Culinary Highlights of the Eastern Townships

The 11th edition of Montreal en Lumière starts February 18th and I'm looking forward to the "Wine and Dine" portion of this ten-day celebration of Montreal's winter urban arts and food scene.

One of my highlights of this year's edition is exploring the culinary offerings of the Eastern Townships, this year's featured region of Quebec, at the Jean Talon Market and at various restaurants around town. The activities at Jean Talon Market are easily the most accessible in this series. From 9am on Saturday and Sunday, February 20th and 21st, producers from the Eastern Townships will be featuring their products and available for questions. The activity is free, so check them out!

On the pricier end, four restaurants in Montreal will be welcoming chefs from the Eastern Townships into their kitchens to create menus featuring their local heritage. It certainly sounds like a one-of-a-kind experience for a night out. If you are interested, reserve early. I'm told these dinners can sell-out quickly.

• Chef Jeffrey Stirrup at L’Inconnu is pairing up with Geneviève Fillion of Sherbrooke’s Le Bouchon to create a five-course tasting menu with her region’s local produce taking centre stage. ($55, or $85 with wine pairing; details here)
• Chef Jean-Paul Giroux at Cuisine & Dépendance is teaming up with award-winning chef Alain Labrie of La Table du Chef in the Eastern Townships. French cuisine with local ingredients will be featured. ($70, or $115 with wine pairing; details here)
• Chef Jean-Baptiste Marchand at Bistrot La Fabrique is welcoming Danny St-Pierre of the Auguste restaurant, where he will be recreating some of his "market-driven" Eastern Townships classics. ($45, or $75 with wine pairing; details here)
• Chef Laurent Godbout at Chez L'Epicier is going back to his roots with chef François Tourigny of La Table Tourigny, with whom he first started his culinary career. French cuisine with a local twist takes centre stage. ($85, or $135 with wine pairing; details here)