Le Shack 131
131 Prom. du Portage, 819-503-1310, leshack131.com
Open: daily from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m.
Prices: mains from $15 to $40
Fully accessible
Has any other address in the National Capital Region experienced as much restaurant churn as 131 Prom. du Portage, on the main drag of Gatineau’s Hull sector?
In the last decade, the premises has been Euro Bistro, Molto Bistro Café, Brut Cantina Sociale, Échec et Malt and, since early May, Le Shack 131. From my own experiences and what I dug up in the Citizen’s archives, there wasn’t that much seriously wrong with the previous tenants. But here we are, with the latest go-around.
Le Shack 131 is not quite as bare-bones as its name might suggest. Its interior is largely brick walls, now-standard Edison lights in large fixtures, cushy seats and — here are the most rustic parts — chunky wood tables to eat at and planks overhead. Service has been casual and genial, but at times lagging, and the music has been clubbish and groovy.
While its Facebook page’s reference to “haute gastronomie” exaggerates, Le Shack is a mix of a gastropub and a bistro, serving game-meat tartares, salads, flatbread-style pizzas, steaks and more, usually on slate plates. The chef is Andrew Valliere, who previously cooked at Sterling, the upscale Gatineau steakhouse, co-owner Claude Chapdelaine told me this week .
We’ve been twice for dinner this summer on the large, roadside patio, and thought well enough of the food. At lunch, the compact menu and food was more about getting burgers or pizza into public servants on their break. But the starters and mains at dinner were reasonably well made, signalling more care and pride in the kitchen than in some comparable places I’d recently tried. We did think the prices were on the steep side at our first visit, but when were returned, the priciest mains were more affordable.
Among the meatier starters, a block of yolk-topped wild boar tartare was enjoyable, coarsely chopped and not overly manipulated, with a smear of good, spicy mayo that added a sharp, slick accent. Bison carpaccio was simply but well seasoned and accessorized, but the slices tasted just a little watery. An early summer arugula salad with cheddar cheese, berries and apples seemed quite basic on paper but was fresh, balanced and perkily dressed.
Wild boar tartare at Le Shack 131
Bison carpaccio at Le Shack 131
Arugula salad at Le Shack 131
The best main was a rugged, hefty take on that bistro favourite, steak frites. The dish featuring a chunky bavette cut, taken from a cow’s flank, looked a bit thrown-together. But the seasoning, pronounced sear and texture of the meat were spot-on, and the overall plate was generous, with respectable fries that were better still moistened with meat drippings, plus a better-than-usual range of daily veg, including flavourful grilled romaine.
Bavette and fries at Le Shack 131
A more expensive striploin steak was good too, but its $40 price seemed steep, even if it was matched with an interesting corn-and-ham risotto that was crowd-pleasingly creamy.
New York striploin steak at Le Shack 131
By the way, the latter steaks and other meats were asterisked on the menu. What did the wee star designate? It meant that the proteins had been plastic-wrapped and slow-cooked using sous-vide gear (basically a precisely heated bath) so as to achieve perfect, pink, internal tenderness. So, when our server asked us what doneness we preferred for the steaks, we were a little confused, as asking for a well-done steak — the horror! — would be counter to the point of sous-viding.
A piece of rainbow trout had nice crisp skin and moist flesh going for it, but was under-seasoned. Indeed, many other items on the plate upstaged the fish, including more of that romaine, a lightly lemony gel, some butternut squash purée, morsels of lightly “cooked” scallop ceviche, and best of all, risotto that had eggplant “caviar” mixed in and therefore tasted rich and even decadent.
Trout with scallop ceviche, romaine and risotto at Le Shack 131
An oblong pizza made with chorizo and a mound of arugula was crisp-crusted and satisfying.
Chorizo pizza at Le Shack 131
Le Shack’s wine list is nicely curated and very informative, but it is a little limited with respect to wines by glass. At the bar, 10 beers are on tap. Chapdelaine told me that his goal is to feature made-in-Quebec craft beers this fall.
At both of our visits, we were told that the restaurant’s down-the-middle desserts — cheesecakes, crème brûlée among them — were not made in-house (although their accompanying coulis was). Chapdelaine said that a special in-house dessert is in the works.
