This was my "nice" meal during my very short trip to Montreal last weekend, and it turned out to be…read morea great choice. There are 2 sides of the restaurant: the more casual order what you want brasserie side and then the fancier multi-course chef menu side. I chose the brasserie side, where I had a reservation for a bar seat - turns out that wasn't really that necessary as there were several individual bar seats open; A group would probably have a difficult time getting a seat on a Friday evening though. For drinks, I had a paper plane and a last word. Those are my two go to cocktails for nicer bars, and they pulled them off fantastically (they also knew what I was talking about which is kind of rare for the last word). For an extra nice touch, they clipped an actual paper plane to the paper plane drink. Fun! For food, I ordered the Duck Confit. It was super crispy on the outside, but the meat was super tender and juicy and melted off of the bone. My mouth is watering while thinking about it. It also came with bread service. For dessert I had the tiramisu. I would give it a 4/5 - it was a little more bland than others I've had - not bad at all, but not my favorite one of all time. They seem to be serious about their coffee (see pictures). Since I was sitting right in front of it I had to order one to go with the tiramisu. I had a basic americano, and it was a great addition. My only real complaint is the bar seating felt a little bit exposed as the main walkway through the restaurant goes along the bar seating. Drinks 5/5, Service 5/5, Food 5/5, Ambience 4/5

First meal in Montreal and what an experience! We dined in the brasserie side of the restaurant…read more Even though more casual dining, still experienced elevated food and service. We started with oysters from PEI and New Brunswick. Loved that they let you choose the units so we only ordered 4 (2 each). We also had as appetizer their foie gras parfait and tomatoes from our garden. Both we wonderful choices. The tomatoes were perfect for the season with a beautiful balance of tomatoes, stracciatella and focaccia. Foie is a classic and loved the grilled bread and pickled vegetables to accompany it. Our entrees were the lamb rump, braised shoulder and butcher cut steak and frites which was the hangar steak. The lamb was delicious and very hearty in a good way. The steak was perfectly prepared and the frites stayed warm the entire meal with their presentation. We ended with their house fav passion fruit pavlova. Light and airy texture with lovely flavor. Nice way to compete the meal!

This is the kind of neighborhood bistro you'd expect to find in Paris--only cleaner and friendlier…read more The service was exceptional: attentive, welcoming, and perfectly paced without being overbearing. The food was excellent. We enjoyed the steak frites, duck confit, fish soup, and the complimentary cornichons, which were a lovely touch. By the time we were ready for dessert, they had sold out of the île flottante, which was disappointing, but the crème brûlée and tarte au citron more than made up for it. Both were outstanding. A wonderful meal from start to finish, and a place we'd happily return to.

L'Express is my go-to foolproof French restaurant perfect for dining with friends who came to…read morevisit me in Montreal . You get a casual yet elegant fine French dining vibe effortlessly. No reservation needed for parties under two, plus it stays open till 1 AM, super convenient for flexible travelers. A local staple with countless loyal regulars, famous for its signature bone marrow and homemade pickles. Warm welcoming atmosphere, friendly seasoned staff, free bread and pickles right after seating. Must-try picks: rich bone marrow, smooth chicken liver mousse, tender duck confit and fresh beef tartare. Classic authentic French classics served in genuine local style. They have an amazing affordable wine list with massive collections.

Came here for a wedding dinner and really enjoyed the ambiance. The venue was beautiful, the…read moreatmosphere was great. Unfortunately, the food did not live up to the same standard. I chose the seafood entrée, which turned out to be a mistake. After speaking with several others who ordered the same dish, it seemed that we all had a similar experience. The clams and mussels did not taste particularly fresh, and some even contained sand. I wish I had ordered the duck instead, as it appeared to be a much better choice. I ended up eating not much of my main course because of the seafood quality.

