Griffintown Café

As I read previous reviews for this place, it’s pretty clear that some people love this place and others hate it. Now I can’t speak for them but having gone there for the first time this past Saturday for brunch with the family, we had a warm and welcoming experience!
It’s worth noting that the menu isn’t very extensive, boasting at most 8 – 10 options. Being 8 people we tried the crab cake, morning burger, and eggs Benedict with pulled pork among other things. The food here and especially the coffee is extremely good, and rightly so considering you’re paying well over average prices. The service was pretty good too but then again it wasn’t too busy when we went so that was expected
The place itself is nice inside and comfortable, I do however have to criticize the prices as being simply too high considering other brunch restaurants with superior food and a better reputation charge less
Giving it 3.5 stars on 5, worth trying for its simple yet tasty menu.

It’s my 4^th time having brunch here and I remember the breakfast burger used to be the bomb. So this time me and my buddy both ordered the breakfast burger. Midway through, my buddy noticed his patty is not completely cooked. Took us a while to actually get the waitress’s attention and we were just wondering if its normal for a burger’s patty here half cooked. She replied like ohh its fine and if you want, I can bring your dish back and heat it for you. Hmmm we weren’t sure how to decipher statement as she’s gonna microwave that half-​eaten burger or what. Anyway we didn’t ask to bring the dish back because the burger wasn’t that great anymore :((((

This place just doesn’t quite deliver. Although the set up is cute, the food is just ok — I can think of more than 10 better brunches for the same price or cheaper. The biggest problem, however, is very poor service. The waitress took our order with other clients’ empty plates in our hands. Coffee and juice took too long to arrive.
Sadly, not worth waiting 20 min for.

The food was sub par. The potatoes that come with the brunch dishes leave much to be desired although the potatoes as a arose dish were obviously prepared separately and much better. The hollandaise sauce was tasteless and frothy and my friend agreed that the quality of the dishes has deteriorated. That said I liked their homemade biscuits and their frittata looked appetising.

Brunch menu is absolutely fantastic. I ordered the Eggs Benedict with mushrooms and cheddar. The eggs were perfect and re sauce was not drowning the eggs like most places. What I found different was the bun. Amazing flavour almost felt like corn bread. I will ask next time I go back, and I will.
My friend had the french toast and found it amazing so that’s my next choice. The texture was crispy and moist.
The location is right in heart of Griffintown and had no trouble finding parking.
I recommend making a reservation before.
Service was a little slow but once you start eating all is forgotten!

I went with a friend for dessert. It took 15 minutes for someone to come and take our order. We end up ordering coffees and the brownie (since they only had that and a fruit crumble left). Brownie was all burnt and bitter. Not much to choose from for the dinner menu as well. Don’t think I will be coming back.

Eat elsewhere. The service is horrible and the food just meh. I wish I could give it a half star.

Two main things brought this review down:
1. Service: Waited over an hour for food. Waitress completely inattentive and did not offer any explanation as to why we hadn’t received our food when tables around us had gotten theirs even though they arrived after our table.
2. Very moldy fruit on all four of our plates. No attempt made by service to correct this or offer compensation once they were notified.
It’s too bad because the rest of the food and ambiance was nice and I want to like this place but it just let’s me down every time.

Also taking two stars because of the service. The food is good and the place is cozy and nice during winter or summer. But the service is always incredible slow! It takes a lot of time to get simple refular coffee after you order it. It doesn’t matter if it’s busy or not. Even beer takes too long to arrive. Same goes for the check. I like it here, but the slow service always makes m rethink the idea of coming.

Love this place for lunch. They have a great menu, great service and a nice relaxing atmosphere. I usually get the omelette which is delicious. I stop here when I have time to kill; great chats with the staff and free wifi so I can work. Parking outside is free for an hour too.

Ambiance décontracté de jazz et nourriture excellente surtout pour le prix. Le service est ordinaire surtout considérant que jetais le seul client au moment de ma visite. De plus, j’ai trouve les chaises très inconfortables…
Tout de même, une bonne place a visiter… Je reviendrai probablement.

Brunch review: Great food, no one on the table had any complaints. Portions aren’t big enough to satisfy those with a ravenous, post-​night-​out hunger, but other quite generous.
The only notable downside is the very slow service, they seem to be quite understaffed. Despite the stress, the waitstaff is very friendly. Don’t go there if you’re in a hurry.

