Monteiro Express Scarborough — Restaurant in Toronto

Formed in 2013 with the simple goal of making the best Portuguese chicken in Montreal in a family friendly restaurant, Monteiro opened its doors in the iconic Jean-Talon market. The success led to a delightful restaurant in Scarborough (1950 Lawrence Ave E, Scarborough, ON MIR 2Y7) that I recently had the pleasure of visiting! Due to the wide variety of halal options, I had a range of choices so l decided to indulge in a bit of everything. I started the meal with the Monteiro Poutine and the Egg Tarts. The Monteiro Poutine was an explosion of flavors, with each bite delivering a perfect combination of crispy fries, succulent chicken, and a tantalizing blend of spicy and savory sauces, while the egg tarts were a delightful blend of buttery, flaky crust and silky, sweet custard filling that melted in my mouth. The delicious entrée consisted of juicy, crispy, and utterly flavourful chicken wings, along with a Monteiro Bowl made with fresh vegetables, a flame-grilled chicken cutlet, and topped with a legendary peri-peri sauce, and a Combo Chicken Thigh Bowl, that served a grilled chicken leg with fresh fries, making for an utterly filling meal that left us wanting for more despite being full. Washed down with a refreshing sumol, the meal was perfectly rounded off with a delightful balance of sweet and tart flavors, leaving a lingering satisfaction and a memorable dining experience. Monteiro embodies the essence of Portuguese culinary excellence with its commitment to quality, flavorful dishes, and a warm, family-friendly atmosphere. Whether you're indulging in halal options or exploring their diverse menu, Monteiro promises a memorable dining journey that celebrates the rich flavors of Portuguese cuisine, so it goes without saying that this place comes with the highest recommendation!

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I stumbled upon this hidden gem of a restaurant purely by chance, and it turned out to be a delicious discovery. Monteiro’s story traces back to Montreal. What started as a simple idea of making ‘the best Portuguese chicken in Montreal’ has now become a well-reputed restaurant chain that extended its branches all the way to Scarborough in the intersection of Lawrence and Warden.

Menu items are pretty straightforward and are all priced $10. The portion size is a definite win for the money spent. I ordered a Piri bowl, a delightful medley of rice with Piri chicken, vegetables, corn, and beans all bathing in a generous amount of Piri sauce. My clumsy self in all its clumsy glory, dropped half the bowl by mistake even before I got to taste this Portuguese delicacy. It is worth mentioning that the staff was polite enough to replace my fallen soldier with a fresh new Piri bowl. Needless to say, it was quite delicious however I found myself wishing for a slightly larger serving of chicken, simply because it was just that good!

Also, note that it is a limited seating dining area with very little room to move around. Luckily, during my visit, it was not crowded enough to feel too stuffy.

An interesting aspect of this location is that it shares its space with a Turkish dessert establishment called "Lokma". As the name suggests, they specialize in serving Lokmas, which I later discovered are the Turkish equivalent of donut holes. You may end your 10-dollar meal from Monteiro with a sweet ending from Lokma. And there you have a real fusion meal...

Monteiro and Lokma are both actually a hidden treasure. Monteiro sandwich was very juicy & flavourful. Chicken fillet in sandwich was masterly marinated & cooked to perfection & its combination with veggies and sauce inside simply made it irresistible, it certainly is the best Chicken sandwich we have ever had, after dining we ordered a take out as well. Dessert Kebueno from Lokma was was just as amazing, such finely & delicately sweetened, it is perfect for people who wish to have something which isn't too sweet. Now it would be extremely unfair if I don't mention how truly amazing their staff Jhanvi & Sandhya are, Jhanvi helped us with selecting the food from Monteiro Express & Sandhya helped us with choosing the Dessert. We were first timers here and their description of the sandwich as well as the dessert was so enticing that makes the wait time in between the food ordered & delivered tough. She really made all the difference. They both are the true stars of this magnificent eatery & their passion for delivering exceptional customer service is simply outstanding. If the owner of this Restaurant is reading this, I hope Sandhya & Jhanvi are both duly appreciated & accordingly acknowledged in essence, true to their spirit and passion. It's very rare to find service matching great tasting food matching and this Eatery excels in both. We thoroughly enjoyed this Eatery and cannot recommend it...