This place was so good! It wasn't too busy on a Saturday night on race week. Atmosphere was high…read moreend but not in a stuffy way. Service was prompt and attentive. Our waitresses recommendations were fire. We enjoyed: Complementary bread: it was soft on inside and appropriately crunchy but not overly so on the outside. Plus two huge pieces cut into 4 pieces individually. Beef tartare: at 20 cad it was a little pricy for how much you got but the taste was great and I'm a fan of comte cheese. Plus it didn't have capers which imo overwhelms tartares. Duck with carrot: as a Chinese person I've had my share of duck but this might be the best duck I've ever had in my life. The texture and cook on it was awesome! First it came with three pieces of breast. It was the perfect cook, not over like most of the places I've had duck. Then the leg had the perfect crispy fatty skin to meat ratio. Yum yum this is a can't miss dish here Burger: husband got this. I took a bite. It had a nice smoke to it and was perfectly medium rare. I was too distracted by my duck to analyze it further. Raspberry jelly for dessert: as the waitress had mentioned, it was light and a perfect sweet but tart bite. Was great! Would come here again, we had l'express earlier in this trip and place carmin blows that place out of the water.

Pooh and I have been wanting to experience this restaurant for a while now. The atmosphere was…read moreupscale without being pretentious. We wanted to try the Tomahawk but it wasn't on the menu so we decided to do steak on another day. To drink we ordered the apple cider. The cider was delicious and very crispy like I was eating a Cortland apple. We were served crispy bread with herb butter. The bread was crispy like toast and the butter was soft. It came with a small jar of baby dill pickles. They had a good crunch! We started with the lobster bisque. This bisque was very tasty. We could taste the lobster and it was very light; not a heavy or overly creamy soup. Pooh ordered the seafood risotto and I took the Dijon chicken. Both dishes were amazing. Pooh really enjoyed his risotto. He likes the addition of zucchini to give it a little crunch . The seafood was cooked to perfection. My chicken was super tender. I could taste the Dijon mustard. The mashed potatoes were smooth and the green beans were crispy and cooked perfectly. Our server was very polite and checked on us regularly. He apologized for not getting the wine when our meal arrived. Our only complaint was the wine. Usually the wine arrives right before the meal but our meal arrived first and we ate slowly as we waited for the wine to come. The wine arrived five minutes later and the server explained that it wasn't cold enough to give us. By the time I finished eating (because we had to wait for the wine) my potatoes were cold. We finished our evening with dessert. I had the lemon-in-a-jar and Pooh had the Crème brûlée. Pooh's crème brûlée was perfect. My lemon dessert was too sweet. The tartness of the lemon was overpowered by the sweetness of the almond crumble We enjoyed our meal and the service was excellent but they need to put the white wine in a cooler sooner.

So I stopped into this spot since it had good reviews before I head out on the road. In a decent…read morearea and I didn't have to pay for parking since I wasn't there long so that's good. I order a salmon meal. The salmon was tasteless but thankfully the sauce helped it. The mocktail was good. They had quite good amount of people there on a Sunday but definitely had open tables if I wanted to sit at a two seater but they suggested I go to the bar which is huge, but no one else was sitting there. Overall an okay spot, nice inside, my one dish was mediocre but not sure what the other dishes taste like.

My husband and I had a very lovely date night at Modavie. We are glad we had a reservation because…read moreit was packed on a Sunday evening! We were seated at a lovely table for two by a window. The service at first was a bit slow, but that was understandable given how busy the restaurant was. Our server, Yan, was incredibly personable. He had excellent suggestions for dinner. We each started with cocktails, and enjoyed the ambiance. There was a live band, but we were in a different room. It wasn't loud like you would expect. 5/5 service. Beef Tartare: 5/5. This was an excellent start. The appetizer sizing was a little small for two people. If you want a little more, I'd recommend the entree size. It comes with fries. But it was delicious. The crostini's that came with it were a little overpowering, but the tartare itself was delicious. Duck Confit: 5/5. This duck was INCREDIBLE. Perfectly cooked, crispy skin, tender and juicy flavor. An incredible sauce. Delicious veggies and potatoes. The only thing I did not like about this dish was how quickly we ate it! Dessert (not pictured): 5/5. We had a chocolate pyramid with hazelnuts and chocolate mousse. Delicious. Be sure to put Modavie on your Montreal dining list!

