One of Montreal’s acclaimed restaurants can once again be tasted in chip form, as Miss Vickie’s is re-releasing its Ristoranti Series. The limited-edition flavour has Miss Vickie’s signature crunch but tastes like a staple Nora Gray dish, something owner Ryan Gray says he never thought would be possible. “To do a Nora Gray flavour of Miss Vickie’s chips. I mean, we had to pinch ourselves,” he told CTV News. About a year ago, he says Miss Vickie’s approached the foodie destination to be part of its Ristoranti Series. The result: three new chip flavours by Italian restaurants across Canada; Nora Gray in Montreal, Pizzeria Badiali in Toronto and Ask for Luigi in Vancouver. “We really pride ourselves on doing all these amazing things locally, seasonally, you know, everything in house kind of thing,” said Gray, adding that the Miss Vickie’s brand respected that. Despite the national and international attention the 15-year-old restaurant has received, Gray says at the end of the day it still remains a humble 40-seat place with 15 employees. He adds that it was special to be approached by the well-known Canadian brand. Nora Gray’s menu changes with each season, so it decided to offer up a flavour it’s served since the start: homemade spicy pepperoncini with freshly baked focaccia. “You get that umami from the focaccia, you know, the little bit of tang from it as well,” Gray said. “Our focaccia that we do here is like a sour dough focaccia as well. So, there’s like a tanginess to it and then you get the heat from the peppers.” Recipe developers and tasters worked with the restaurant to recreate its iconic pepperoncini and focaccia in chip form. “It was an amazing process actually,” said Gray. “Way more in depth and scientific than you’d expect.” Gray, a salt-and-vinegar lover himself, says he had no idea what to expect but was blown away by the final product and the reaction from consumers. “There was just really and truly a tsunami of attention,” said Gray. “They were selling out all over town and all over in other cities also.” He says the restaurant even received messages from avid snackers wondering if they could buy the chips directly from it. Whether the widespread fanfare has translated into in-house customers remains unknown, says Gray, though it has added to the restaurant’s online following. “Online, the amount of people that discovered the restaurant because of the chip and because of this collaboration is seismic,” he said. The chips are back on shelves for a limited time. Anyone who wants the real deal can dine at Nora Gray from Tuesday to Saturday.
