Tropikàl — Restaurant in Montreal

Dinner: 07/2021

Reservation on time Seated right next to the kitchen Part of our seat was completely missing the cushion Drinks took 20 minutes One drink was too strong and the flavour cannot be paired with any meal My old-fashioned was made with rum and syrup absolutely no whiskey involved and I had to ask about that Crabcakes were too salty Mac & cheese very rich too much clove in the chicken flavouring Manager slightly argued with me and cut me off regarding why I wanted to return the cocktails Waitress never did any follow up on whether we liked the drink Spoke to waitress explained that we didn’t like the drinks wanted to return them and have them removed from the bill and she responded that she will check and see if she can do that She returned our table and told us that she spoke with her manager and the manager would only allow a 30% discount off of the bill I am mediately asked to speak with a manager because that is not acceptable Manager came to the table within eight minutes I explained first off that my cocktail is not what I expected and it was not advertised honestly As I was going to explain the reasoning for returning the other drink the ginger drink he cut me off by asking us if we looked at the correct cocktail list which was clearly placed on our table I interjected and stated that I didn’t even get a chance to explain why we were returning the ginger drink then he offered a listening ear I explain that I wanted to exchange the ginger drink for the red stripe and then he went out of his way to explain that it’s a blonde beer as if we black people don’t know what the red stripe is

Multiple glasses at the bar fell to the ground and crashed not 10 minutes later the manager was bringing in arm plates to the kitchen and they promptly fell to the floor some pieces fell next to my partners foot.

The music was abhorrent all night Reggaetón was playing and blasting through the stereo is preventing an opportunity to have proper conversation despite the close proximity of my partner.

The take away bag broke five minutes after we left so we lost one of the meals due to that.

None of the cocktails were charged the red stripe was not charged I tipped accordingly at a bare minimum of 15% because none of the nonsense that occurred was the fault of the waitress overall

One on 10 would recommend

The manager was wearing a T-shirt and beach shorts looking like he should’ve been making drinks...

08/2022: I recently celebrated my friend’s birthday at Tropikal and was impressed with the food. However, the service was slow, which was frustrating given that we had a reservation for a group of 12 at 9 pm but were not seated until 10 pm. Although the delay wasn't entirely the restaurant's fault, it was still disappointing. Our food arrived at 10:30 pm, and we had to go with the Family Style sharing menu, which was exciting, but we didn't get any side plates for at least 5-10 minutes because they had run out of washed plates.

On the positive side, John went above and beyond by getting my friends shots while they waited in line for an hour. The management recognized that not everyone had tried all the different dishes promised on the family style sharing experience, so they reduced the bills for the family dinner.

Unfortunately, there were some cons to the experience. For instance, some people at our table only got beef tacos, while others got the shrimp taco, and nobody got the rice or plantains that were promised for the shared family meal. Additionally, the mango salad came in after the main meals were served and was underwhelming. We were stamped while we were still eating, which made us feel rushed, as the restaurant was turning into a club.

To improve the customer experience, Tropikal should work on better time management and ensure there are enough plates available for all meal services. The food is excellent, and I hope the restaurant continues to do well, but they need to focus on pumping out the food. There was too much concern over the switch from restaurant to nightclub. The staff was friendly, but one of them needs training on customer experience.

In summary, I rate the food 4/5, service 3/5, ambiance 4/5 (although the music was a bit loud as it was turning into a night club), decoration 5/5, and staff friendliness 4/5 (minus 1 for the one waitress). The efficiency of service was also 3/5, and I did not try the cocktails. Overall, the experience was a 4/5, and I hope to try the food again during the day to experience the menu properly and avoid the night rush.

I wish the team at Tropikal all the best and hope they implement the right processes and staff training to enhance their...

I give them 3 stars for trying! The concept and theory is amazing, the dj was spinning amazing songs all night. Execution however leaves a lot to be desired. We ordered various dishes and because it was busy, they took a while to come out. The cocktails are expensive and some are in large glasses and some are in very smallll ones,which the menu never indicated. Even my friend's Daquiri came in a martini glass. My Trinidad Sour cost more than my friend's cocktail from the non Tropikal cocktail menu, but hers was 3x the size? And it cost $4 less. I ordered the Guyanese Chowmein Pad Thai and I really didn't understand it? It was really just chow mein with sprouts, lobster and I found a carrot. It is an amazing idea but if just felt confused as a dish . The creme brulee was nice, however. Service left a lot to be desired as well. Everything felt rushed, and our waitress combined the wrong bills at the end of the night. Staff seemed more interested in greeting friends/regulars than ensuring new customers were comfortable and looked after. In fact, our waitress left our bills on the table, while we were supposed to be paying them, to go say hi to a friend who had just walked in! We ran late because parking was hard to find, not long after sitting down we used the bathroom. The women's washroom had 0 soap so we had to sue the men's. We informed the hostess. Over an hour later, it had yet to be refilled, meaning for over an hour women were having to use the bathroom, then have no soap after at their immediate disposal. I love the idea of the restaurant, but not sure if I would go back if I do return to Montreal. I look forward to seeing how it grows, because I think the vibe is amazing and it offers alot, just needs some...