Bootlegger Cocktail Bar & Cuisine earns praise for its creative cocktails, an impressive whiskey selection, and a welcoming, knowledgeable staff that can turn a visit into a memorable experience; the venue combines a stylish speakeasy vibe with vintage decor, live jazz, and a focus on fresh ingredients and precise mixology, including oysters during happy hours. Across many reviews, the atmosphere and drinks are highlighted as consistently well balanced and thoughtfully crafted, while occasional notes of slower service, crowding, or higher prices appear, along with occasional menu quirks or dishes that miss the mark; overall the place is seen as unique and worth returning to for the drinks, the ambience, and the sense of discovery it provides.
Great spot for cocktails 🍸. Although the food is mediocre. But you can order main dishes & dessert.
They usually have $1 oyster everyday during happy hour. We didn't get a chance to have them as they didn't buy the oysters at lower price. The cocktails at happy hour are pretty good. 4 choices for alcoholic drinks & 2 choices for mocktails.
Nous avons eu une expérience très désagréable dans ce bar. Pendant le service, nous avons eu trois serveurs différents & tout semblait déjà assez désorganisé. Le pire moment est arrivé au moment de payer. Mon mari a accidentellement laissé 0,03 $ de pourboire au lieu de 3 $ sur le terminal de paiement. Le serveur est immédiatement revenu en demandant :'Vous avez laissé 3 cents ? D'habitude, les gens font ça pour envoyer un message.' Mon mari a expliqué qu'il s'agissait simplement d'une erreur & qu'il voulait laisser 3 $. Le serveur a alors entré lui-même le montant sur le terminal & a insisté pour qu'il paie le pourboire. Quand mon mari a changé d'avis à cause de son attitude, le serveur a répondu :'Vous ne voulez pas payer votre pourboire ?' d'une manière très agressive & gênante. La situation était extrêmement embarrassante & inconfortable. Nous avons quand même laissé de l'argent comptant, mais l'attitude du serveur était impolie, peu professionnelle & déplacée. Un pourboire ne devrait jamais être exigé ni utilisé pour mettre des clients mal à l'aise.
May 23, 2026
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We stumbled into Bootlegger without knowing it was Jazz night, & were instantly transported to the Prohibition Age! What a cozy, lovely spot for drinks; I got the le nuit cocktail, & it was a genuine feast for the senses. The coconut sugar added such a beautiful textural dimension to the drink, I wanted to lick the glass clean!
The jazz musicians were fantastic & the staff were all so helpful & sweet. I would love to come back to try the food here! Cannot recommend enough.
On était venu pour les huîtres malheureusement il n'y en avait pas ce jour là donc on a pris l'assiette de charcuterie à partager & un cocktail par personne. J'ai adoré le cocktail Stewie stress. Les prix en happy hour sont vraiment correct. La déco & l'ambiance est sympa ainsi que le personnel :)
Ok so as a top mtl guide I rarely these days find gems like this that really meet my expectation to this point. First off a big thank you to Remus for his amazing service & great drinks suggestions. Give that nice guy a free drink on the house for his good service. Secondly, the place was super cozy. The food was really hitting the spot for me, simple, but many flavors & with the drinks they were awesome. I will say most bars I've been to in mtl have very simple finger foods so to see a bar have a nice resto menu was really awesome! I am going to be back here many times, I really enjoyed it. I did a reservation the day of & it was quiet, so I was really happy, but other days there may be many people.
May 14, 2026
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Amazing cocktails, friendly staff, & a stylish, standout interior. Really appreciated the thoughtful sign in the washroom, it says a lot about the place. Well done.
The speakeasy style ambience is great, the whiskey collection is great, however did come here for the cocktails, not great … the bar food, not great either.
Was recommended the place from some people in the city, & wow am I glad we listened. Such a warm & intriguing atmosphere with live music (at least the night we went) & the open kitchen was fun to peak over at time to time. Food & drinks were outstanding, & service was welcoming & laid back - making it a very comfortable & fun night out while visiting.
