UPDATE

Sadly McKiernan has closed it doors

McKiernan

The 411

Every once in a while I get recommendations for new places to check out and review. Often, they are places I have either already been to or heard of, although this time the suggestion for McKiernan was a surprise as it was entirely new to me. What was more interesting is that the person who recommended it to me claimed it served the best brunch in the city. Any declaration such as this had to be checked out. So, off we went to the Atwater market area and what we found truly amazed us.

At 1st glance

McKiernan is a tiny little spot situated right near Joe Beef; it only serves brunch on Saturdays from 10am – 4pm. The place itself is small with capacity of around 20 seats and it has this amazing cozy little nook near the window where 2 can sit, chat, and eat. The decor is a throwback to a time gone by, but under no circumstance would one think it is old or not kept up. In fact, I find the style inside adds to the authentic dishes and flavours. In this post, I made sure to show more photos than normal of the venue, many of them are courtesy of Huge from Huge-photos.com You can tell his photos from mine not only by the water mark but also by the fact that he is a professional and they look much nicer.

Food

The brunch menu has only a few items, 9 in total, but each of them are very unique and those that we tried and saw were unlike anything I have ever seen before. Prices range from $6 to $16 and the plates are filling. They will certainly satisfy even the hungriest of appetites? just look at the pictures and you can see for yourself. We had the “Eggs L’Enfer” and the roast beef and eggs ($12); both came with 3 eggs in a mini crock pot of sorts. Both flavours were unique and delicious: the “Eggs Enfer” had pulled pork with avocado and sour cream topping as well as a warm sauce. The taste was incredibly refined and fresh; it was so good I was even craving it again a few hours later. The roast beef and eggs plate was anything but ordinary: we got roast beef on a baguette with beans infused in the eggs; the flavour was bold and full. The breakfast sandwiches ($13) are a popular option and looked amazing. Initially, I was hesitant to order it since it was a sandwich and I prefer a more classic breakfast, but when I saw that dish go to the table near us I knew what I was ordering next time. Some dishes to note are the breakfast potato soup ($10) and the biscuits, shrimp and gravy plate ($14). What I love about the dishes we had was that they were honest dishes with good ingredients and flavour that did not settle for any compromise. For the “eggs enfer” plate I could taste the fresh avocado which is a great choice of ingredient that other places generally do not offer. I should note that the menu changes every week so you may see some new culinary creations that your taste buds will thank you for.

Service

Our waitress did an amazing job explaining all the dishes; she also checked up on us frequently and was very friendly. I should also note that since the place was small I could not take photos without being seen (restos do not like pics being taken). In the end I asked if I could take some shots of the place and they said yes, which is very nice as other places are very protective of their secrets, so for that I was very happy and impressed.

Vegetarian

Most of the plates have some meat in them although there are some non-meat options such, as the “scones” plate, and there is an interesting list of salads ranging in price from $5-$11. The table next to us ordered a salad with what looked likes beets; it looked delicious and the presentation was amazing.

Wrap up

If only we had more places like McKiernan, Montreal would be even more of an experience – their menu items combine classic breakfast ideas with non breakfast themes and it works without any compromise. I think this place could become anyone’s favourite place to eat – the dishes are amazing and the prices fair. The only downside is that with McKiernan only offering brunch on Saturdays, I need to wait one more week to go back and try some new dishes that I previously did not have the chance to this time. Oh well 6 days 10 hours to go…

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Price	$$$	<$15
Overall		4.5/5
Wheelchair Access	NO	0/3
Parking	Parking Meter/street/	Easy
BUS	36, 108, 350	Get Directions
Metro	Lionel Groulx	6 minutes

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