Leila receives broad praise for fresh, flavorful Mediterranean and North African inspired cooking, generous shareable plates, and a warm, inviting atmosphere with attentive, professional service. Dishes like sardines on toast, octopus, lamb merguez, tagliatelle with ragu, and other seafood highlights appear across reviews, and the wine list and cocktails are well regarded, with a speakeasy back room adding charm. A few notes mention occasional saltiness or small portions for the price, and some nights with louder music or slower service, but overall the consensus is that Leila delivers a standout, hospitality-driven dining experience with creative, high-quality cooking and a welcoming vibe.
What a wonderful evening at Leila!! The food, the ambience, the service all so top notch! You will not be disappointed & especially if you get to see Amine! Congratulations 🎊 to all the staff & owners! Everyone seems to love working there! Can't wait to go back! I will recommend Leila to all the people I know who are visiting Montreal! 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
Truly Brilliant. The menu changes every few weeks. This chef's slection was loving prepared, certainly adventurous, & unique in its diversity. This Moroccan influenced restaurant is perfect.
Une ambiance chaleureuse, un accueil sympathique, le service excellent! Nous avons goûté plusieurs plats partagés à 4, accompagnés de très bons vins ajoutant à l'expérience. Les cocktails étaient aussi très bons, ce qui démarrait bien cette soirée qui fût parfaite jusqu'au dessert! (excellent gâteau aux pistaches, & quoi dire de ce délicieux dessert au café dont je ne me rappelle pas le nom). Mon coup de coeur va aux sardines & aux merguez! Quelle belle soirée! Même le choix de musique nous a plu!
Les gens qui y travaillent sont tellement sympathiques. Les explications & conseils pour le menu sont clairs & les vins & les cocktails sont recherchés. L'expérience est plus que satisfaisante. Je recommande!
Vraiment une belle découverte!
Cuisine tellement goûteuse
Excellent & même plus du début à la fin
Surprise au palais à chaque mets
Pour une expérience gastronomique mémorable -- j'y retournerai souvent & je dirai à tous mes amis d'y aller surtout avec moi !
This place was recommended by a friend. Parking was tough & called in to say we may be a bit late & we were comforted that our table would be waiting. Once there, we were warmly received. Our waiter Danny was excellent. Was very enthusiastic about his presentation & adept in both French & English. Decor was nice as well as the atmosphere. The wine list was good but not many value options. Thought that pricing was high & could use more lower price options. I liked the small'market fresh' menu. As for the food, there were some winners & some losers. The buratta straciatella was good but the brown butter wasn't browned enough in my opinion. We were told easily shared among us 4 but better for 2. The sardines on toast was delicious & again, good for 2. The bitter salad was excellent & was a play on a Caesar salad & that was ok for 4. The merguez sausage was by far the most disappointing dish of the night. As soon as the plate was placed on the table, I could smell how gamey the lamb was. It was way too strong & they said it was Quebec lamb but smelt more like New Zealand. Nobody at the table was a fan. Three at the table took pasta as their mains & the portions were quite small. The cavatelli fagioli was ok. Nothing really special about it. My Guinea fowl was well prepared & juicy with crispy skin. The beans on top were ok & I find detracted from the delicate meat & I found the $58 price tag a bit steep. The food was very homestyle. With a few adjustments to portions & plate composition, this place could easily be 5 stars. The highlight was definitely the service which is a great place to start.
Une expérience remarquable : la cuisine est savoureuse, les cocktails sont excellents & la sélection musicale parfaitement adaptée. Mention spéciale à la salade amère gourmande, à la fois délicate & délicieuse!
Sep 20, 2025
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Cocktails were alright (good but not superb), red wine selection was great, staff was really kind & informative, food was good (menu was seasonal, so fresh, but lacked information online), playlist was absolutely superb & created a nice atmosphere. Speakeasy in back lacked atmosphere however (consider lowering lights & maybe raising music volume). Overall would return :)
Fabulous food, amazing service, quality ingredients, in a landscape of dull mile end restaurants this place stands out as a new star. Sardines on toast, octopus & steak were fabulous!!
Very tasty food & friendly staff. We had the octopus, olives & shishito, sardine toast, sucrine, busiata, espadon, pistachio cake & basque cheesecake & every single dish was delicious. The outdoor seating was nice too. Highly recommended! We will be coming back for sure.
