Griffintown Cafe – A little bit of country in the city

The 411

Over the last couple of years, Notre Dame street has brought us some interesting brunch spots, with its booming population, and sprawling developments. Griffintown café (not to be confused with Café Griffintown) is a place I was introduced to a little over a year ago. A group of us had dinner there and liked it. Over the last little while I had heard that they added weekend brunch to their offering. Considering I liked their dinner service, and I am a fan of the area, it did not take much to make me check out this spot and see how they handle brunch.

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Grange Vin + Bouffe – A unique twist on Brunch

The 411

Every day there is a new place opening in the city, some make waves among various foodie circles by doing something new and unique. Once in a while, some of these places add a brunch offering to their menu. Some bring their own take on brunch, helping to make it something unique and fun while others just do the bare minimum. I have heard some buzz about Grange for evening service and then recently found out that they do Sunday brunch. I decided to see if they were able to take the success with their dinner service and apply it to brunch.

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St Viateur Bagel Cafe – A Montreal legend since 1957

The 411

After a grueling 18k morning run followed by 90 minutes of trying to survive 52 degrees of a hot yoga session, we made our way to NDG for some much needed refueling. I had not eaten a single thing since the night before and was physically exhausted which usually make for a bad combo. There are only a few places in NDG left that I have not reviewed and St Viateur Bagels & Cafe is one of them. You may know St Viateur as the same people who make Montreal’s best bagels, but did you know they opened up a two cafes? One on 127 Mont. Royal East and this one at 5629 Monkland Avenue.

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Mosaik – Your friendly neighborhood spot

The 411

Way up at the tip of the Mile end you will find a local gem called Mosaik. It’s a hit with the locals and seems to have quite a following. The crowd is somewhat mixed with families bringing their kids and a few younger people from the area stopping in for bite and coffee to ease into their day.

At 1st glance

Once you push past the really stubborn front door (which lets in the cold so don’t sit near it) you immediately notice some nice stained glass artwork suspended and a bunch of drawings made by kids suspended under a funky ceiling light. The stained glass is accented by the fact that Mosaik is at a corner of the street and the large windows let in tons of light. The ambiance is very comfortable and laid back; it really has that neighborhood charm. Once you are settled in you feel as if you are in not in any rush and can decompress with no lineup and no pressure to get out and pay your bill.

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