Pub John Michaels — Restaurant in Montreal

Lack of planning on our part left us without a reservation on a busy weeknight in Montreal. After wandering around for a bit our party of 5 found ourselves at John Michael's. Our first red flag should have been the availability of patio seating when every other patio was filled to capacity. The experience started out pleasant and we ordered a bottle of wine and other drinks feom our server Dominic while we looked at the (basic and limited) menu. The second red flag should have been when our server told us he didn't eat at the restaurant! We decided on appetizers for dinner. While we waited for over an hour no one came to check on us or see if we wanted to order another bottle or more drinks. When over an hour and a half had passed we finally checked on the status of our order only to be told that they were very busy, that the order was in and it takes lot to run a kitchen. In that time we had observed multiple tables that were seated after us receive their food. As a table, we decided to give it 5 more minutes and if the food hadn't arrived we were just going to pay for the drinks and leave. The food arrived in exactly 5 minutes. A full hour and 40 minutes after we ordered. As suspected, the food was just okay. We immediately asked for our cheques so we could pay and leave. Given the horrible service, I opted not to leave the recommended gratuity amount (tipping is for service after all and I hadnt received that at John Michael's). After we all paid Dominic announced "can I give you some education - if you want fast food, go to McDonald's. Potential patrons of John Michael's - if you want good food and service, go elsewhere. I would never recommend this...

With so many options nearby, you’re better off elsewhere. Value is what you’d expect in old Montreal. Couldn’t argue with the patio. It’s a great view of all the summertime fun in old port.

Told no substitutions for the side of a burger, no problem. Went for a Mediterranean salad because I needed something fresh. One bite and I noticed the sweetened yogurt was overpowering and left a milky aftertaste like there was ice cream in the dressing.

I brought it up to my server, who recommended a slice of lemon and then walked off. I confirmed on the menu what I ordered, and nowhere did it mention anything sweet. When she came back, I was done with the salad, having eating a few forkfuls just to see if i was being picky and needed to adapt.

My friend tried the salad and agreed on the taste. The chef relayed that it’s supposed to be sweet. Alright. I chose wrong. Being off put by the sugary dressing, I decided to just finish my beer.

Cheque comes and the salad is on my bill. My server insisted on getting the chef so I can discuss it with him, which would no doubt be uncomfortable for everyone. I declined. I paid up without a fuss and was on my way.

The server made a few attempts to get management, or the chef, to talk to me but I can’t see the value in discussing palates with a chef that’s confident in the dressing or a manager that insisted on us being charged (according to our server). So here we are.

Location 5/5 Food...

Located just downtown in the port of old Montreal. There is lots of great people watching to be done if you get a seat on the patio. The inside of the pub was essentially empty when we went but the patio was packed and with a line to boot. I guess if you weren't to sit on the patio, I'm not really sure why you would go to this place considering all the choices around.

Food was okay. Fish tacos were surprisingly really great! I was honestly expecting to get medicore ot terrible fish tacos but they were probably some of the best fish tacos I have had. Not super breaded and lots of flavor. The burgers, however, as described by the people I dined with were quite sub-par.

Service was great. Our server was quick with taking our order and with drinks.

As with many of the places in Montreal, and especially in old Montreal, the food and drinks were quite overpriced but I guess what else would you expect in a super touristy place. The inside of the pub smelled kind of funny (honestly reminded me of the smell equated with a clean port-a-potty) and the bathroom stalls were sooo small.

Not my first choice but I guess if you want to have a drink and night time people watch...