La Bête À Pain draws a broadly mixed picture, with breads and pastries frequently praised for freshness and flavor while service and value are questioned. Reviewers love the croissants, breakfast sandwiches, avocado toast, and canelé, yet many note slow, unfriendly service, long waits, and mood swings tied to staff. Several comments mention price increases and smaller portions since a baker change, suggesting better value elsewhere despite occasional high quality. Temperature and timing issues also show up, from interiors that feel too hot to coffee that can be cold or under heated, and lunch service starting late or missteps like a soup order. Ambience is described as pleasant and lively at times, though efficiency and consistency can be hit or miss. Overall, La Bête À Pain remains a notable bakery cafe for its core pastries and breads, appealing to those with time to spare and a willingness to sample a range of items, while some encounters warn to temper expectations about speed and consistency.
Superb ambience & they had some great options for sandwiches & bakery items.
Their avacado toast was amazing but the eclairs I felt were a tad bit too sweet for my liking.
But overall amazing experience. Worth visiting atleast once when you are in Montreal.
This is the kind of cafe & bakery experience we were looking for when we came to Montreal. I can't say enough about how delicious & fresh my mortadella sandwich tasted. It reminded me of some of the best Italian grocery store sandwiches I've had. We came twice during our trip. We enjoyed the food & the croissants so much to start our day.
Aug 10, 2025
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.
just went by this morning at 8am
found out only once there, their kitchen doesn't open until 9am
a bit strange for a bakery place
ended up just grabbing a coffee & a croissant
Love this spot at Griffintown, nice bakery-cafe, decent brunch, live atmosphere which you'll enjoy to start your day with a delicious breakfast.
They bake nice breads,weirdly they don`t have slicer,but in general is a nice place. Love the tartine avocet
The heyday of Bete a Pain was definitely pre-COVID, but even then, while it had all the elements of a truly top notch bakery, somehow those elements never came together. The proof is in their better-than-average pastries & better-than-average breads that were just that - better than average, despite the amount of self-publicized expertise & crafts that went into their products. Bete a Pain is just that - a better than average bakery.
This is a mediocre bakery with nice atmosphere. Breakfast sandwich was good but other than that it was difficult to find one special item. Croissants were OK but no where close to Automne Boulangerie. Coffee (Americano) was one of the worst I had for years. Overall not impressed with La Bete a Pain.
Nov 11, 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.
You start your day here & you're destined for great things... OMG everything the bakery pumps out is SPECTACULAR ❤️ ⭐️Croissant au Jambón Hammy flakey heaven with a bechamel that tucks everything into your taste buds! ⭐️Sandwich Dejeuner (Egg Sammy) Eggs so light, cheese is yummy, smoked meat hits the right notes 🎶 & fresh tomato brings it home. ...then there is the case of baked goods as you walk in. Good luck not selecting "one of everything"🤤 10/10 will be back!
Very crisp, modern atmosphere to this bakery. It was very busy when I went, not a single comfortable seat available. I tried the breakfast sandwich. It was pretty tasty, I enjoyed the chunky egg in it. However at the price point I was disappointed that there was no cheese, that element was definitely missing. Service was cold.
Decent bakery with lots of choices of bread & sandwiches. I had the jambon beurre, but I thought the bread was too hard, chewy. Would have preferred it to be warmed up or softer. The seating area is a bit small as well & noisy.
A truly don't understand how this is anything more than the most overrated bakery in the city. I give 2 starts instead of 1 because the service was excellent Pastries were bland & TINY Coffee tastes like mud Prices are 50% higher than the average in the city It's in Griffintown which is the most overrated part of the city anyway ... terribly dissappointed
During our family visit to Montreal, we really enjoyed our visit to La Bête à Pain (Griffintown). It was our first time to Montreal & we visited this bakery for breakfast based on google reviews & we were really impressed by everything in there. The first & foremost thing I wanted to highlight is the staff who were amazing, welcoming & very tentative to our needs & gave us a lot of recommendations for our breakfast. A big thank you 🙌🏼🙌🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼 When it comes to food, it was super delicious, well seasoned & presented perfectly. It is definitely a highly recommended place if you will be around in Montréal. I will definitely be back again & again.
Number One Croissant in Montreal till now.
I'm taking back with me 2 dozens of Croissants to Toronto.
This is a bakery & Cafe.
So you can enjoy an assortment of Croissant & with the condiments you prefer & take dozens with you home to enjoy during the week.
Add this to your list of "What to do in Montreal".
Save the Croissant tasting & head directly to this place.
