begin the six-course meal, Normand served Princess scallops with vodka, cranberry and preserved lemon. The main course featured grilled loin of Boileau venison, pan juices deglazed with red blackberry vinegar, rooted chervil and rosehip purée, pan-fried matsutake mushrooms, and a sprinkling of daisies. Besides Normand and Michael Noble, four other high-profile chefs helped make the event a success: David Hawksworth of Ouest in Vancouver, Thomas Haas of Sen5es in Vancouver; Anthony Walsh of Canoe in Toronto, and The Inn Chef, Michael Smith.

Our Chef In Bermuda

Take a look at the following list and imagine Normand and chef de partie Karine Larouche compiling this inventory before heading for Bermuda to host two dinners last November 15th and 16th as the guest of José Froncioni of the Chaîne des Rôtisseurs, and Serge Botelli of the restaurant La Coquille. From one tip of the triangle to the other, they're still talking about the five sensational dishes whose subtle simplicity stunned the dining crowd of the local Chaîne des Rôtisseurs. First sensation: Princess scallops marinated in tarragon oil, cranberry water, and Cortland apple mousse. Second sensation: Tuna sashimi, salad of preserved lemons, vodka-marinated shallots, pepper compote with micro-kale, chioggia beet purée, yellow beets with rosemary, topped with cauliflower and caramelized beet and truffle oil emulsion. Third sensation: Saddle of grilled young Boileau venison with broken béarnaise, shiitake-flavoured jus, pan-fried Chinese artichokes, chervil root purée, and baby pak-choy. Fourth sensation: Pineapple carpaccio with basil and strawberry sorbet. Fifth sensation: Red raspberry dacquoise, thyme-flavoured Chantilly cream, Quebec black raspberry sorbet, and rosehip purée. Normand's goal was to feature gastronomically prepared Quebec products so… mission accomplished!

La Tablée des chefs

If there's enough for two, there's enough for three, ten, twenty, a hundred or more. That's the spirit behind La Tablée des Chefs, whose first spokesperson is Normand Laprise. Many hotels, restaurants and bakeries send their leftovers to community organizations each night. So, in conjunction with Moisson Montréal, La Tablée des Chefs set out to solicit the participation of every restaurant and hotel in Montreal. The Société des Chefs Cuisiniers et Patissiers du Québec helped launch the project by orchestrating a gourmet dinner on November 1, 2002. The setting? Moisson Montréal's Zen-like concrete warehouse filled with industrial shelving, huge refrigerators, and shipping crates. Needless to say, the food was exquisitely and deliciously simple.