You have permission to eat poutine all week

Poutine done different

Montreal’s love for poutine runs deep. So deep that a member of Cult MTL‘s crew once proclaimed that he would gladly make sweet love to our “plat nationale” — you know, after it cooled down a touch. Better than pie, right?

So while Burger Week is always a good time for local restaurants and their patrons, the annual Poutine Week (Feb. 1-7) offers a similar creative challenge to local chefs and draws us out of our semi-hibernation to try exciting variations of this classic Québécois comfort food. And some of the ingredients are even more exciting (and controversial) than anything Cult MTL could inject into it.

Here’s a list of all the participating restaurants and their competing poutines:

Au Cinquième Peché (4475 St-Denis) Poutine au Phoque (gnocchi, seal merguez, brussel sprouts, cheese and full-bodied jus)

Banquise Resto (994 Rachel E.): Poutine Reggae (Golden French fries, cheese curds, Banquise gravy, ground beef, cubed tomatoes, guacamole, spicy peppers)

La Bêtise (6015 St-Hubert): Lobster and Bacon MacPoutine (homemade French fries, curd cheese, lobster and bacon mac and cheese)

Blackstrap BBQ (4436 Wellington): BBQ Brisket Chili Poutine (hand-cut fries, fresh cheese curds, BBQ brisket poutine gravy, BBQ brisket chilli, pickles)

Burgundy Lion (2496 Notre Dame W.): Watership Poutine (braised rabbit with grainy mustard and honey gravy)

Chez Boris (5151 Parc) Poutine au Beignes et sauce au canard (poutine made of sliced doughnut “fries,” duck fat gravy, fresh cheese curds)

Fabergé (25 Fairmount W.): La Famiglia (Italian poutine, sauce from Drogheria Fine)

FreshMint.com (delivery): Le Chaud Lapin (potato galette topped with slow-braised rabbit, Migneron de Charlevoix, gravy)

Frites Alors (680 Ste-Catherine W.) The Lobster Monster (fries, lobster, squeeky cheese, bechamel sauce, shallots)

Le Gourmet Burger (1433B Bishop) #Gourmetpoutine (freshly cut crispy fries, “squinch-squinch” cheese curds,  gravy, caramelized onions, sautéed mushrooms, smoked bacon, sweet and spicy chipotle sauce, fresh thyme)

Icehouse (51 Roy E.) Donuts and Coffee Poutine (potato donuts, red eye gravy, smoked ham, cheese)

Imadake (4006 Ste-Catherine W.) Attack of the Imadake’s Disaster (“Japanese street comfort meets Québécois requisite staple”)

L’Entre-Pots (1995 Masson) La Petite Grosse (homemade French fries, ham gravy, roasted ham on the bone, homemade pickle)

Lola Rosa (4581 Parc):  Poutine Lola (vegetarian poutine with black bean and mushroom gravy)

Lucky’s Truck (8855 Parc): La Fameuse (homemade crispy fries, red wine and foie gras gravy, duck confit, balsamic caramelized onions)

Mange Moi Poutinerie (35 Mont-Royal E.): La Cochonne (freshly cut French fries, homemade chicken & spice blend gravy, slow-cooked pulled pork)

McKibbin’s Irish Pub (3515 St-Laurent) Baked Potato Poutine (baked potato ingredients in poutine form, homemade gravy)

Miss Pret à Manger (1104 Bleury) Miss Pret Pour Poutine (regular & sweet potato fries, cheese curds, organic braised beef, edible flowers, braised beef gravy)

Monsieur Restaurant & Bar (1102 Bleury) Guerrier Kale Organique (Yukon Gold fries, curd cheese, garlic sautéed kale, mixed wild mushrooms topped with lufa farm sprouts)

Montréal Poutine (161 St-Paul E.):  Merguez Poutine  (homemade fries, cheese curds, vegetarian gravy, spicy merguez)

Namos (228 Bernard W.): Greek Poutine (braised lamb, kefalotiri cheese)

Poutine Centrale (3971 Hochelaga) Butter Chicken Poutine (chicken in a creamy Indian spiced sauce topped with cilantro)

Poutineville (1365 Ontario E.): Angus Prime (roast beef poutine)

Pub Quartier Latin (318 Ontario E.) Poutine Boeuf Parmesan Truffes (fries, pieces of AAA 1855 beef, red wine demi glace sauce with truffles, Parmegiano Reggiano)

Régine Café (1840 Beaubien E.) La Poutine Breakfast (fries, homemade gravy, two-year old cheddar and chorizo)

Romeo (285 Mont-Royal E.) La Poutine Italienne (potatoes, veal and mushroom gravy, mozzarella di buffala, crushed tomatoes, basil, parmesan flakes)

Royal Phoenix (5788 St-Laurent) La Royale (pulled pork, red cabbage, green apple coleslaw)

Sesame (380 St-Jacques) Shaolin (Panko beef, four cheeses, mixed veggies, Asian-influenced gravy)

SuWu (3581 St-Laurent) Pootie Tang (rosemary fries, Sortilège and maple sauce, bacon slices and bits, fried cheese curds)

Uniburger (302 Ontario E.) Chili Cheese Fries (self-explanatory)

Wings N’ Things (5663 Royalmount) Wings N’ Thing Poutine (curly fries, curd cheese, medium sauce, boneless chicken wings) ■

For more details and instructions about the Poutine Week voting process, go to their website

To see a list of Montrealers’ favourite poutines, view the results of last year’s Best of MTL survey here