It's a pretty good restaurant in the middle of Old Montreal. Decor is nice and services is…read moreattentive. I can't speak French so I appreciate the Englishmen menu. I do recommend making a reservation on open table prior to coming. Here is what I think of the food: Seasoning is generally saltier but not too overly. Escargot or the snails is yummy. It comes with the option of cheese on top. Dressed heavy with olive oil and garlic. They remove the shell so it makes it approachable if you were nervous about trying. Cheese & Charcuterie board is as what you imagined. It can't go wrong. Rack of Lamb was good. I do recommend highly. It comes with our 4-5 bones worth of protein with potatoes & veggies. Lost track of how many bones because it was eaten so fast. Duck confit was average. Let me explain, duck was average but the amount of spinach I gotten and how potatoes on the plate was good. Sides out shine the protein here. Side of Foie Gras was perfect because I was worried about having too much food. It did come on a small plate because it's a side dish and it was fatty and salty. Intermission was the best cocktail of the night. Fruity with a star anise on top so you smell it while drinking it because it was so close to your nose. Jazz District was okay. Overall, I do think this restaurant site fairly between 4&5 stars. Do try it. I would come back for special occasions and it's not an every night meal.

Incredible. A reminder to myself to go back every time I'm in Montreal, if only for that decadent…read moreperfection of a burger. A wonderful warm, inviting date spot with top notch service. Kudos to this team.

Came here yesterday for brunch and almost regretted it. You…read moreknow when the food is a little too rich that it makes you feel slightly ill? Well that happened to me. Absolutely nothing wrong with the food. I had the smoked salmon eggs Benedict and a side of the fries with Beschemel sauce and truffles and they were great, it's just it was a little too rich for me, that's all. I came in with a group of 6 and other members of our group had the ricotta pancakes, the Ratatouille Eggs Benedict and everyone enjoyed their brunch. It's a pretty small space almost like a cross between a diner and a bistro, elevated casual I guess. Service is brisk and the servers are friendly. I saw that they have a late night menu so maybe at some point, I'll come back to try it out.

Frankly one of the best meals I've had ever…read more The mussels and fries were top notch; tender yet not smushy, not too salty a flavor, a quality white wine seafood broth. The little gnocchi were appropriately textured, with a nice pesto sauce to go along. It was filling without being overbearing. The lemon flavor in the gnocchi was a brilliant addition. The salad mentonnaise used really fresh radicchio and pine nuts. The orange vinaigrette gave the salad a really nice touch. The Dijon leek emulsion for the leeks vinaigrette was really neat, and helped give the braised leeks a lot of charcacter. The environs were pleasant, with windows open to air out a hot and humid day. The server was efficient, pleasant to speak with, extremely knowledgeable about the menu.

I would say the best thing about this place is the cheese which is indeed excellent. Rest of food…read moreis just OK. - French onion soup - the cheese is really on point. Thick, wonderful consistency, chewy, great onion flavour although there was like one onion piece that was really hard and weird. - escargot: again the cheese is AMAZINg. Can't really taste the escargot itself. Bread is decent. - grilled octopus: it's OK. The waiter said it would be very tender but it was not. Nothing special. - duck. It was... not bad, good consistency and flavour, but nothing really amazing. - cheesecake : the cheese is really smooth and enjoyable. The crust is too hard. Not a bad concept. Would I go back? Eh. Dunno.

We are tourists and got this place recommended by the staff at the restaurant where we had dinner…read morethe night before. All I can say is WOW! The front area is a bakery with beautiful dessert displays. I wish I had a room for dessert. We came for the Quiche Lorraine, and the portion was huge -- probably enough for 3 people, I would say. It had a lot of meat, with some kind of special ham/bacon, and the flavor was delicious. If you like meat, this is the dish for you. I definitely recommend it! Personally, I would have liked a little more egg custard in the quiche. The Eggs Benedict was delicious as well. The drinks were great and the service was top-notch. Highly recommend!.

