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| - Quoted from the "Le Commensal" website: "On November 23, 2009, all Commensal restaurants adopted the Maximum Price Policy. This means that however much delicious and healthy food you put on your plate, you never pay more than $13.95 at lunchtime or $16.95 in the evening." - FALSE ADVERTISING!
WARNING: know what you're getting into or do not go! Ate here tonight for the first time with my Quebecois girlfriend & her father for his birthday dinner and pre-Leonard Cohen concert. The location was nice: downtown views out the windows of Rue St. Catherine. Excited about a healthy buffet downtown, & told that there's only one visit to the buffet, but the max rate is $16.95, I piled my plate high. I am 6'4", 190 lbs, & gifted/cursed with a freakish metabolism (I stay thin no matter how much I eat & have to work-out to gain weight). Translation: I'm a big eater, & Quebecois portions I often find lacking. And I eat a healthy, well-rounded diet. Finally, a quality place where I can dig in, right? Wrong. I get to the check-out & the cashier says $41 & some change in French. I thought I misunderstood, so I asked again in English. Yep: $41.10 Canadian ($45 U.S.). For one plate.
What came next? It could have gotten really ugly- especially as hungry/moody as I was just then. Instead, I tried the diplomatic approach, explaining what I was told (the signs there were all in French only- I relied on translation), & next came the unapologetic manager, followed by his (convenient) refusal to speak in English even though he could, my broken French sentences ending in English, the girlfriend & her dad interrupting their meal just to see what the hold-up was all about, the GF arguing with the manager in heated French, her father throwing in his two cents (all French), my refusal to pay, the manager accusing me of scheming to get more food out of him (finally conceding to speak fluent English), the GF's father admirably offering to just buy my meal & end the issue, followed by my refusal to let him pay for my meal since it's his birthday, then (after contemplating growling a French insult or at least the good 'ol fashioned effenheimer & walking out). ... ...I took a step back: It's my lady's father's birthday, for chrissakes. Yeah, this was shitty. Yes, the signs are unclear, even to francophones apparently. Yes, this confusing set of rules at a buffet is a GREAT way to take advantage of English speakers in a very international part of town. But... it was a special night for my girlfriend & her dad, so I sucked it up. I'm not anything close to a millionaire (I'm actually quite poor), but the $24 over-charge seemed petty compared to what the night meant to the both of them. On a special night (they proceeded to the Leonard Cohen show they had bought tickets for before I planned my extended stay in Montreal), they both felt guilty that they were hosting me in a foreign country, & here we were in an awkward misunderstanding at the birthday-man's favorite Montreal restaurant with his daughter's English-speaking American boyfriend. Despite the good spirit of the evening, it tarnished our dinner experience. I've never felt more unwelcome in Quebec as a visitor from the U.S.
Bottom line: I recommend this potentially fine establishment to nobody. Read the fine print on the signs, then ask the staff & read it again. If it still doesn't make sense, walk out of there. Do NOT count on their good faith, honest signage, accurate advertising, or reasonable pricing. And, fellow Yelpers, do not get trapped by the classic bait-&-switch with their maximum price claim! I wish it were different, but all three of us couldn't help but feel cheated- even as I did pay, stayed, & intended to let it go. I don't want an apology from this restaurant- I want an apology for my girlfriend & her dad, on his birthday, before the two of them embarked to see their favorite musician for the first time. To be fair, the food was rather good compared to many greasy Canadian options -just not worth 40 bills a plate. Loved the wild rice with mushrooms, the Thai Chicken was actually delicious, & some great veggie/vegan options. If you're wealthy & money is no object -or not a big eater who enjoys healthy options- by all means eat here. I just wish our internet was working before we left or I would have foreseen my future consensus review ("Good food, outrageous buffet price by weight ") on Yelp- and would have made a different choice. Hindsight is 20/20.
I suppose you're wondering: Did I eat everything on my plate? With the exception of a few mediocre food selections- you're damn right I did. At that price, I enjoyed the hell out of it.
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