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| - So, this is your standard grocery store, with a phenomenal bakery, decent prices, and a particularly convenient location in the Complexe Desjardins, just down from the Hyatt Regency.
My problem with this location is its incredibly limited hours of operation. It seems to close obscenely early (8:00 p.m. on weekdays), even on weekends (9:00 p.m.), which is incredibly frustrating, particularly when one is in town on business and just needs to pick up a few things. I couldn't find the hours posted on the store door like they are in the US, and there were no hours posted on Yelp (I've just confirmed the hours on IGA.net and posted them here). If this place had longer hours, I would easily rate it four stars.
At the aforementioned bakery, the crêpes are pretty fantastic. You can order them fresh or in a to-go cup, with custard and cream, and they are still fresh and delicious. I also tried some caramel-chocolate pastry confection that was pretty extraordinary.
They have a decent produce selection, although I did see several overripe avocados and bananas (completely with fruit flies). A minor complaint, since this seems to happen everywhere.
I was not impressed with their microbrew beer selection, particularly since on my last visit to Montréal, I distinctly recall waltzing into gas stations and delis and coming out with Unibroue bombers but, alas, there were no Unibroue beers here! There was plenty of Le Cheval Blanc beers, of which I sampled Loch Ness, Coup de Grisou, Rousse, among a few others, and did not particularly care for any of them. (What's a girl gotta do to get an IPA up in here??)
All told, yes, super convenient location, and a very clean store with lots of selections and reasonable prices, but incredibly inconvenient hours, and sub-par beer choices.
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