O'Thym: the best restaurant for Quebec products
The experts have spoken: it is the restaurant O'Thym, in the village, which best showcases the foods from Quebec. The establishment has just been named the big winner of the 5th edition of the Prix restaurateur Aliments du Québec au menu.
It is part of the annual meeting of the Association Restauration Québec (ARQ) that this special prize, which aims to promote initiatives that promote Quebec foods, was awarded.
Constant desire for improvement
An achievement in itself in an environment known to be particularly difficult, the O’Thym restaurant is 18 years old. All the judges praised his evolution over the years. Today 99% from Quebec, and this, 12 months a year, the menu has not contained any product or ingredient from elsewhere since 2015. The team has always worked to integrate products from here by more.
“The O’Thym restaurant stood out this year for its impressive evolution and its growing supply of foods from Quebec. On the menu, we highlight local products and producers very well. The cooks are creative in finding Quebec alternatives; they are constantly on the lookout for new products. This is a great example of perseverance in the restaurant industry,” said Alexandre Denis, Supplier and Broker Supervisor at Gordon Food Service (GFS).
Chef Noé Lainesse of the O’Thym restaurant/Photo: Courtesy of Aliment du Québec
A restaurant that stands out
Two points allow the establishment to stand out all the more. It is the first “ Bring your own wine ” and even the first restaurant in Montreal to win this award, proving “that it is possible, even in a metropolis, to favor short circuits and build solid relationships with producers”, says Isabelle Roy, President of the Jury and General Manager of Aliments du Québec.
This approach is beneficial for everyone, including customers: “When they come to eat here, they are turned on, they really want to discover their terroir,” says Noé Lainesse, chef and owner of O'Thym.
