MONTREAL – LEMEAC

Being overly ambitious, I planned dinner at Lemeac for 10pm to take full advantage of their late night menu. What I didn’t anticipate was my stomach not cooperating. The combination of an early brunch, afternoon drinking and then the late dinner left my tummy a little unbalanced. Sadly, this meant I wasn’t able to fully enjoy the Lemeac experience, but next time I’ll be back for brunch.

Atmosphere: Since we were out all day being tourists, The Fiance, my cousin and myself were a little underdressed for dinner. Lemeac was an elegant restaurant and at 10pm, filled with couples finishing meals or enjoying a drink. We were seated outside, in their covered, heated patio and it was a private, comfortable table. Lighting was dim and the restaurant felt intimate and refined.

Service: Our server was efficient, fluent in English and understanding when I asked for my barely touched entree to be packed up. I started feeling out of sorts after the appetizer and needed to get back to the hotel. Getting our bill was quick and easy.

Food: At $25 for an appetizer and entree, the late night menu at Lemeac is a great deal with a lot of selection. With 15 appetizer and 13 entree choices, I had a hard time narrowing down my order. The Fiance and I settled on splitting the Grilled Calamari and Crab Cake. My crab cake was crispy on the outside and plenty of crab meat. The gribiche sauce was tangy and an excellent compliment to the seafood. The fiance’s calamari though, was stellar. The squid was good to the perfect texture and had a great smokey flavour. Based on appetizers alone, Lemeac was a great meal.

For entrees, I chose the Herb Crusted Calf Liver, The Fiance had the ½ Cornish Hen and my cousin went with a Hanger Steak and Fries. Unfortunately, the flavour of the calf liver was too strong for my upset stomach and I was only able to enjoy a few bites. The Fiance’s hen was also a heavy dish with strong flavours. I did like the crunchy polenta fries. We ended up taking the bulk of our entrees with us and I demolished my cousin’s fries (covered in the compound butter) for breakfast the next day.

Overall, I felt like I missed out of the full Lemeac dining experience. I wish I could’ve fully enjoyed the food and atmosphere. Next time, I might be more realistic with my planning (but probably not).