Old Montreal restaurant classics in the heart of Little Burgundy. An homage to Charles "Joe-Beef" McKiernan, 19th century innkeeper and Montreal working class hero. A drunken crawl away from the Historic Atwater market. Steaks and seafood.
Across reviews, Joe Beef stands out for rich, decadent cooking and generous portions, with lobster spaghetti, hanger steak, beef tenderloin, and a strong seafood presence earning frequent praise. The service is consistently described as attentive, knowledgeable, and friendly, helping to elevate a lively, unpretentious atmosphere that many visitors call a Montreal institution. The lobster spaghetti and other iconic dishes are often highlighted, though some guests find the price high and a few dishes over or under seasoned, leaving mixed impressions about value. Reservations are tough to secure and the restaurant can be busy and loud, but the overall experience is celebrated as memorable and worth a special night out, with desserts like marjolaine cake and pistachio éclair drawing particular attention. In short, Joe Beef delivers bold flavors and theatre that many diners adore, while a few reviews wish for more consistency and better value.
Hands down, one of my top restaurant experiences ever. Cozy, lively, warm atmosphere & funky decor. Service was attentive, yet laid back & fun - our server was very knowledgeable & made expert recommendations. We were there for dinner on a Friday night, & the restaurant was completely full. Everyone around seemed so happy, & I knew it was going to be great when the diners at the next table had their eyes rolling back into their heads after receiving their first course. Started off with a flight of oysters & the stone crab - incredibly fresh & the oyster from Maine was HUGE. Loved everything. From the entree section, we ordered the escargot & bone marrow dishes - the bone marrow was a standout & was served with a heavenly tomato cream sauce & perfectly grilled, buttery baguette. For the mains we ordered the lobster spaghetti & sweetbreads (the latter the suggestion of our server over the steak). Lobster spaghetti was one of the top 3 pasta dishes of my life & the sweetbreads were served with a slight char. Amazing. I didn't think I could do dessert, but somehow I found room. Ordered the banana crepe dish at our server's suggestion. Absolutely insanely good with perfect butterscotch sauce drowning a crepe wrapped around banana ice cream. Perfectly balanced - the flavor of banana was not too overpowering & whole dish not too sweet. Our server recommended a great port to pair with it. We had cocktails throughout which were all fantastic & expertly made - we tried the Kamakaze, the Manhattan, the Caballero & one lighter one made with cider & pear. Also if you're interested in the merch, you can get some at the restaurant (if the items are in stock on their website, they can get it for you). I got this sweatshirt! 100 percent will return & the experience was completely worth it !!
Joe beef is the top rank Canada restaurant & certainly I have high expectation. However high expectation means high disappointment. We ordered scallop sashimi (features of the day), escargot, lobster spaghetti, hanger steak & dessert? I expect wow factor in this meal, but end up wow, very average. The scallop sashimi has nothing special & cost $24 for two little scallops sashimi. The most disappointment is the $75 half lobster spaghetti. It is their signature plate, but the lobster is not fresh at all tonight, the lobster meat has no lobster taste & the meat is not firm. Overall, I don’t recommend. Montreal is noticeable for nice dining, but tonight is an exception.
Oct 18, 2023
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Brilliant food & people! Atmosphere was great. Staff was absolutely lovely (helps that the bartender was so charming as well 🤪😜). Foie gras terrine with brioche was delightfully rich. Magret was so good you'd think you were having steak--didn't even know you anybody could cook it that way! Servings were astoundingly monstrous.
I had recently travelled the Quebec-Montreal-Toronto corridor & this was by far my best meal. Mind you, I've eaten at a one-stst restaurant ranking no. 2 in the same time period, I sincerely enjoyed my meal in Joe Beef more.
Great experience. Staffs were nice & freindly- explained the menu very well.
We ordered hanger steak & lobster spaghetti. Considering it was sirloin, kitchen staff did an amzining job. The meat was cooked perfectly, even the tomato on the top was great. (Could be better if it was aged sirloin with that price).
However, the lobster spaghetti was more like 'meh'. The lobster meat may have been overcooked since it was chewy. Its sauce didn't really have much taste- just creamy, & that was it. Could've used garlic or saffron or just something. Some parts of the spaghetti noodles were stuck together.
It was a pleasant experience overall, but could be better with that price.
Dans le milieu du restaurant ilya une marche ou j'ai tombée & j'ai accidentée mon genou... Personne ne m'a pas attentionnée & depuis une semaine j'ai de la misère à marcher. Les pommes de terre frites à 11$ la portion ils ont été trop cuites,amarrés & trop salées. Pour deux personnes nous avons payé 550$ plus 15% ,le pourcentage de pourboire... Les couteax à steak achetées chez Dolarama... Très movaise expérience !!!
Quelle déception.
Première visite pour nous, on s'attendait à quelque chose de bien.....
Cadre & atmosphère agréable, certains plats meilleurs que d'autres. Notting to write home about. Le steak vraiment décevant, le spaghetti au homard, correct sans plus.
Ce qui m'a déçue le plus c'est d'avoir de la terre dans notre salade, oui pas croyable, a quelques reprises, on sent & goûte la terre dans la bouche, on a meme laissé une feuille avec de la terre dans l'assiette. Alors je montre au serveur qui me dit "ha, c'est minéral ça" avec petit sourire en coin. Sans excuse on m'a facturé la salade comme si de rien n'était.
Rendu à la maison je décide d'écrire au restaurant pour mentionner ceci & je me dit que ça n'a pas du se rendre à la cuisine vu la réaction pas très sérieuse de notre serveur. & bien, aucune nouvelle depuis! Ça, ça s'appelle vivre de sa réputation surfaite & se foutre de sa clientèle.
Il y a quantité de resto à Montréal qui ne demande pas 3 mois de reservation & qui lave la salade convenablement en plus d'offrir des plats goûteux pour prix similaire ou mieux.
A ce prix non merci Joebeef, plus jamais!
Not so cozy & no menu, everything written down on a chalkboard.It wasn't easy to read the menu. However, I ordered the lobster spaghetti & I was in lover with it. A friend had a horse steak & another couple got jarret d'agneau. Huge portions. Food was great along with service. The restaurant is noisy & loud. I would definitely go back!