I absolutely loved their desserts. I will say though, they are pretty expensive. the pear dessert…read morealone was $15 before tax. We got the pear dessert, lemon meringue, and Ferrero chocolate cake, and together the three desserts came to around $45. Honestly, I didn't want to like them as much as I did because of the price, but they were all so good that we immediately wanted more. The pear dessert was light and delicate, while the outer white chocolate layer added a really nice crunch. I was super happy to see them because they were viral on TikTok lol. The Ferrero chocolate cake was super creamy and rich, and even the base had that delicious Ferrero flavor throughout. The lemon meringue was also light and refreshing, while the bottom crust still had a nice firmness to it in a good way. Every dessert was super flavorful and tasted amazing. The staff greeted us right away when we came in for takeout, and everyone was very friendly. They also helped pack our desserts, although I personally would have preferred if each dessert was packaged separately. The shop itself is really cute too. They have an adorable heart and rose sign outside, and all the desserts are displayed at the front. They also sell croissants and other little pastries/snacks as well.

From the start to the finish, we felt like we were honored guests. A beautiful restaurant in the…read moreold section of the city near the Notre Dame cathedral. We were greeted by a friendly maître d' and seated in a spacious dining room where several other tables were already full of diners. Our server was excellent and made recommendations when we asked. Each dish was timed perfectly, and we never felt rushed. Each was prepared perfectly and we would easily order them again. We ordered the Rabbit Confit in a Phyllo Dough in Red Wine Sauce; Mixed Green Salad with Balsamic Dressing, Pine Nuts and Shaved Parmesan; Bœuf à la bourguignonne; and a fruit tarte with ice cream. We would easily return the next time we are in the city.

Excellent dinner location in Old Montreal. A quality culinary experience with impeccable service…read moreand a beautiful, ambient setting in an old building full of character. We started with the duck confit, green salad, and mushroom ravioli--all excellent choices. The halibut was the fish of the day, while the lobster pasta with a hint of vanilla in the sauce was another standout. Everything was beautifully prepared, and the extensive wine list makes it easy to find the perfect pairing for the meal. Highly recommended if you're visiting Montreal. Prices are above average, but they strike a very fitting balance with the overall experience.

The most perfect brunch spot to visit whenever you're in Montreal. This is by far one of my…read morefavourite spots for brunch. I went a long time ago, back in 2021, and I was so happy to have gone again since they relocated to Old Montreal. The exterior is this new building, but inside, it feels like you're in an old building with rustic textures and colours. The ambiance is so lovely and it truly is the best place for delicious brunch items and taking cute pictures too! My friends and I visited on a Saturday morning without reservations, but we went relatively earlier. We were seated right away for a table of 4 and were served teas and coffee. I ordered the Bone Marrow & Duck Confit which consisted of a country-style bread, duck poached egg, bone marrow, confict duck leg, manchego shavings, herb salted crumble and green peas. It's a massive dish and honestly everything tasted amazing all together. The bone marrow was perfectly cooked and the duck poached egg meld everything together. They also give you another bowl so you can put the marrow once you're done eating it. The bread was needed to soak up every part of this delicious dish. Other items ordered was the Foie Gras (Chef's specialty) which had brioche bread, duck poached egg, caramelized onion compote and crispy proscuitto chips. The chips were a wonderful item to pair with the seared foie gras. The foie gras was perfectly cooked. The Rustic is another fan favourite which had brioche bread, duck poached egg, sautéed mushrooms. pulled pork, potatoes and argula sprouts. it is such a beautiful dish - nice colours, many ingredients and placed well on the plate; not to mention it was so good too! The last item was the Croque Monsieur which has country-style bread, maple-glaed Gaspor acon, confit tomatoes, cheddar, duck sunny side-up egg on an endive salad. You can't pick it up and munch on it, so you know how big this must have been! Even cut into pieces, it requires some maneuvering to munch on it. Great place for brunch. Awesome service too. I would highly recommend this spot if you're looking for a brunch spot!

Drove 4.5 hours for their French brunch--very disappointing experience. Despite arriving early with…read moreavailable seating, we were told to sit at the bar. Food was just okay; foie gras was overly sauced. Service was the main issue. My cappuccino was mostly foam, and the replacement was still charged on the bill. Had to wait for a manager who never showed up until much later, and even then, nothing was resolved--just called it a "miscommunication." Overall, poor service and not worth the trip. Would not recommend.