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| - I was looking for a slightly more economical place for dinner, in the vicinity of the Marriott, and happened to come across this place, also a very short walk from the stadium where the Canadiens were playing the first game of the conference finals. Don't let the name fool you. The food is traditional pub fare, but the atmosphere is definitely early-twenties. They have large screens conveniently placed so that you can catch a game from literally any seat, which was nice, but during commercials, they jacked up the rap music, which was highly annoying.
It's pretty clean, and wide enough to navigate in. After waiting a little bit to get noticed, I just grabbed the table closest to the door. Service was so-so, they're nice enough, but when my beer's gone, I shouldn't have to send up a flare for another one, and while they had a decent crowd during the game, they weren't overwhelmed by any means. It's okay when your staff schmoozes with the clientele, but it shouldn't be at the expense of other, thirsty customers. I chose to eat inside to watch the game and get away from all the obnoxious cigarette hounds outside (they have tables on the curb, like a lot of Montreal joints).
I had the Cajun salmon. Their definition of "cajun" means blackened to the point of being dry, with just the slightest hint of spice, but not terrible. The rice was completely tasteless, but luckily it came with grilled peppers, mushrooms, and onions. The salad was a pain in the ass, large and leafy and stuffed into a small bowl. Almost impossible to eat without it spilling onto the table. But overall the food was probably the best pub food I had of all the places I've hit in the last few weeks.
Since it's a lower-priced place in an otherwise expensive area, I guess you get what you pay for. Their whiskey list is impressive, but given the tiny shots they serve, not worth it. Their "trufflicious" cake was, well, just chocolate cake. Overall, it wasn't bad for the price, but it's not a place to impress a date with the food or atmosphere.
I will say, it was good enough that I will give it a second shot next time in town.
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