Leche Montreal

Posted By Jennifer Ho Jun 04 2013 · 0 comments · Snacks & Street Food, St Henri

People are going apeshit for donuts. You know what I’m talking about, Montrealers. The wave of trendy donut shops has not yet tided over – you’ve got Chez Boris, Leche and Saint Donut leading the charge in bringing gourmet donuts back to reality. Forget about Tim Hortons, Dunkin Donuts and what you thought you knew about how donuts taste. These guys are reintroducing the dessert in a way that will turn donut eating into your new bad, albeit delicious habit.

Leche Montreal feeds the donut craze by baking up a storm of different pastries. There are slight variations each time we go, but there are some mainstays that remain available almost all the time, unless they sell out before you get there. The space is comfortable and roomy, located inside a red brick building that may be hard to miss unless you’re keeping an eye out for the surprisingly fit Leche baker. I mean, damn girl. For the amount of donuts you bake? You look good.

Leche Montreal serves both breakfast and lunch items but I think for the most part, the donuts are the main attraction. Stepping into the fragrant boutique bakery, you are able to observe the young team of bakers hustling in the back, mixing, sprinkling, rolling, decorating and baking all at the same time. The open kitchen keeps things interesting, allowing customers to see the hard work and the quality ingredients that go into each product.

Pistachio Donut

Introducing… the ever elusive (sold out two out of the three times I went), super alluring (just look at the rich green color), mysterious pistachio donut. The pistachios liberally blanket the top of the golden head of the donut and as soon as you take your first bite, almond/pistachio cream oozes out into your mouth, and overwhelms your taste buds in the most enjoyable way you can think of. It’s rich, buttery, a little nutty and completely freaking amazing. You have to try this one. Just look at it. If the pictures alone aren’t enough to convince you to want to eat the screen, I don’t know what will.

Coconut-Lime Donut

This guy is more of a straight shooter – there’s no filling hidden inside the coconut lime donut. Instead, it’s a simple dusting of sugar, lime zest and bits of coconut on top of a plain donut, the base of all donuts served at Leche. The dough is soft and supple, and with each bite, whatever is left of it springs back and retakes its original shape. Simple but equally delicious. Maybe one for those looking for something a little less carb heavy? Bah, who am I kidding. If you’re counting, this isn’t the place for you. This blog probably isn’t either.

Orange Blueberry Yogurt Donut

Ooooh, here’s the orange blueberry yogurt donut. This one has a generous coating of yogurt based frosting all over the top and sides – you can tell as the frosting solidified, the hardened result acted as a shell protecting the top, giving shape and a nice canvas to work with. The donut is very sweet with high notes of orange that pierce through the milky yogurt flavour – I like how the combination of fresh slices of oranges and blueberries give a pop of freshness to each bite.

Double Chocolate Brownie Donut

For me, the double chocolate brownie donut was a little disappointing. For a double chocolate donut, I expected “double” chocolate. Mine was more of a standard chocolate layer of icing on the top plus a bite sized piece of brownie. The brownie was good but once it was gone, the chocolate donut on its own wasn’t very memorable.

Upside Down Pineapple Donut

The upside down pineapple donut is sticky, sweet and definitely messy. It’s basically a slice of candied pineapple carefully laid down on top of the donut with cream pushed into the center. If you like that kind of stuff, this is the donut for you.

Cheesecake Donut

The cheesecake donut had a lovely jam garnish on top. Thick and fluffy, the donut was relative tall in height and packed a thick, creamy layer on the inside. Would order again.

Bailey’s Cream Donut

The Bailey’s Cream donut has cream piped into the center – it’s surprisingly light, just a whisper of flavour that you taste twice to make sure you’re not missing anything.

420 Mint and White Chocolate Donut

Check this out: on April 20th this year, we headed to Leche for a treat. Funny enough, they had a 420 donut, which we obviously had to get. Made with sprigs of mint leaves and white chocolate to mimic… well, I don’t need to tell you. The donut itself was a cute nod of recognition to the unofficial holiday. That’s how we celebrate 420… you?

Peanut Butter & Jelly Donut

And finally, the much hyped PB&J donut. The classic combination traditionally found on slices of white bread has migrated into the donut – maybe even the first of its kind Montreal has ever seen. Thick, rich peanut butter surrounded by sweet jam inside a puffed up piece of dough never tasted so good.

Big News: It looks like Leche has opened up a second shop in the Old Port, on de la Commune. They’ve also changed their opening hours: due to popular demand Leche is now open on Sundays. This means easier access and more donuts to go around. Hell yes.