Restaurant Jano — Restaurant in Montreal

We didn't feel like waiting in line at a neighbouring restaurant, so we picked this restaurant right next door.

It was after the lunch rush. As soon as we walked it, an employee loudly complained about it never ending. I found it quite rude and shocking but said nothing in the hopes he wasn't referring to more customers arriving. I did check the restaurant's opening hours online just in case they were closed from 3:00 to 5:00 p.m., but it said they were open. I even asked an employee if they were open to be extra sure. I hope we weren't intruding. If we were, they could have just pretended they were closed.

The restaurant was almost empty save for a table of customers and 4 employees. An employee seated us right away,... next to a container that was catching water from the dripping air conditioner. An odd choice considering that all the other tables were free.

After a few minutes, the employee from the beginning came to take our order. He and 2 other employees brought the entrées, main meal, drinks and dessert. The wait staff checked in and made sure we had everything we needed.

The chicken was crispy and perfectly seasoned on the outside and tender and juicy on the inside. It paired perfectly with the soft bread from the table basket.

I couldn't get enough of the thick, crispy-and-soft homemade potato chips with skins on the edges (portuguese potatoes). They're addictive.

The pastel de nata (egg tart) was rich and flaky, and fresh custard oozed out with every bite. The flan was okay, but we were expecting a fully intact wedge like in the picture, and instead it looked as though someone had taken a big bite out of the tip. The kitchen should consider cutting it in a different shape.

The decor, music and nature scenes were calming.

I think we just caught the staff on...

Terrible service. We came in and no one attended to us (at the door) for about 20min despite the fact they had at least 5 waiters working at the time and no line up. We had to stop one waiter as he was passing to ask for a table or at least to let us know if there's any or how long we shall wait. He said not long. Ok we waited another 10 and we were seated. Our waiter came rushing to us immediately, handed us the menu and rushed away even thou we already knew what we wanted to eat. Ok, he was in a rush. When he came back I ordered my meal and asked if they had a wine that I liked or anything alike he said no and grabbed the menu off my hands. I said Wait I'd like to see if I can order another drink , everyone were shocked at our table that he just wanted to take it away and go. To a comment from my boyfriend to him that he should slow down and let us ask our questions about our order, the waiter replied that he has too many people to serve and he has no time. Well, that really set the mood for the rest of the meal. The potato chips were TERRIBLE! they were barely warm, soggy and wet. The bone steak was good , the boiled potato was just peeled and slapped on a plate without any dressing or oil (butter ?) The bread rolls were stone cold. The salad was Good! We saw a table beside us had roasted/grilled vegetables served and it looked delicious so I asked a plate for us as well. The server said they don't have such thing as roasted veggies. I pointed at the table beside and he said - this is roasted bell pepper ( not vegetable ???). Anyway, it was not a pleasant experience, which rarely happens when I'm in Montreal! Too bad, we won't...

I give it a 3.5. The food was tasty especially on the grill.

The service was very friendly but was clearly understaffed as the night went on. We had to call our waiter for dessert after waiting for more than 20 minutes.

We got the calamari and a platter of meat to share for two.

The platter of meat you had a choice of 5 meats and/or seafood. We got the rabbit, quail, lamb, chicken and ribs. They were all grilled. The meat was cooled very well but they all tasted the same at the end. There weren't much spices or anything. The platter came with a salad each and fries.

The calamari was excellent. It was perfectly cooked as it melted in your mouth while still having a little bit of a chew. It also came with a salad and fries but you could upgrade them for Portuguese chips for an extra 2$.

The desserts were nice but a bit expensive especially the flan caramel. It looked like someone took a bite of my portion. Their natas were delicious. Crispy on the outside and soft and creamy on the inside.

Overall, the food was good and we spent a good evening there. There were a few hiccups but...