Terrasse St-Ambroise — Restaurant in Montreal

Well. It's over. I have been a fan for close to 20 years. I feel that the Apricot is one of the best beers that I've ever had. I always would load the trunk with it whenever I found it in the States. It is impossible to obtain in the State that I live in now though. I've worn a St-Ambroise T-shirt until it literally disintegrated about 5 years ago. Since I only get the opportunity to pass through Montréal about once a year now and I've been trying to buy a T-shirt from McAuslan ever since. They don't ship to the USA. Sure covid altered things but I visited the year after things opened, walked a ridiculously long distance to the brewery and guess what...."sorry man, retail is closed. It looks like rain." Disappointed. I figured next time I'm in the city I'll come back. The next time was today. I fact, I flew to Montréal solely to spend the afternoon at this facility as I'm a huge fan of their beers. After a near-impossible journey on the STM which I finally resigned myself to just walking....I gotta the terrace and guess what: merch store closed. I asked the bartender if they'd be open later hoping that the person manning it was just hanging out elsewhere. Nope...."It looks like it may rain so we didn't open it" Sure its been cloudy but I'm not really sure what that has to do with anything. I briefly told him my saga and he did offer to ask his manager which I was hesitant about accepting because I really don't want to cause any trouble for anyone. I was so looking forward to my trip here today that I did accept his offer. Great! I thought. Almost instantly a man appeared from the game table next to the bar and said: "Nope, I'm not opening it" I reluctantly still ordered a pint of my favorite beer (apricot), paid, tipped and left. As I was sitting at a table drinking what will likely be my very last beer at the Terrasse St-Ambroise, I realized a couple of things. This place used to be fun, the employees engaging and I USED to enjoy coming here. Now I don't. The kids working at the bar don't care whether I'm here or not. Hell, they didn't really even seem like THEY wanted to be there. They couldn't have cared less if I left there and told 20 people that this is the greatest beer on the planet of if I left there.....and never came back. Its plainly obvious that they just don't have any skin the game. I'm disappointed because a company that I had a real affinity for no longer seemed like they cared one way or another. It was foolish to fly here just for them and I'm sorry that I did. Needless to say, I finished my beer and walked through the gates for the last time. I'm at Messorem right now typing this.....I only wish they made an...

After reading all those reviews describing a "restaurant with view onto the canal", my expectations were probably a bit high...

This place is rather some sort of a 'brewery beer outlet' with separate pick-up counters for beer and fast food (burgers, hot dogs, salad, and nachos, ...). As such, it is quite nice and very casual (brimming with sweaty cyclist like me).

The beer is fresh, well-priced, and served quickly, and food orders are going from there to the separate pick-up counter nearby. The food is served by someone yelling out numbers, which many people didn't get during the hour I was there. Actually, my printed receipt didn't have a number, the food guy couldn't find it either, but we agreed upon that this particular item was mine to take :) Minor mishap.

Here my reasons for a point subtraction (none of which is really unexpected for a brewery beer-outlet, but..):

1. a pretty unhygienic (but refrigerated) bar for condiments including mayo. There were crusty spills all over the place, some jars were empty, and nobody cared to check it or at least it wipe down every now and then. At least not during the hour I sat there...
2. there is no real view except for some rotten industrial complexes nearby: the place is located about 50 meters away from the canal path, slightly lower than the bike path, and there is a fence with bushes obstructing the view to trail or the canal.
3. The toilet facilities are made from some red painted sheet metal with no or no-good ventilation. It's been a very warm day, and I was not excited about the smell of fresh paint and ... In short, if you want to have some chow and beer after a hard bike ride: 5 stars or more. If you are looking for a 4.5 star restaurant to impress someone, you will be...

I bought 4 cases of beer (two pale and two red). The two cases of the pale ale were completely flat, in fact it didnt even taste like beer. I tried to contact St Amboise/McAuslan via the phone several times to which I on 3 occasions left voice messages. I also tried emailing them. To date I have not been contacted which really frustrates me ergo the poor review. I purchased the beer for a Super Bowl party just before Feb. 4th 2018. The day of the party I was forced to run to a store and buy more beer for my friends. I paid 16.99 per case plus tax and deposit. Poor customer service. You lost me as a client.

THE FOLLOW UP: Post communications with Geneviève L. of Brasserie McAuslan I realized that because Brasserie McAuslan is not a recognized email address within Google or my Outlook account, the response from Brasserie McAuslan was sent to my spam folder. As of today March 20 2018 I am a happy customer again. Geneviève L./Brasserie McAuslan will be compensating me for the two cases of beer. I am running to the dep and buying 2 cases of 6 within the hr. Sorry Brasserie McAuslan for the bad review, I will amend my FB and Google reviews. In my opinion your beer is the very best and as I said on the telephone, the Grapefruit IPA is the bomb. I am glad it will be in cans soon :) You've got my 5...