Tips for Dining, Eating, and Food Shopping in Quebec (including Montreal)
Start New ThreadLooking for ideas for lunch near McGill . Nothing too fancy but good quality
By foodie in CT
on Aug 4, 2010 06:00 AM
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Do you mean McGill University downtown? (there is also a McGill street in Old Montreal)
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My favourite places are Furusato for decent Japanese (Bleury and Sherbrooke) and Saigon (Metcalfe just south of Sherbrooke) for decent Vietnamese. Lola Rosa on Milton is always popular but it scores "just alright" in my books. If you consider "Chinatown 2" close to McGill then you have some great choices including Cuisine Szechuan, Pret a Manger, Maison du Nord, and Qing Hua Dumpling. Vasco de Gama is good but a little pricey for being a regular outing. Unfortunately there's really nothing I would rave about that is in the immediate area.
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Lola Rosa Cafe
545 Rue Milton, Montreal, QC H2X1W5, CA
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Agreed with everything, especially about Lola Rosa (although I would call it hugely overrated). I would like to add the McCord Cafe. They have a lunch special that is pretty good.
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Lola Rosa Cafe
545 Rue Milton, Montreal, QC H2X1W5, CA
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Lola Rosa is vegetarian. Say no more.
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Lola Rosa Cafe
545 Rue Milton, Montreal, QC H2X1W5, CA
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Yeah, but it's not just that. I find that the food is budget in terms of ingredients and preparation but the price reflects that of a much better restaurant. Basically, even if you get around the no-meat thing... it's just bad value (ESPECIALLY when meat is typically the most costly ingredient of most recipes).
Why it's so popular, I will never know. So long as I am ranting about it, I liked the old blue sign better anyway! (I walk past it on my way to work every day).
Some more suggestions: Medina in the Cathedral food court. For the chicken plate, I like it even better than Boustan. Get the cabbage salad. Also, there is a Lebanese place under the Scotia bank building on Sherbrooke across from McGill, it's name is 4 letters and starts with an 'a', but it escapes me right now. Anyway, they have great salads and good falafel.
Having said that... in general, if I want a good lunch and have time, I will walk to the Concordia area.
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the place under scotiabank is Akli. It is fresh home cooked lebanese food (the mother of the owners cooks on certain days). Their shawarma is good, but what they do best is the daily specials and the salads. If you are lucky you will go there on the two days every year that they make lamb shanks and you will think that you have died and gone to heaven. Their average entree does not have an aweful lot of meat , but it is healthy (except for the salt) tastes good ,is extreemly fresh and is good sized, this is where i eat if i have to eat out everyday.
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Yeah, that's the place. It really is very good. If only they had cabbage instead of lettuce for the pitas, it would be my GO TO Lebanese place (right now, that's Medina). Any idea when the lamb shanks come out? I would really like that.
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I wish i knew.
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The lebanese place in La Cite uses cabbage instead of lettuce. Come to think of it there are two types of cabbage to choose from.
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Is that place any good? I have walked past it maybe a thousand times but have never tried it out. I get a general 'no' feeling from places in that basement 'mall'. How would it compare to Medina, Akli, or even Boustan?
Yeah, the cabbage salad for me is a deal breaker. For a pita, I need it. Having said that, the falafel salad at Akli almost makes up for it.
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I know what you mean... the place looks very sketchy. The people who work there are really nice and the couple times Ive been there for a pita it hasnt been bad.... but in the back of my mind as I eat I cant stop thinking about how sketchy the places looks. I think if the store got a makeover they would make a lot more money because the food is really quite good. Their tomato and cucumber salad was very fresh too.
On another note the chinese place down there is pretty horrible (even wok cafe is a million times better) but for some reason seems to fairly busy.
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Why that Chinese place down there is busy, escapes me. A buddy of mine was starving and ate there once. Let's just say that it's a good thing that he was REALLY hungry. Otherwise, it would have been even less palatable.
I really don't get why anyone would open up a resto down there. They must think about all of the McGIll Res business... forgetting that they are all first years with meal cards.
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Yeah I agree. I love being inside lola rosa, I like the atmosphere, the location...but the food is underwhelming and way overpriced. I could have mad their quesdillas in my 1st year college dorm on a hot plate for 50 cents. The polenta is OK, and the tomato pie is OK. Well, it is overpriced for me but the place is invariably full during the school year at lunch time. Convenience? Atmosphere? Some people missing home cooking (though a so-so version of it?) The little notes in the table are fun.
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Lola Rosa Cafe
545 Rue Milton, Montreal, QC H2X1W5, CA
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Does Saigon have banh mi? I work near McGill and I've been looking for a decent banh mi place downtown. Bale is a bit too far from my work place...
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Marinara on Stanley or Pizza from anton and James
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The Basha on Ste-Catherine (930, rue Ste-Catherine O, corner Mansfield) has a great vegetarian plate, heaped high a variety of salads, hummus, etc. There are other Basha's around, but I find this outlet is among the better ones in town. I crave their lentils and rice salad. And the kale salad. And the garlic potatoes. And... (and they also have nice sticky baklava for dessert. mmm)
Bonus: the guy behind the counter who looks like a skinny version of Muammar Gaddafi is a treat to watch: he can keep a long lineup speeding through like nobody's business, so waits are very short.
Bonus II: this is on the first floor, so if you score a seat by the window, you can people watch.
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I like the Japanese place in the food court under Banque Scotia (I am sorry I cannot remember the name) They make a katsu plate that comes with some tempura vegetables, rice, salad and miso soup, and it comes under $10. I always ask for extra katsu sauce!
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Lunch around McGill makes me sad. I wish there was somewhere close, cheap, and delicious I could be a regular at.
I usually take a walk to the Concordia area and eat there instead. If not, Basha on ste-cath's is OK. lola rosa if with a friend who doesn't want to walk. If in a rush, I'll grab one of those pushaps samosas that are always on sale but they're never as good as when I buy them at Pushap's for some reason.
If anyone knows a chow-friendly affordable place near McGill do let me know...
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