Mile-End Restaurant Lawrence pops up at sister eatery Larrys

Montreal Restaurant Lawrence's pop up at Larrys © Will Travel for Food

A 7-course experience of elegant dining and exceptional wines {photo © Dominique Lafond}

I don’t go out much these days. The sphere in which I tend to navigate has become a lot tighter since the beginning of the pandemic so you can imagine my surprise when I happened to notice that Lawrence, one of my favourite Montreal restaurants, is now sporting a “Larrys+” sign on its facade. Larrys is Restaurant Lawrence’s little sibling (and also a favourite of mine), located a few doors down.

Sourdough, albacore, bone marrow and lemon verbena {photo © Dominique Lafond}

SWAPPING GAME

Turns out that Lawrence and Larrys have swapped dining rooms! The Lawrence space has been used as a take out counter 7 days a week for a few weeks now. The menu is mostly Larrys’ since its food lends itself best for take out, as well as some Lawrence lunch classics, such as its outstanding burgers. Larrys+ also sells beautiful pastries and desserts and, as always, an amazing list of natural and biodynamic wines.

The Larrys/Lawrence team has always offered exceptional wines {photo © Dominique Lafond}

But the Lawrence kitchen team led by chef/owner Marc Cohen was itching to get back to creating more inventive and elegant dishes. So they transformed the tiny Larrys space into a fine dining establishment, serving a 7-course dinner to only 12 diners at a time, while maintaining all safety measures. Lawrence will accommodate 12 diners for two seatings a night, 4 nights a week from Wednesdays to Saturdays. There are a few tables set up outside and 12 seats indoors. You can choose to sit outdoors on a nice night but a table will be booked for you indoors nonetheless, in case of bad weather.

Lamb shoulder, peas, ramps and ‘nduja {photo © Dominique Lafond}

THE MENU

There are two set menus, one of which is 100% vegetarian. Both feature the best seasonal produce from small local and ethical producers. The bread and pastries are made in house, as usual. The meat is butchered at their very own butcher shop Boucherie Lawrence around the corner while the fish and seafood are 100% sustainable. The 7-course menu is $75 per person (before taxes) and includes all gratuities. You can then opt for the wine pairing or a non alcoholic one.

The cute little dining space set up outside of Larrys

The Restaurant Lawrence pop ups are here to stay for a little while, or at least until dining out goes back to some semblance of normalcy, which we all know will probably be longer than anticipated. Montreal restaurants are trying their best to create unique experience in these tough times. Let’s encourage them and help them stay afloat. And if we have an amazing dining experience while doing so, that’s even better!