Come and join us for an enchanted Syrian evening located Montreal’s chic and gastronomic heart of Outremont, on Van Horne Avenue. At Restaurant Damas, a uniquely comfortable microcosm will greet you with warm colours, velours, carved wood, and multicoloured lights.
Damas earns widespread praise for its refined Syrian and Middle Eastern cuisine, with a wide mezze spread, standout lamb dishes, octopus, and a balanced mix of bold and subtle flavors that many describe as deeply satisfying. The presentations are often praised as beautiful, ingredients high quality, and the open kitchen and warm ambiance add to a special night out. Service is repeatedly lauded as professional, attentive, and knowledgeable, with staff guiding guests through the menu and wine or cocktails, though a few experiences mention slow pacing during busy times or inconsistent timing. The tasting menu and wine pairing are a highlight for many, offering generous portions and a cohesive culinary journey, while others feel the price point is high for the portions or that some dishes do not justify the cost. Brunch is also highlighted as a good value and a way to sample the kitchen, while some reviews note that the atmosphere can be loud or the room crowded. Overall, Damas is regarded as a top Montreal dining destination for rich flavors, elegant service, and a memorable, if premium, dining experience.
The tasting menu is FANTASTIC! Karel is a true gem - & her suggestions & pairings were perfect. Highly recommend for anyone who wants the full experience!!!!
La présentation des plats est tout simplement magnifique, chaque assiette est un véritable chef-d'oeuvre. Les portions sont généreuses, parfaites pour être partagées. Si vous y allez, commander plusieurs plats pour les savourer en groupe, c'est une expérience à ne pas manquer. Un endroit que je recommande vivement 🤤
Damas is a famed Montreal restaurant that is hyped to be the best Syrian spot in town. The warm decor, beautiful lights, & upscale nature really makes this a place for special occasions. My friend was able to book us a table for a late night meal about a month in advance. They absolutely get booked up so if you want a table, be sure to plan ahead & make that reservation. Menu items are meant to be shared family style. As a vegan, it was admittedly hard for me to really justify ordering anything sharable that others would want given how pricy everything is on the menu. The two mezzes we had including the Fattoush Salad & their Hummus were already $50 for those alone, so you can imagine how high everything else would have been added up. I enjoyed the salad & its use of fresh ingredients, along with the hummus (which was by no means the best, but a solid hummus nonetheless). I really liked the circular pita that they provided with the hummus as it made for a great dipping mechanism for all of us. I don't think it's worth the price/value for someone that is plant based, despite them having options like grilled vegetables & what appeared to be a heartier legume dish. I think the price for these dishes is what get me so I can't in good faith absolutely recommend it unless you are someone that consumes animal products. With that said, the experience was great & I am very grateful to have even been a part of a meal with great company.
Very nice decoration of the restaurant, the ambiance & atmosphere is relaxing, it gets packed & is full, busy, but the service is fast & efficient, the real garlic sauce, the hummus, the quality of the food is remarkable & a good way to experience this type of gastronomy. Recommended spot.
This was our first experience at Damas as we were recommended it by friends & we were not disappointed. With this price point (It was a birthday celebration so we splurged), we had very high expectations. However, from my first phone calls to ensure a nice table, to the drinks, the incredible food & the impeccable service, we were truly overjoyed with our experience. We enjoyed the tasting menu & were so thankful for, not only the presentation of this truly gastronomic experience, but also the equally amazing service & explanations of each dish. (We ended up having 1 principal server & 3 other servers ensuring that our evening was unfolding well & that we were well taken care of throughout our evening!). They were very conscious of a dietary restriction & ensured that it was addressed at each tasting. Bravo to the service team & chefs at Damas! Highly recommended & looking forward to our next experience there soon!
Jul 25, 2024
on Google
🍽️
Know where to eat in Montreal before everyone else.
Get the first look at the hottest openings, secret menus, and RestoMontreal.ca's weekly top picks. Join 50,000+ foodies.
Une des meilleures tables à Montréal. Mets raffinés goûteux & imaginatifs. Cuisson parfaite & présentation impeccable. Superbe décor. Ambiance chaleureuse & peu bruyante. Verrerie, couverts & coutellerie superbes & irréprochables. Service amical, attentionné & rapide. Menu dégustation avec accord mets & vins fortement recommandé. C'est très cher mais ça vaut chaque dollar.
This place is one of the best I have visited for supper. It is a quintessential part of your trip to Montréal! I recommend the bar for the ambiance & the atmosphere. Music was perfect, food was fantastic & service impeccable. This one is a must for Quebec! It will be a regular go to for me going forward
Jun 19, 2024
on Google
🍽️
Know where to eat in Montreal before everyone else.
Get the first look at the hottest openings, secret menus, and RestoMontreal.ca's weekly top picks. Join 50,000+ foodies.
One of the best restaurants in Montreal, & hands-down the best Syrian restaurant I've had the pleasure of dining in outside of Syria itself. The service was impeccable- very helpful & professional staff. I highly recommend the Bargylus wine.
