Le Cheval Blanc

pootz

Ontario (Canada)

4.3/5  rDev +10%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.5 | service: 3.5 | selection: 5

I must say after all these months of trying to get to Montreal for the pub beer, this little neighbourhood pub was the positive surprise of the trip. The atmosphere was laid back ( I went in the day time) in a traditional local tavern. Lots of original tavern decore survives. Great selection and the marzen I had was a wonderful offering of the style as were the other beers..well made, tastey and fresh. I would have a hard time deciding if I liked this pub better than DDC. I will be back for more seasonals this summer.

03-23-2005 23:33:35 | More by pootz

fdrich29

Massachusetts

3.29/5  rDev -15.9%
vibe: 4 | quality: 3.5 | service: 3 | selection: 3

I attempted to walk here from Metropolis on Ste. Catherine's Street after the Cake show, but ended up needed needing to grab a cab once I made it up to Ontario.

First impressions walking into this bar, looks wise, and looks wise only, is Spuyten Duvil in Brooklyn, New York. The physical layout of the joint is nearly identical. That's where the similarities end.

I liked the sliver plated decor, it was a nice contrast to the near blizzard conditions that were outside. About 15 people in the bar late on a Sunday night, I took that as a good sign.

I ordered a winter seasonal brew. It was the most horrid liquid I've ever put to my lips, it tasted like it was past it's prime and someone had added some kind of mushroom to it. Unfortunately I didn't have time to give the other beers a chance, which I normally would, to provide a fair review. They will have to wait for my next visit, when I will update this review if I walk out with a new take on things.

01-04-2005 04:42:03 | More by fdrich29

judyblueyes

New York

3.51/5  rDev -10.2%
vibe: 4 | quality: 2.5 | service: 4 | selection: 4

After all the hype about this place I was very disappointed in the beers. I had a sampler of all 8 that were on tap at the time and only 2 were worth rating over 4, the ESB and the Bok (neither of which is in the list of beers). The others were either over-hopped, unimpressive or infected. The place itself is comfortable, with diner-style bar seating and plenty of bench-style tables. Service is friendly and efficient. Of the 5 Brewpubs I visited, I would have to say this was the least favorable experience, with L'Amere a Boire being the best overall for beers. I will visit Le Cheval again just to see if it was a "bad day" and hopefully the beers will be better.

11-30-2004 18:04:12 | More by judyblueyes

ZIRK

Belgium

4.8/5  rDev +22.8%
vibe: 5 | quality: 5 | service: 5 | selection: 5 | food: 3

This is the place where the "Beer-revival" in Montréal, and later in Quèbec started... Never forget this... Gérôme DENYS, the owner & founder managed to expand the basement by hand ant to install a "selfmade brewhouse"... You don't need complicated things when you are a good brewer... Every year 600 HL sold in place... Congratulations! It's still my favorite place when I'm in Montréal for the MondialdelaBière... but only two kinds of fingerfood are offered: "nacho's with tomato & sour cream" and "Panini".... So when you start to be hungry, then you can best go to one of the many good restaurants of Montréal... Greatings from Belgium.

10-05-2004 20:51:04 | More by ZIRK

Rastacouere

Quebec (Canada)

3.86/5  rDev -1.3%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 3.5 | selection: 4

Nice atmosphere of oldies. Go back 50 yrs ago and in an old tavern and you're in Le Cheval Blanc. They love to experiment and their selection rotates frequently with a total probably closing to 25-30 beers. Weird experiments include pepper beer, cranberry, maple etc and they won't shy to try a typical lager or an imperial stout altogether. A different experience. As far as quality is concerned, I've never had an awful beer frmo them, but I never had something really top notch neither, they're mostly just good beers and the experiments are always interesting to savor at least once if not mindblowing. One of the 3 top pubs of the city. Usually ~8 beers on tap.

09-28-2004 16:26:06 | More by Rastacouere

francisweizen

Australia

4.5/5  rDev +15.1%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4.5

Another excellent brewpub in downtown Montreal. This place is located right on Ontario street, off of St. Hubert street, which is where Erica and I stayed a few weeks ago when we were in town for the Mondial De La Biere. I guess you could say that this place was our "local" for the few days we were in town, since it was on the corner of our street. The atmosphere was excellent. It looked like an old 50's diner/cafe in here. It is very dark with some odd/non functioning brewing equipment towards the back, and a long/diner style bar when you walk in. There are nice tables strung about as well, with some small funky lamps and candles for light. The selection of beers was excellent, as was the quality of the beers! In fact, I pretty much liked every beer that I sampled here, sans the pale ale. On my last visit (In May) they had 6 beers on tap (with three coming soon). The six I sampled were the blonde lager, white, marzen, pale ale, stout, and a special aged Belgian style amber beer called L'abysse Cornue. The service was excellent, as the employee working when we stopped in was very friendly, and explained as much as he could about all of the beers that they had on tap. His french and english were excellent, and he was quick to fill up our glasses as well. I'm not sure if they had food or not, but I did not try anything. Overall: This is one of the best brewpubs that I have been to in recent times, and it is definately one of the best brewpubs out of the 7 that reside in downtown Montreal!

