Arbitrary, Incidental, and Accidental Musings...

Ahh, where to even start? My first trip to La Diable was in December of 1999. We stopped in there on a whim because it looked relatively uncrowded and it appeared to be a microbrewery. Why not? Sounds good to me, right? Oh, how little we understood at the time. Over six years and ten trips later, La Diable has become the lunch staple on every day of our ski trips to Mont Tremblant. There are very few restaurants that I have been to more in my life at this point and this particular one is over 440 miles from my house. That should tell you something.

La Diable offers tremendous Canadian bar food served up with some of the best microbrews you will ever drink. In fact, these brews are so fresh that they are brewed directly behind your bar stool. They are so good that Pete keeps trying to steal the recipe for their famed Belgian trappist ale every time he goes. The service is friendly and incredible, especially because they can put up with our drunken asses every day. Oh yeah, and we go skiing too when we're on these trips. Did I mention that? No one tell the ski patrol, okay? Good, on to the review...

What to order (food): I'm going to break this into food and beers, because each is tremendous in its own right. My favorites include the fish (haddock) and chips, some of the best french onion soup you will ever have, the sausage (your choice of cheese, cajun style, oktoberfest, etc...), and the chicken cordon bleu. All dishes can be served with Poutine fries (traditional Quebecois version of fries topped with cheese curds and gravy) and as I mentioned before, the Canadians take their french fries very seriously. Be prepared to be amazed. La Diable also offers many different pastas, ribs, and salads. You really can't go wrong, except...

Sadly, the La Diable burger is not what it used to be. Once Canada passed a law that said all burgers had to be cooked well done, you can count me out on that one. However, I still get the mushroom mayo sauce on the La Diable chicken burger from time to time. That's right, this food is so good, I eat something with mushrooms in it. Who would have guessed? As for other things to stay away from, let's just say that the new menu items added in late 2005 aren't really all that spectacular. The clam chowder, chili, and the french dip sandwich are all really missing something. In the case of the French Dip, it's a toasted roll (particularly a garlic one).

What to order (beer): Another category where you just can't go wrong. La Diable offers several different types of beer including a seasonal variety. On our last trip, that was a honey blonde. Probably one of the best I've ever had. However for every day drinking, nothing beats the trappist ale I previously mentioned called "Extreme Onction" (Latin for the Catholic Sacrament of Last Rites). This beer is very properly named. Originally a 12-13% alcohol beer, this brew has been slowly scaled back to not kill it's loyal fans and to limit the lawsuit liability on behalf of the restaurant. The alcohol percentage currently stands at around 8-8.5% (although Pete would swear it's lower than that) and that is still plenty to mess you up for the entire day. Two pitchers and you are G-O-N-E, gone.

Don't want to totally destroy yourself? Okay fine, ya lightweight. Try the Belgian wheat beer Le Blizzard. Like Guinness stout? They have a similar beer called Noir. And of course, there is always the red, La Diable itself. There are more choices, but I always tend to lose consciousness after a vigorous round of tasting, so you'll have to excuse me if I don't spend three paragraphs riffing on the virtues of the Septieme Ciel.

The bottom line: If you want a great lunch spot while you're skiing, you absolutely, positively can't do better than this. If they opened a La Diable in Norwalk, I would be there every day. I'd probably also get fired too for drinking on the job... (hmmm, maybe I'd go after work instead) Look, the point is, if I could franchise this place, I would. It's just too incredible. You know how I said Rattlesnake defines "middle of the road" for bar food/drink (you should, it was my very last post)? Well, La Diable redefines the top of this category. Combine this with wonderful service and that "at home" feeling you could only have if you were at Cheers, La Diable offers a little something for everyone within walking distance of the lifts. If you're ever in Mont Tremblant, you have to stop by. That's an order, mister.

Think of Rattlesnake as a decent place to have a Friday lunch away from work. Nothing spectacular or memorable, but nothing terrible either. Very non-descript. I first started going to Rattlesnake in college when they offered discounts during snow days. For every inch of snow on the ground, you got an extra percent off of your order. We used to show up in four wheel drive vehicles during blizzards. It was cheap as free.

What to order: That's a tough one. The fish tacos aren't bad nor is the shrimp enchilada. The burgers are average, they have decent nachos, wings, and chips and nothing is really spicy (unfortunately). I wouldn't go anywhere near the guacamole if I were you.

The bottom line: Offering a decent array of beers and enough TV's to keep the sports enthusiast occupied, Rattlesnake is the kind of place to go when you don't have any idea where you want to go. In fact, this restaurant defines a rating of "50" for me. After eating at Black Bear Saloon again, I have to bump their rating up to "54" in comparison. They were better than I originally thought (I only had beers and appetizers if you remember) and their menu was very deep. Worth even yet another try in my opinion. As for Rattlesnake (oh yeah, I'm doing a review about them... I forgot) You know what you are getting, so you can't possibly be disappointed. However, you always leave with a bit of an empty feeling, even if you are stuffed.

Ahh, Tim Burton. Where would the movies be these days without the inventor of black capes, pasty faced claymation, and codpieces? Taking a break from his Play-Doh, director Burton teams up with (guess who?!) Johnny Depp (Surprise! Bet you didn't see that one coming!) to perform some modern surgery on a classic. And you know what? He doesn't do half bad.

In fact, I was never a huge fan of the original. Was it good? Yes, but it wasn't one of my favorites. That's why I was surprised I liked the new version so much. It movie didn't drag on, the effects were awesome, and Johnny Depp throws in a great performance (yes, I like most Johnny Depp movies as well, so what?). About the only thing that didn't work for me were the Oompa Loompas and their songs. Kinda creepy. And who would know better than me, huh? 'Nuff said.

The bottom line: Good remake, good acting, great effects. Was it "darker" than the original? I don't think so. Probably about the same. Gene Wilder was pretty damn creepy in that movie if you remember. Was it more true to the book? No idea. Didn't read it. Worth a rent. Especially if you liked the original.