saloon in Montreal? What a strange concept. Approaching La Porte Rouge, I hoped to throw open swinging doors as the smell of bourbon burned my nose and John Wayne drank his little liver out at the bar. Hmmmph. Assuming I was in the old west may have been delusional. Alas, my nostalgic, cinematic dream evaporated as I was introduced to a modern version of a Duke-free saloon.

Located in the Plateau, on Mont-Royal East, La Porte Rouge retained the name of the address's predecessor, Bar Salon La Porte Rouge. That old tavern couldn't survive, even with the wistful crowd of regulars that played pool while knocking back $1.75 bock beers; damn inflation.

Gone are the neighbourhood trappings, replaced by a chic, male-driven bar with a casual and warm feeling that drips hot-interior-design sweat. This deep space, wrapped by wood and cement and punctuated by a giant mirror behind the bar, has red accents aplenty, including a wall banquette. The apropos rouge gives the space a crisp finish, while glass tables and a cathedral-high ceiling provide a cool-air respite from the crowded spot's heat. For that needed shot of nostalgia, old black and white pictures stare from the back wall, where a lounge-y area awaits.

Opening night packed in a Plateau crowd and gave us a chance to enjoy drinks priced on par with the bock-beer era (i.e. cheap). Mixes with old-school, bygone-day-evoking names, like the "Scarlet O'Hara," the "Side-Car," and, of course, "Tom Collins," found their way down my nostalgia-happy throat as the DJ remixed classics from the fifties and sixties. A shot of Montreal artist Adèle Blais’s latest work resides within. Known for painting bathroom doors with renderings of real-size colourful men and women, her work adds an artsy, modern touch.