Taking a star away for the service. The girl at the door didnt really believe that i am joining existing party (my friends were already at the table), it takes ages to get waiting staff attention and when we were paying the waitress was taking payment on the credit card machine while … kneeling next the table O_​o
Also — only one barista? Espresso taking 15 minutes to make? Dear owners, during brunch people will ask for all those great coffees you have!
The interior design is great (apart from strange choice of radio (?) station), both food itself and presentation are good, well deserved «well done» to kitchen staff.
I will probably come back to try more things on the menu :)

Was there for brunch. Really disappointed by the service which obviously doesn’t care about their own business and about you… which is kind of the basis.
Food was good, a ⁵⁄₁₀.

Never again. Straight up, you can cook better food at home I promise. Even if that means making a cup of ramen. Yes. Unfortunate. The food is bland, lackluster and there’s just no love. They don’t seem to care about what’s on the plate. I’m pretty sure my salad was one of those premixed deals from a plastic bag. The homemade lox was okay. Honestly, it was pretty tasteless and forgettable. Ah, this is so harsh! The place was busy so it was likely an area favourite but this could also be because there’s not much choice around. Otherwise, the interior is cute and quaint. There’s a TV on the wall playing local television. Dear management, get rid of that.

Where should i begin, hard to say.
I think i should begin by the good. Quite obviously the neighbourhood is looking for a place like this. Serving non pretentious food, with a relaxed home-​y atmosphere, and friendly staff. We came to eat brunch today, and the first thing i noticed was the line up at the door, a tell tale sign of something there a need for.
Though having a line up, a relaxed atmosphere and a nice setting gets you a line up, it doesn’t guarantee you repeat and loyal customers.
At this point of my review if you are the owner/​operator, or employee, you might be saying to yourself «What basis does this customer have to offer any criticism towards my restaurant». Let me answer that by saying i have been working in the restaurant/​hotel industry for the last 15yrs, and i have seen the good, and the bad. your establishment falls somewhere in-​between.
Now on with the not so good.
Please take this as constructive, and nothing else. I am not here to bash. i am writing this in the hopes that this might help your restaurant/​café have a long fruitful life.
The seating process was dealt with nicely, we were promptly seated, with a sense of urgency. The table layout was a bit confusing, it didn’t look well organized. I understand wanting the maximum of seated clients at one time, but if the staff could not handle that many seated, you should remove a few tables, and encourage more tales being turned over.
Our waitress took our coffee order after 10mins of being seated, this should be something that’s delay with as soon as the client is seated, thus minimizing the perception of waiting times. Also let me say that a table just wanting a simple filter coffee doesn’t want to wait 10 mins to get an alongee. With a minimum investment for a drip coffee machine you could satisfy these clients.
After our order was taken, i noticed the dishwasher with a cigarette (non lit) in his mouth in the kitchen area. This should not be permitted near or around the food. Lit or Not!
During the wait time for our food (approx. 30mins) i noticed our waitress chatting with a friend at the bar, and walking around aimlessly with no sense of urgency. i saw some of her tables have to get up walk to the back and pay at the cash, instead of at the table because of this. Though the other waitresses looked like they were bustling, maybe we just got unlucky with our pick.
When the food arrived it was good, the only thing not excusable was the burnt potatoes on the Fritata dish, not slightly burnt they were petrified, and non edible.
The advice i could offer to shorten wait times for the food would be. Either invest some money into more updated kitchen equipment, or construct a new condensed menu to handle the kitchens abilities. I noticed the staff is working off an old 6 burner stove, with 3 of these burner being taken up by a make shift steam table, this leaves 3 burners for everything else. This cannot suffice to feed a full restaurant in a reasonable amount of delay.
Now let me finish by saying congratulations! To own a business where there is a line up out the door for there offering is «the dream» for any owner/​operator. I hate to say it though if some things are not adjusted and or invested. That line up could dwindle away quickly.
We will be back to eat eventually, and i hope to see the line up twice as long and i hope to be waiting in it to be seated again.
Regards

Ok, I only had a dessert and a cup of coffee, so I can’t say anything about the food.
First off, the place has a great decoration. (But seriously, you hung a TV into this rustic/​industrial place)
The coffee: I understand that people come here for food not for coffee, but why don’t places invest in some good beans and make the experience complete. Nobody wants to drink burnt coffee after a tasty brunch, do they?
The dessert was pretty good, but the sliced apples had onion taste in them. I mean even I clean/​change my knife at home switching between those things. C’mon.
Overall, good service, nice interior.