I'm usually not a person who leaves reviews good or bad but THIS RESTAURANT kept making me speechless every single time honestly the best Syrian/ middle eastern food i ever had better than homemade this aside THE SERVICE they were explaining every single thing & making sure everything was as we like. The atmosphere was so beautiful taking me back to old Damascus overall worth every dollar 100% recommended dear owner & your crew you guys are doing amazing!! Thank you for the experience
We had an exceptional experience at the restaurant; I have to say the entire evening was delightful. Our servers were remarkably quick, friendly, & attentive. As first-timers, the server explained the food ingredients amazingly. The food we chose was bursting with flavor, & the side dishes were outstanding. With its fantastic atmosphere, I wholeheartedly recommend this place.
Apr 29, 2024
on Google
🍽️
Know where to eat in Montreal before everyone else.
Get the first look at the hottest openings, secret menus, and RestoMontreal.ca's weekly top picks. Join 50,000+ foodies.
This is one of my all time favourite restaurants. It's expensive yes but it's 10000% worth it, the shish borek (lamb dumplings), & honestly any lamb dish SLAPSSSSS. Also the octopus is amazing. I'm literally salivating thinking about this food. Also the service has never disappointed ! Highly recommend
EDIT: The owner reached out to me after I posted this, & was very apologetic & just wanted me to come back & give Damas another chance. I'm increasing the service rating as this was entirely surprising & made me feel that the ownership genuinely cares about the guest experience. I really wish I could rate Damas in line with the quality of its cuisine-if I could, it would easily earn five stars. However, high prices come with high expectations, many of which were unmet during our visit. A particularly notable issue was our water glasses being refilled only once over a two-hour tasting menu. My partner & I had eagerly anticipated this visit for months, considering Damas the highlight of our trip. Unfortunately, after our initial order was taken, our waiter seemed to vanish, & my partner's attempts to flag down another staff member were necessary just to get another drink. This incident exemplifies the overall lack of attentiveness we experienced. Despite these service shortcomings, the food at Damas is truly exceptional & stands out markedly from its competitors. The lamb in particular was the best bit of meat, I have ever had. For those who don't mind a struggle for basic customer service, Damas could still be a fair choice. For future patrons, I might recommend visiting during less busy times or for occasions where the pace of service isn't of consequence.
So me & my partner really wanted to go somewhere special but different for our one year anniversary. We're from Vermont so we thought that the cuisine would be a wonderful detour from what we usually have available. Our experience however, was not very good, & I don't think we'd come back again. To start, we got seated & we knew we wanted the tasting menu, which is 7 courses, so we ordered that & we each had a cocktail. They whisked the menus away & we were excited. Then the first course came, then the second, by the third we were both finished with our cocktails & were politely waiting for our server to come back to ask for a refill. I was facing the restaurant & I watched him stop by other tables except ours. I tried to make eye contact with him, to no avail, it seems he was uninterested in helping us anymore, as he refused to even look our direction. At the point of the fourth course my partner had been waiting on a water refill for 15 minutes. 15! I finally just started staring & trying to flag waiters down until one (very nice) man came over & asked if we needed something. We asked for a wine menu, ordered. & then were promptly left alone again. Then when dessert came around, (we made this reservation 3 months in advance & put in the notes it was our anniversary) the person who came said "its somebodys birthday" Which while it would be fine if that was the only blunder, but when you've been dismissed the entire night & had to fight for a water refill it Definitely feels on purpose & rude. & then we had to fight again to get the check. I just felt like if you're spending $500 on a dinner youd think they could keep the water refilled. Let alone notice that your cocktail is empty & ask if youd like another. Or at least CHECK IN & make sure everything is going fine. I don't know if it was because we looked younger than their usual clientele, or if that is policy to leave you to your devices after ordering a 7 course meal. But we will not go there again. & it's so disappointing because the food was phenomenal!! But I would never recommend anyone go there. It felt like we weren't their target clientele, & I got the impression that we weren't welcome.
I've eaten here three times so far, & hope to return again! It is also currently my favourite restaurant of all time. The food is delicious, unique, & iconic. I have not had the pleasure of trying the tasting menus, but there are some regular menu items on it that I have loved. A shoutout for the cocktails is needed, & I recommend either the Aleppo Gin Sour or Damascus Blinker. As far as food goes the hummus is remarkable, & the option with the shawarma is a meal on its own. I also recommend the Sour Cherry Kebab & the Samke Harra. The food service is organized around sharing plates, & they run a tight ship replacing platters & utensils. Staff have always been helpful & kind. Not to mention the restaurant itself is gorgeous & has an intimate atmosphere despite its density. Overall, it's worth the price to try at least once. You will probably find yourself wanting to come back!
An absolutely amazing place for a casual dinner with friends or celebratory feast. We had the degustation & the kitchen deftly avoided the food allergies, & the sommelier made some great replacements for the red wines to help my wife avoid the migraines. Amazing service team, really delicious food. Would highly recommend, & visit again!
