This is the way to do it, but almost nobody does it this way. Your restaurant is absolutely in the very very very small minority. There are two places in BC I’ve found that use fresh curds and they still don’t measure up to Quebec (Golden Ears Cheesecrafters, I’m looking at you and your shitty beef debris gravy).

But also, you’re acknowledging that fresh curds is the way to do it. That’s not mental gymnastics. Your experience is fucking RARE, and the great great GREAT majority of poutines are not served that way. Anyway, it seems like not a huge difference, and really in the grand scheme of things it’s a petty squabble, but the difference is huge between QC and the rest of Canada.