Stopped in near the end of lunch. Ordered the sandwich of the day which was a salmon gravlax. Absolutely delicious. The sandwich was available with a salad for $ 8 or with the soup of the day and coffee for $ 14. When the waitress asked if I would like it with the soup, I declined. When I went to pay, I was charged for the lunch special (with the soup). There was no miscommunication as my server was the only staff that day, and I began to explain that I had only asked for the sandwich and had specifically declined the soup. She responded that the soup was swapped for a salad as if I hadn’t been able to read on the menu that the salad was included in the $ 8 price. I didn’t bother arguing with her as it obviously wouldn’t have been to any avail. Delicious food and great atmosphere, but overcharging me, not knowing your menu, and not offering me even the coffee that you’re forcefully charging me as I enjoy my meal, not acceptable. I will certainly go back to enjoy the delicious food and hope to be able to update my review with improved service.

Came here on Sunday at 2pm for brunch. We had reserved but because of the weather it was still empyish.
Great little place, nice rustic décor, friendly staff, really great eggs benedict and mimosas. We had a really nice couple of hours. It was a tad on the pricey side, but overall it could be argued that it’s worth it.
It also seemed like it was a good spot to come in the evenings. Jazz music was listed for the weekends. Might go back to check that out.
Only downside with this place is that it’s a little awkward to get to if you don’t have a car. But I would argue that it’s worth it. I live in NDG, and there are half a dozen other brunch places around here on Monkland etc. I would make this trek rather than go to any of those places anytime. If you wanna «do brunch» and don’t mind spending a little, definitely go here.

For the first time in a long while, I went to brunch where the choice of location wasn’t made by me. As one starts to become known within his friend circle as the «restaurant guy», usually I am the one tasked with the selection. Not this time around as a couple of friends decided it was time that I tried a favourite of theirs closed to their neighbourhood (and one I actually have had on my list for some time), Café Griffintown.
Located on Notre-​Dame street just off de la Montagne, this café has just a beautiful space to work with. High ceilings, exposed brick walls, beautiful aged wood floors, metallic accents with an open kitchen and a terrasse to boot, I love pretty much everything about this space. Add some great jazz and big band music in the background and you have a café that I could spend hours at.
But enough about the interior design, you want to hear about the food because frankly this is a food blog after all. The brunch menu is one of breakfast classics with some unique twists as well. To start, I ordered a glass of their «Palm Spring» — a mixture of fresh papaya, banana and pineapple juice. Great balance to this juice — not too sweet, not too sour, just a nice refreshing drink on a warm summer day.
As a main, I went for the crab cake and eggs. Homemade crab cake with sunnyside-​up eggs, a side of bacon, a smoked and marinated jalapeños remoulade and a fresh salad. The crab cake was nice and dense with crab meat — no excessive binder here. The bacon was cooked as I like it — not crispy and the eggs were cooked as listed. The remoulade was not nearly as spicy as I expected (which for me is a good thing) and provided a nice tang to the dish. The only miss for me was the salad as it really didn’t have a reason other than to make the plate seem larger. No dressing to really speak of and the lettuce honestly didn’t seem all that fresh. If we ignore the salad, the rest of the plate is a winner.
One of my friends went with the Mac & Cheese — L’Ile-aux-Grues, Swiss gruyère, Bierbrier beer with a side of bacon, poached eggs and some greens. The poached eggs were well done, the bacon was cooked the same way as mine was and the macaroni had great flavour. Both cheeses and the beer used in the Mac & Cheese added a nice creamy sharpness to the dish but not one that would feel overbearing and heavy towards the end. The greens used here also seemed fresher. A very nice dish that I definitely would want to try next time as my own main.
My other friend went with their Canadian breakfast — 2 eggs your way with a side of meat (chorizo, bacon or prosciutto), potatoes, toast and a green salad. The eggs (scrambled in this case) were solid, the potatoes had good flavour and the bacon was cooked as the previous 2 dishes had been. The green salad was actually like mine which was disappointing but the real star here was the bread. Nice thick cut pieces of fresh bread grilled well and buttered. Every time I get bread like this in a restaurant I am reminded of my desire to bake my own sourdough bread. I definitely need to get on that. Anyway, solid dish apart from the salad once again.
After our meal, we sat there for another hour so clearly we felt right at home in this café. What can I say… my friends make good restaurant choices. I taught them well. Just kidding. Anyway, they were spot-​on with this choice and it led to a great Sunday brunch. People in the Sud-​Ouest region either living there or visiting, look no further than Café Griffintown for all your brunch needs. I only wish the live Jazz they have during the week was also there during Brunch. Then we would have probably stayed there a few more hours.
Cheers!