06-18-2004 16:33:55 | More by francisweizen

gueuzegeek

New Jersey

3.8/5  rDev -2.8%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4 | service: 3.5 | selection: 3.5 | food: 4

Okay, let's start off with, if you go, and you can sit at the bar, you will get much faster service, if your beer runs out!! This is a very narrow place with sort of a 50's style decor. I would say the decor is something like 50's diner meets olf theatre--lots of formica and chrome. The place is very low-key, which is cool, and very casual. You feel like you are in a local's place. The art work is so cool in there, and most of it is for sale. I had spent too much money already, so none of it made its way home with me.

The food choice was way to limited for a vegetarian like me, but I did get a good panini on my second visit with which I was very happy. They do not take credit cards, which led me on a wild goose chase to find an ATM that would take my card (PLUS in case you have the same).

Now to the beer. I liked the Noire (stout) the best. It was a bit thin in body, but nice roastiness. I took some notes for reviews on the beer, but may not post 'em all individually because I really didn't feel like taking that many notes while I was there. The Blanche was nice as well, a bit spicy and some yeastiness to the aroma. The pale ale was somewhat sweet and not overly hoppy. It was very drinkable though. The Blonde was just too light for my tastes, so I do not have much to say about it. Be forewarned, this is not the same place as the bottles which bare the same name.

All in all, this place is definitely worth the visit if you are in the area.

06-10-2004 21:52:16 | More by gueuzegeek

Goldorak

Quebec (Canada)

3.93/5  rDev +0.5%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4 | service: 3.5 | selection: 4 | food: 4

For some reason I haven’t stopped by this place in months, even though it's technically the closest brewpub to my house. I rectified the situation by going back there last night.

Atmosphere: For someone who wouldn’t know, it looks like from the outside like a seedy tavern in a seedier part of town. Then again, this is Montreal, so this “bad neighbourhood” is like Disneyland compared to other cities. The place is dimly lit so you don’t see much from window overlooking Ontario Street. Once inside, it’s sort of like a time warp. Green stratified wall paneling, terrazo floors, Chinese lamps, Diner-style counters, and two fermenters in the back that I believe are there for show only. It’s like there’s something from every decade from the 30’s to today. Patrons of this establishment are as diverse as the décor. And there’s always a little room to sit somewhere.

Service: Was a bit slow and cold at first, but when I conversed a little with the waiter that changed completely. When I was explaining to my drinking buddies what a Saison was, he told me I must have been the first customer in weeks to actually know that Saison is a style of Beer, and not a “seasonal” Beer. He then took the time to go through the other styles and was quite helpful.

Selection: Seven Beers on Tap, a few classic styles, like a blonde lager, amber ale, stout and a witbier. They also serve a few special/seasonal styles not very common here in Québec, like the Saison, which I should have tried, but I didn’t. Maybe next time! They also serve honey wine and cider.

Quality: Only had time for two pints, so I had the Bitter, which I thought was excellent, probably the best in town, and the Marzen, which was good, but not great. I do know this place serves a mean stout, too.

Food: Two words: Perron Cheese. Perron is the oldest cheddar producer in Canada, and his old stuff is absolutely top shelf. They serve wedges with a few olives, and I’m in heaven. Completely tore off my palate, so maybe that’s why the Marzen didn’t win me over completely...

Great place, I really should go more often.

05-15-2004 12:45:24 | More by Goldorak

PatandDavid

Massachusetts

4.36/5  rDev +11.5%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4 | selection: 4.5

We liked this place. The deco was pretty darn cool: 30's deco meets chinese restaurant meets...

But the beers were outstanding. Crowd is 20 somethings, we managed to get a place at the bar with no problem. I started with the house bock: Outstanding. Delicious. David had the house stout. Also outstanding. We'd just come from another bar, where the beers weren't bad, but after sipping these it was like: oh, that poor other bar! ;-)

We wanted somethign to eat, so left to get something on St. Denis, and came back here for another. David had the Scoth Ale, I had d'abchoufe (sp?) in the bottle. Again, we were impressed by the quality and taste.

We did see beers from this location offered for sale in the grocery store, strangely none that we had had. Also, the gentlemen next to me ordered a house bomber of what looked like a 'pine' type beer, but I didn't try it, alas.

Recommended.

01-14-2003 18:45:09 | More by PatandDavid

Andy

Massachusetts

3.64/5  rDev -6.9%
vibe: 3.5 | quality: 3.5 | service: 4 | selection: 3.5

Tiny little brewpub with great beer history. Is it open or closed? Hard to tell from the exterior. Is that kettle in the back in use? No. Feels like a diner. Simple beer menu, divided up by color. Noire, Blanche, quel colour desirez vous? Bien mon ami!

09-28-2002 22:44:20 | More by Andy