Bar Pamplemousse — Restaurant in Montreal

Please note that the owner is straight up lying in his response. We were not offered another spot and there were open time slots to reserve for a group of 6 at 9:30 and 10:30. And empty tables. Not sure if his staff is lying to him or he is just trying to make the situation seem less bad but it would have been better to just not respond. AVOID THIS BADLY MANAGED AND OVERPRICED BAR

**

We had a strange evening at Bar Pamplemousse last night that ended on an unpleasant note. We were a group of 6 celebrating a special occasion and were very pleased to be able to reserve a table online. At no point in the reservation process was it mentioned that there was a time limit for the table. When we arrived we were told we could only have the table for 2 hours. I understand this policy at a restaurant, but find it quite strange at a bar. It should be made very clear at all stages of the reservation process at your establishment. We checked online and saw that there was plenty of place available for reservations that evening, even for a table of 6. We thought that perhaps the policy was there so that it could be invoked on tables that were not ordering much and just sitting and nursing a bottle of wine. That is understandable, half of our group have worked as servers and understand the need to turn tables. But since we ordered appetizers, mains, multiple cocktails each and shots, we wanted to keep ordering drinks and dessert, there were empty tables, and no one was waiting at the door, we were shocked to be told that our time was up and we needed to leave "to give other people a chance". The manager kept insisting that it was indicated when we booked the reservation. I showed her the confirmation email and the reservation page on the website and she finally said "oh, that is strange, it used to be there". But still did not offer to at least let us have a final round of drinks or stay a bit longer. There was no one waiting for a table! It was bizarre and unhospitable and felt very greedy, considering how much we were spending and that the establishment had clearly made an error in not indicating the time limit for a table . I will not be returning. If you want to have a rushed time or just drop in for a drink and a quick bite then it's not bad but do not expect to be able to relax and spend a quality evening with proper hospitality. The food was good, not great, and the cocktails were tiny and overpriced. Service was slow and lackluster.

FYI We ended up walking down to Midway for a few more rounds, they have a much better cocktail selection and...

We made a last minute group reservation (an hour before coming in) on a Monday evening because we were leaving a conference close by. We were poorly explained group payment policies and realized they would not split bills (at all) between the bunch of us. We explained that many of us came from different countries and did not know each other well and we were met with complete disregard for our situation. The service was good but the manager was absolutely not understanding of our situation and blamed us for not reading the policy and taking up their space (!?) on a Monday, when the bar was at half capacity. I understand not wanting to make exceptions but the attitude we received was not appropriate for service industry. I would have expected apologies in their decision, but we got immediate defensiveness and sass. I have a lot of experience in this industry and this kind of treatment reads to me as laziness to accommodate, even more so on a quiet week evening. Management clearly does not value their customers. We didn't make a fuss and ended up paying our bill, but this left a bad impression to everyone's evening.

I would not recommend, especially...

We needed a meal and a drink before a comedy show. This was nearby and open. They sat us outside in the rain (under an umbrella) because we did not have a reservation, to a bar?? There were many empty seats and table when we arrived that were still empty when we left.

Staff pleasant. It was good that they carded my daughter, who is 20. I like that, but wonder if it were because we spoke English not French.

Beer selection was wide. Needed a bit more detail on selections as it is "artisanal". The only Pilsner tasted like orange and the man IPA was red and tasted like grapefruit. Proved adventurous and delightful for us, but not sure everyone would enjoy the surprise.

The food was way below par. I mean, way below!! The menu was only online, but no QR code. Still, found it. No English option (at least not easily on the mobile version).

A $23 burger was greasy and tasteless. The fries had been re-deep-fried into a char.

A $23 margarita pizza tasted like frozen pizza except that the little basil on it was half fresh. We packed half of it and then gave it away to a homeless person, no jokes.

Not going back...