Petit resto avec ambiance vraiment génial…Mais, vais-​je repartir du métro Jarry pour y retourner? Jamais dans 100 ans !
Service des plus ordinaire, nous avons eu le temps de voir nos cafés avant de voir le repas un peu trop tiède arriver. Après avoir fini de manger, nous avons du nous habiller après 25 min sans avoir personne venir nous voir… pour ainsi avoir l’attention de la serveuse. Et le comble, pendant que je m’habillais à ma place, le placier avait déjà envoyé un couple s’y asseoir.
Mon déjeuner canadien était-​il bon? Pas plus que ça ! J’ai demandé du prosciutto, mais il n’y en avait pas. Les toasts sur baguette de pain était trop dures et le bacon trop cuit.

Quelle déception, première et dernière fois ici. Brunch de qualité très discutable, nombreux items non disponibles sur le menu. Une place à né pas recommander.

Avec une atmosphère un peu british (et des serveurs qui parlent mal le français), vous aimerez bruncher souper à ce restaurant. Il y a même une terrasse à l’arrière lorsque vous voudrez prendre un peu l’air.
J’ai essayé le mexican breakfast, même si c’est british et je n’ai pas été déçu!

It was a beautiful, sunny, Saturday afternoon and my friend and I had decided to stroll on in here for brunch. We were seated instantly and chose to sit on the cute, little terrasse in the back. As soon as we got settled, we quickly searched through the menu with eyes wide open. I was instantly drawn to the wilted baby spinach & goat cheese eggs benny and I — was — pleased — as — ever.
The poached eggs weren’t drenched in hollandaise sauce, so you were truly able to enjoy every single flavor from the top-​down. The baby spinach wasn’t overcooked and tasted fresh. The goat cheese, oh the goat cheese… how I love you so, adding so much vibrancy and umph to this glorious eggs benedict. It wasn’t the cheap, tasteless kind. It was the best kind, the thick-​creamy-​sour kind that melts in your mouth. The biscuit at the bottom wasn’t too dough-​y. It was thin, had some crunch to it as though it had been toasted, and didn’t steal the spotlight from the marvelous creation topping it, yet still left its mark.
I wished it wouldn’t end, and made sure to savor every moment of every bite. Truly, scout’s honor.
After such an outstanding food experience, the downfall was the service. Although our waitress was kind, it took 45 minutes to receive our order. Two or three tables before us got served even though they had arrived after us. After the long wait, our waitress brought us someone else’s order, who also came in after us, and that just felt like such a harsh tease. About five minutes after that, she brought us what we had ordered after we reminded her, once again. Something definitely went wrong with our order, and it was really frustrating while waiting under the heat, on an empty stomach, and watching everyone else who came in later get to enjoy their meals first. However, once the plates were finally served, they were just too good to leave upset.
There are other plates I am curious to try, like the house cured wild salmon benny and the crab cakes and eggs. So I will definitely be back, and hopefully be more pleased with Griffintown’s service.

Sur la rue Notre-​Dame, dans le passé, il y avait Café Griffintown et Griffintown Café. Un peu mélangeant non? En fin de semaine, je me suis finalement rendue à la bonne place pour le brunch avec un ami qui visitait pour un 24 heures rapide dans notre belle ville. Dès qu’on y est entré, l’ambiance m’a tout de suite fait dire «on est à la bonne place cette fois-​ci.» Le restaurant étant rempli à craquer mais nous avons quand même attendu avec de délicieux lattes. En regardant le menu des cocktails matinaux, je me suis promise de né pas conduire à ma prochaine visite. Des mimosas de toute sortes, un Bloody Ceasar et un «hair of the dog» complet avec un oeuf, une bière et du jus de tomate figurent aux menu. Personnellement, j’avais envi d’essayer le mimosa Griffintown, un verre de cidre et de jus d’orange. La prochain fois… parce qu’il y en aura sûrement plusieurs!
Nous nous sommes assit au bar dès que des places se sont libérées et c’était un bon endroit pour continuer de voir ce qu’il se passait autour de nous et espionner les plats qui sortaient de la cuisine. Pour le repas, nous avons pris un BLT, quelques G-​biscuits, du pain doré et une salade. Dès que nos assiettes sont arrivées, plus aucun mot né s’est fait entendre jusqu’à ce qu’elles soient vides à part pour quelques «Je peux essayer ça?» et «Mmmm, c’est vraiment bon!»
Puis, pour ce qui est du service, il est excellent. Les serveurs sont rapides, courtois, gentils et souriants. On donne l’impression de vous connaître depuis un bout et on se sent rapidement chez soit, presque comme si on est un client régulier du café. Il y avait aussi beaucoup de jeunes familles sans qu’on se sente dans un restaurant hyper familial. Il y a un espèce d’équilibre qui rend l’endroit très charmant, résonnant d’énergie et chaleureux.