Le MajesThé Bistro

A Look Inside MajesThé, Downtown’s Go-To Spot for Taiwanese | Eater Montreal

"I watched Vincent Ma's bubble-tea venture grow from a 2016 shop on Président‑Kennedy Avenue into a bright, photogenic two‑storey venue on Robert Bourassa Boulevard at Sherbrooke Street, which he reopened on May 20, 2019. The much larger space (the 66‑seat upper level was turned into an all‑day bistro while the roomy downstairs became a weekend‑only speakeasy) lets the under‑30 Taiwanese expat team—Ma, bar manager Jimmy Hsu, front‑of‑house manager Ryan Kam, and Chef Billy Su—push a from‑scratch Asian‑fusion menu rooted in Taiwanese flavors. Upstairs I found Asian‑leaning salads, bao filled with pork belly, karaage, or fried tofu, miso soup made with homemade fish stock, Japanese curry made fresh four times a day, kimchi noodles, popcorn chicken, and marinated salmon rice bowls, plus artisan bubble tea and desserts like brown sugar panna cotta with bubble tea pearls and matcha crème brûlée. Downstairs the weekend cocktail program riffs on bubble tea (Crown Jewel: whiskey, orange zest, bitters, and homemade winter melon syrup; Lavendary: a Pisco‑sour‑ish drink with house lavender syrup) and the menu includes three‑cup chicken (Chef Su’s mother’s recipe), traditional Taiwanese beef soup with chunks of melt‑in‑your‑mouth daikon radish, yuzu chicken sliders, and a range of skewers. I appreciated that everything is made in‑house—from bubble tea syrup to miso stock, marinades, and curry sauce—and that operational lessons (a dedicated milk frother for matcha lattes, three fryers to keep up with the wildly popular fried chicken) have shaped a balance between true from‑scratch cooking and quick, welcoming service; Ma is even contemplating a dedicated Taiwanese fried‑chicken counter next." - Ivy Lerner-Frank