Located in a beautiful turn of the century building in Old Montreal, Brasserie Holder's design makes good use of its high ceilings and wide open space creating a sense of European charm that is hard to find anywhere else in town. Specializing in Old World European cuisine, Restaurant Holder is famous for its vast selection of brasserie-style seafood, pasta and meat dishes. Sample Menu items at Holder include: grilled beefsteak, steamed clams, salads, tartares, etc...
Overall, reviews describe Holder as a lively, classic French brasserie in Old Montreal with a warm, versatile atmosphere and a strong wine list. Service is repeatedly praised for attentiveness and friendliness, though a few visits note slower pacing or inconsistent attention during peak hours. The space is stylish and bustling, which can translate to a noisy environment and limited privacy, making it less ideal for quiet business meals or intimate dinners. The food earns high marks for standout dishes such as braised beef cheeks, duck confit, lobster ravioli, mussels, oysters, and French onion soup, with many diners calling the meals superb and well presented. Yet other orders have fallen flat, including greasy or under seasoned items, dry meats, or dishes that felt overpriced for the portion or quality. The menu's breadth is a strength, offering classic French bistro staples and brasserie favorites that suit groups, celebrations, or casual yet substantial lunches, with brunch and lunch service generally reliable. In sum, Holder emerges as a dependable, high energy spot with many standout plates and gracious service, but experiences can vary by dish and by the tempo of the room.
We were able to be seated right away without a reservation - the restaurant was moderately busy at 7 pm on a Friday night. My mom thoroughly enjoyed the lobster ravioli. Unfortunately I had the hanger steak (dairy free) & didn't quite enjoy it - it lacked flavour. The fries were also not wonderful. I will say the virgin mojito was amazing! I was happy that they did have oat milk substitute - my cappuccino was lovely. Unfortunately, the service after our initial server sign off was quite slow - we waited 40 minutes for our bill.
J'ai adoré l'ambiance & la nourriture. Ce qui a gâcher un peu mon expérience c'est d'être tomber sur un serveur qui devrait visiblement considérer faire autre chose. J'y retournerai à condition d'avoir un meilleur service la prochaine fois. Le pottage de betteraves était délicieux, le canard était une belle découverte. Ils ont une bonne sélection de vins & bulles en demi-bouteille, c'est très apprécié.
Went to Holder for New Year's Eve with a group of 10 & Holder's team went above & beyond to make it easy. First the booking process on the phone for a big group was extremely straightforward. We were planned to be 11 but 1 dropped 3 days before & the update to 10 was a breeze. Then comes the dinner. The food was delicious. The special NYE foie gras ravioli was a delight. & the best for last, the service. Laurie went above & beyond to make the experience easy & nice. First we were booked from 20:00 to 22:30, Laurie switched tables around & made sure we could stay as long as we wanted. This allowed us to ring in the new year at Holder. Then came the bill. Laurie split every item per person & even went the extra mile by splitting each bottles of wine with who had some. What service! Thank you so much.
Delicious food, plates are small but this is to be expected. Everything I tasted is something I'd recommend: „carpaccio de ayla betray jaune, sauce ran troh" (salmon carpaccio), Huîtres / Fresh oysters, „Ravioli au homard, beurre blanc à l'huile de ruffe" (lobster ravioli), Tartare de saumon au yaourt & caviar de Mujjol..Salmon tartare with yogurt & Mujjol caviar (salmon tartare), & goat cheese. The only thing worth it would probably would have been the goat cheese & salmon tartare.
My husband & I love this place. It's one of our favourite restaurants. The setting is beautiful & perfect for a date night. The service is wonderful & the food is always delicious. They also make the best lychee martinis!
We live in the Old Port with my husband & baby, we love trying restaurants around the area & we were always intrigued to try Holder as we walked by. Finally last Sunday we decided to go & we were so disappointed. We ordered the onion soup which was okay eventhough it was watery. We had the mozzarella de bufala starter, the tomatoes were not fresh but the balsamic dressing made it better. For main we had the steak & fries, got two small pieces instead of one piece & the fries were okay, had to try for 15 minutes to get the waiters attention to order ketchup so at the end they were cold. My husband had the braised beef, he ate half of it. Overall, we were very disappointed especially considering the price, the food was bland, the dish we enjoyed the most was the bread & butter.
One of the best restaurants in Montreal! The fish plate was incredible! The desserts are delicious too 😋. Really good service & a very nice atmosphere.
Holder has great atmosphere & a great menu, fantastic service. Definitely call ahead for reservations, ideally not the same day. We called earlier on a Saturday & the earliest available was 9:30pm. The salad with parmesan flakes is great. For cold appetizers, highly recommend the gravlax with yellow beets. For a hot appetizer, try the warm goat cheese dish, or the calamari. The tilapia entree was perfectly cooked & well seasoned. For dessert, the Bulgarian yogurt with honey & nuts is different but a good choice of something new.
