Tag Archives: brunch

Beacher Cafe, The

Posted on by

2162 Queen E
(416) 699-3874

A major disappointment! From what we thought it would be, we thought it was some deep jazz cafe with lots of cool, diverse dishes, with some funkiness. When we got inside we found spacious tables, a beautiful outdoor terrace, all resting on top of a hill in the eastern tip of the Beaches. The artwork is stunning and it resembles a gallery where customers can purchase the art if they so desire. The food is BLAH! Really nothing special, and there is nothing vegetarian at all. I had a pathetic vegetable and rice stiry fry that lacked flavour. The plates were nice but that’s it. The staff are friendly but nothing spectacular. The ambiance is nice, it had me wanting to come back. My food was warm and the stir fry sauce was plain soy sauce, how boring. I was hungry after that meal, so I was very disappointed. I really had high expectations for this place. It is a great neighbourhood place and they have lovely art on the walls (for sale too) but the food is BLAH.

Brownstone Bistro

Posted on by

603 Yonge
(416) 920-6288

How can I sum up this restaurant? Great food, trendy decor, friendly staff, but very slow service, but when I went last summer 2002 to Brownstone, the waiter failed to mention that all of the food we ordered was not available so they got creative and made up their own dishes. To our surprise, the food we ordered contained nothing that we expected. The food itself was fresh, tasty, and flavourful. The prices are high and the head waiter had major attitude. He argued with us that he ran out of the food we had ordered so he had his team of chefs make something completely different. He never notified us that the meals we ordered were not the meals we received. The service was very slow and the head waiter was very rude to us.

In sum, I would never go back to Brownstone ever again because they are disorganized and they do not listen to their customers. The head waiter kept on telling us how we did not understand that he ran out of the food needed to prepare our dishes so he made us alternate dishes. The problem was that none of the waiting staff informed us. Too stressful, too pricy, too long a wait, this place was a great disappointment.

Grapefruit Moon

Posted on by

968 Bathurst Street
(416) 534-9056

Grapefruit Moon is a neighbourhood spot north of the Annex, at Bathurst near Dupont, owned and operated by the Moon sisters. They have a liquor license. It?s friendly, relaxed and has a warm neighborhood feel. Music, food, service and prices are all affordable.

It has a limited menu with a few selections. Only contains between three to five tables and serves home cooked food. Serves mostly vegetarian selections and the menu is quite small but there is much diversity in the selections.

Some vegetarian options include carrot ginger soup, quesadillas with choice of fillings, organic salad, veggie burgers, TLT’s – tempeh, lettuce and tomato sandwiches.

Funky, artsy decor and nice outdoor terrace (summer). Special brunch available on weekends. Highly recommend for the couple seeking a quiet intimate setting.

Fairmount Bagels

Posted on by

 74 Fairmount Avenue West
Phone: (514) 272-0667

In my early twenties and late teens, I used to drive with my friends and compare the contrast the taste of a St. Viateur bagel versus a Fairmount Bagel. To this day, I still cannot tell the difference between the two delicious bagels unique to Montreal. It is said that both bagels are boiled in water then baked in a wood oven but one is boiled in honey water and the other sugar water.

Located on a sidestreet from the busy Ave du Parc in the heart of Mile End, a stone’s throw from the lovely city of Outremont, Fairmount Bagel has been in business for over 77 years. Founded by Isadore Shlafman using a secret recipe from his eastern European Jewish family. The same tradition prevails. Bagels are made in the same way they were close to 80 years ago. They are still kneaded by hand, leaven, and cooked in a wood stove.

Unlike St. Viateur who only offer bagels in the sesame seed variety, Fairmount offers bagels in the following varities. Some would argue that they lost their tradition, that these bagels became “Americanized” (like Lender’s bagels in the USA – which never came to Canada) . Some would argue that they lost the tradition of what a good bagel should be.

In any case, Fairmount does offer an assortment of bagel varieties to please your palette, whether you want sweet or savoury. They offer plain, sesame, poppy, cinnamon-raison, caraway, onion and garlic, mini-bagels, pesto and black olive. You can order them with cream cheese and smoked salmon, whitefish, or trout or plain. At the time of my visit, they only accept cash. Open 24 hours.

B&M

Posted on by

6200 Somerled Ave
514-488-1555

I’ve been going to B&M since I was a kid, when it was on the corner of Monkland near Draper in the charming heart of NDG. They have always been serving wonderful hearty Italian dishes at affordable prices. I always tried every pasta and pizza and I loved it. Portions are big and they also have a liquor license.

We still go, but it has recently moved to the corner of Somerled and Grand. There is also a small location at 5800 Sherbrooke near Melrose, where they do take-out and delivery. The telephone number for the take-out and delivery place on Sherbrooke is their old number: 514.484.3717

Prices are always affordable, menu is too large (10 pages of Greek and Italian dishes – steak, fish, chicken, pasta, and a HUGE pizza menu) with many vegetarian options. Decor is very cosy, homey, family owned, and a lot of the food is “comfort food”. Whenever my New York city family comes for a visit, we always go to B&M. The last time we went my mum and sister ordered the grilled chicken with a cream and wine sauce. My aunt and uncle ordered the grilled chicken breast with sauteed mushrooms and other veggies. I ordered the vegetarian parmiagianna (eggplant parmigianna without the tomato sauce)- what a disappointment. Daily table d’hote specials are between $12.95-$15.95 and includes coffee, soup, and dessert.

When I was growing up in Montreal, we went to B&M on a weekly basis. My sister and I used to call it Barf and Marmelade (as a joke) but it had no reflection whatsoever on the freshness, flavour, and service that this classic NDG restaurant offered. Accepts all cards.

Bagels Etc.

Posted on by

 4320 St-Laurent
(514) 845-9462

This renowned Montreal eatery has been serving its loyal customers some of the tastiest breakfasts on the Main for several years now and is easily recognized as one the best breakfast and brunch places in town.

Bagels Etc. is an old-fashioned style diner that is a feast for the eyes, as well as the taste buds. With its rustic decor and antique decorations, diners can hark back to the days of the roaring twenties when life was good and a big breakfast was just what the doctor ordered!

As visitors will soon realize, the huge golden egg supported by a Roman column that sits above the countertop is a symbol of Bagels Etc’s undisputed claim to frying up the most delicious egg dishes in Montreal. Choose anything from eggs Benedict to eggs Florentine and everything in between for a breakfast that will get your motor roaring and set your day off on the right foot. They accept American Express, MasterCard, and Visa.