"1"^^ . "4"^^ . . "1"^^ . "Circumstances will sometimes take you to places you didn't expect - in those cases, you simply hope for a pleasant surprise and a positive experience. How I ended up having brunch at Le Tr\u00E8fle is one such example. Planning a bachelor party can be a pain in the ass - especially in the wintertime where the need for specific places to go over the course of the day is essential. Within the day I had planned for my buddy, I needed to find a lunch spot relatively close to HoMa where a large group of guys could watch the Habs, eat some good food and enjoy a few pints in the process. HoMa - or Hochelaga-Maisonneuve if you want the full title but I'm lazy so HoMa will do - is not a part of Montreal I know at all. Doing some searching, I found this Irish Pub that did brunch and had TVs for the game.. although I couldn't find the menu online. However I saw enough positive reviews to give it a shot, so that is how I found myself with 10 other guys on a part of Ontario street I had never been.\n\nFirst thing when I walked in that struck me was the decor - absolutely loved it. Classic pub look but without the ridiculous clutter you often end up with. Old wood-paneled walls - dark stained or just natural - with dark wooden tables, leather seats & stools and a beautiful dark bar as a focal point for the room. The whole space had a nice neighbourhood bar vibe where you can see easily coming in for a pint or two on a regular basis for a relaxed evening. It was a quiet Saturday so there wasn't much ambience outside of us but regardless, it was a nice place to relax for the four hours we were there.\n\nAmongst their brunch menu was a collection of speciality cocktails. I chose to start with their 'Prepster' - a mixture of Maker Mark's bourbon, egg white, angostura bitters and cream soda. A definitely interesting drink - I enjoyed the overall flavour however the softness of the egg whites with the cream soda made it too light for me. It needed more staying power - I ended up finishing it off so quickly that I barely enjoyed it. Hindsight, something stronger would have been a better choice for me.\n\nFoodwise, Le Tr\u00E8fle's Brunch menu is a interesting combination of standard breakfast/brunch fair with a Irish Pub twist. I got to try three different dishes amongst the dozen or so options. First up was their morning Irish stew which as my Irish friend said at the time wasn't really a Irish stew but it didn't matter because it was quite good. A mixture of mostly beans with ham, bacon, maple syrup and a poached egg, the stew was a filling meal. The maple syrup came though a lot which gave it more sweetness than you would expect in the stew but it was a hit at the table.\n\nNext up was the Celtic poutine, their play on a breakfast poutine - breakfast potatoes, bacon, hollandaise sauce, sharp cheddar cheese cubes and an egg over-easy. The hollandaise sauce had a little stronger component to it than a typical hollandaise - forgot to ask the waitress what was is in it - and the use of sharper cheddar really worked well to make this poutine different for the now \"standard\" breakfast poutines you see around town. The rest of the ingredients were as solid as you expect. This was the most ordered dish at our table and not a single potato was left by the end. Just wonderful.\n\nThe final dish was the Dublin sandwich which was sold to us by our waitress with her description - an omelet with ham and tomato sandwiched between two grilled cheese sandwiches. That got us salivating pretty quickly and thankfully it was as good as advertised. The onion and spinach omelet was excellent, the ham sweet and fatty and the two sandwiches nice and gooey. The only issue really was that the sandwich was too tall to actually eat properly. Otherwise it was another hit.\n\nLe Tr\u00E8fle was a pleasant surprise to me foodwise - really well executed brunch food with high quality throughout. While the primary focus was on the drinking aspect of the occasion (and believe me, that was achieved and then some), the food itself convinced me that Le Tr\u00E8fle needs to stay on my radar not just as a pub option but as an actual brunch option. Not sure I would have believed that when I first walked in. It is always fun when I get surprised.... especially when I had 10 other guys to appease at the moment. Happy to finally have a place in HoMa to recommend easily.\n\n\nCheers!"^^ . "1"^^ . . "2015-02-08T00:00:00"^^ . .