Restaurant: Patisserie Alati-Caserta
Location: 277 Rue Dante, Montreal, QC H2S 1K3
Price Range: $$
[wp-review]
Prior to my last meal in Montreal at Schwartz’s, Eva (EatwithEva) recommended us to Patisserie Alati-Caserta as this place has became a Montreal landmark for Italian pastries! The bakery is located in Little Italy of Montreal, right in front of Dante Church and I highly recommend taking a stroll in this area as it is filled with Italian coffee shops!
There aren’t much seatings in the bakery, I recall seeing 2-3 tables max so this is more of a grab and go place. Since I came near closing time, the shop itself was quiet but I have heard it can get really busy on the weekends!
I became a fan of cannoli after having one at Bar Buca and the purpose of this trip was really to get the cannoli from Patisserie Alati-Caserta! Unfortunately I don’t remember the actual price anymore as it was the anniversary of the bakery (November every year) and all the cannoli was half price off. With that said, I can assure you that the original price was definitely affordable considering the size of the pastry!
The cannoli was super fresh and perfectly crunchy on the outside, not soggy at all. The filling was also nice and creamy – not too sweet. This is the true definition of a cannoli, not those flavored cream cannoli that you would find at grocery stores or food court.
The lobster tail is the American version of the sfogliatelle ricci (there are two types: sfogliatelle ricci and sfogliatelle frolle), made slightly larger and filled with choux paste before baking, which causes the pastry to puff up in the oven and provides a space to fill with diplomat cream, a mixture of pastry cream and whipped cream.
That lobster tail at Patisserie Alati-Caserta was humongous – bigger than my hand and they also offered two different types of filling: ricotta and chantilly. Though the pastry looks hard and crunchy on the picture, it was actually because I left it in the fridge after I got back to Toronto. When it’s fresh, the pastry is supposed to be flaky, crispy and have definite distinct layers which a lobster tail should have. The inside also had a great distinct ricotta flavor, not just an ambiguous filling to complement the shell. I’ve yet to find a place in Toronto that offers lobster tails like this. Simply the best!