I'm not a fan of museum restaurants and usually avoid them if I can. So it's no surprise that I ended up here for lunch after perusing the art at the Musee de Beaux Arts in Montreal. It's right down the street from the museum in a corner basement space with great views of the street for people watching.
I was there for a late lunch so the place was empty. There were several wait staff and although the place looks like they wouldn't do table service, they will. The menu is more cafe style (soups, sandwiches, salads) than full meals, so don't expect to pig out at this place...unless it's on the desserts. There is still enough on the plate to make the hunger disappear, though. The food is an interesting mix of Italian and French (I had the vegetable panini with a rich cream sauce.) but it seems to go well together without being overly rich. The cafe serves wine and beer but in limited quantities and considering the extensive list of tea and coffee, most people must order this.
I think why most people patronize the cafe is for the desserts. Tiny elf-sized desserts in assortments like I've never seen. Truffles, cookies, marzipans, baklava, and every thing in between. Several people came in just for these delights while I was eating. Intrigued, I bought a box of them to take with me, and we finished half the box on the subway back to the hotel. The best thing about them is that they were not so sweet as to be cloying, but still tasty enough to last on the palate. The elves working in the back must be baking kings.
For the rest of the cafe, the decor is minimalist white with modern furniture, but just about anyone in any kind of dress will feel welcome here. You can get away with a light lunch for under $15 (including Montreal tax) which is dirt cheap. The desserts are not so cheap and a box of 50 pieces was about 25 bucks.