Buns Hamburger House

3.5 star rating
19 reviews Rating Details

Category: Burgers  [Edit]

1855, rue Sainte-Catherine Ouest
Montréal, QC H3H 2V5
(514) 303-8889
Hours:

Mon-Sun 11 am - 1 pm

Takes Reservations:
No
Accepts Credit Cards:
No
Parking:
Street
Attire:
Casual
Good for Groups:
No
Good for Kids:
No
Price Range:
$
Delivery:
No
Take Away:
Yes
Waiter Service:
No
Outdoor Seating:
No
Wi-Fi:
No
Good For:
Late Night, Lunch, Dinner
Alcohol:
No
Drive-Thru:
No
Noise Level:
Quiet
Has TV:
No
Caters:
No
Wheelchair Accessible:
Yes
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17 reviews in English

  • Review from Steph K.

    • 7 friends
    • 34 reviews

    Ottawa, ON

    4.0 star rating
    5/12/2012

    The concept at Buns is pretty simple; they serve burgers , fries and pop.  That's pretty much it.  Occasionally they'll have a monthly special such as sausages, bison burgers or sweet potato fries but that's about it.  I'm kind of glad that Buns sticks to what they do best.

    The food is inexpensive; 5$ for a beef burger, 4$ for a marinated portabello burger and 2$ for fries and cheese for your burger is always free.  When the bars close, there's always a huge line of drunk people waiting for food.  It's totally worth putting up with drunk idiots to get the food from Buns.  They have THE BEST burgers I think I've ever had.  

    The decor is done "take-out" style, so it's not amazing.  But the places gets packed during rushes, so they probably don't want you sticking around too long anyways.  If you're looking for some delicious, vegetarian friendly, inexpensive take out food, then this is an amazing choice!

  • Review from Amanda R.

    • 0 friends
    • 3 reviews

    Montréal, QC

    4.0 star rating
    2/23/2012 1 Check-in Here

    Welcome to the one man show.. :) Want a cheap eat?? you've come to the right place. This little whole in the wall is a perfect place for a simple burger. You defiantly can not go wrong. And for the price so much better then a chain hamburger spot.. $5 burgers and $2 potatoes.. I'm sold.. Great lil spot..
    Check it out.

  • Review from Rawan K.

    Montréal, QC

    4.0 star rating
    4/11/2012

    I have eaten here on a few occasions in the past. For lunch, before going out at night, and after an evening of drinking... it suits all occasions! You can just pick it up and leave, or sit on the few tables and seats available inside. Cheap eat, succulent burgers, and on rare occasions their grilled potatoes can be disappointing but on most days, they're good!

  • Review from Noha G.

    • 2 friends
    • 16 reviews

    Montréal, QC

    3.0 star rating
    2/15/2012

    Not bad at all. Not really a place to sit at, but is a good alternative to McDonalds.. Burgers are good...Fries, not so much.. Friendly staff, but burgers take FOREVER to be made. All in all, decent place. Oh, and, super cheap! Speaking of which, cash only... at least that was the case the last time I was there!

  • Review from D D.

    • 1 friend
    • 116 reviews

    Montréal, QC

    1.0 star rating
    3/25/2011

    This BUNS location is shared with a falafel type place. You go in, and it looks dirty and there are only places to stand. Ugly pictures of food are painted on the walls.

    Then you go to the counter and ask the burger guy to make you your order. He isn't wearing gloves and looks like he just crawled out of a dark alleyway. You pray that all the char and flames on the burger kill the germies under his fingernails. But wait, those same dirty hands put all the toppings on the burger and touch your dirty money that you pay with. Cash only, if you were wondering.

    Then you stand around the disgarded furniture and half-put together crap in the room and eat the burger. It tastes pretty good. You think to yourself - thank GOD bacteria and germs have no taste to interfere with this.

    Okay look - the burger itself, isolated from the whole place, tastes good. But Jesus Christ, doesn't food inspection come by ever to these little hole in the wall places? It is just disgusting to be touching everything, not washing hands, and not wearing gloves at least. Handling food money and who knows what else is just disgusting. The place itself could use a little tidy up and make over too.

    I'm not going back. And if I have diarrhea, I know why.

  • Review from Mathieu B.

    Roxboro, QC

    3.0 star rating
    Updated - 12/8/2010

    I haven't been sick from them so that's a good point. Maybe it's a little long for a burger, though I understand it's something you rush. About the best burger, the meat is great and it pretty much taste like when you grill yourself burgers on a bbq. It's good!  The issue they have in my opinion is they are understaff. For OBVIOUS sanitary reasons, they should always have 2 employee AT ALL TIME. one on the grill and they other one AT THE CASH ONLY! It's a basic concept and if this place closes soon it will only be because on bad sanitary conditions.  I like their cheeseburger, but in terms of burger they are missing some important stuff for a perfect 5 and here's what it is

    1: BACON! Yup, they don't have bacon on their burgers!
    2: Cheese variety: I like mozzarella but on a cheeseburger I'd like swiss cheese or REAL slices of fresh cheddar
    3: Real Fries! when you ask a Patates, it takes a long moment and most of the time it's not well cooked. Home fries and Onion Rings are important with a burger or some kind of chip.

    Buns c'est un burger malade! Vraiment bien assaisonné. De quoi à nous rappeler nos exploits sur le BBQ. Le probleme avec cette place la c'est:

    1: faut qu'ils aient plus de staff: au moins 2 en tout temps. 1 a la caisse et 1 sur le grill
    2: Plus de condiment, du bacon!!! cristi! du Bacon c'est comme un méga-classique sur un burger. Et si on en mange pas souvent des hamburgers, quand on en mange un, on veut se gâter avec une petite folie comme du bacon, pas vrai!
    2: des Vraies frites. Ben oui toi! tu regardes l'espace de travail, tu attends après ton burger et tu cogites sans cesse en  te disant: y me manque quelque chose! Des frites, des vraies frite maison!

    Simplement dit, Buns pourrait être une franchise très populaire s'ils avaient une gestion plus solide et un profesionalisme plus éprouvé.  Des vrais frites, du vrai bacon, des condiments frais  du bon fromage et puis le tour est joué!

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    1 Previous Review: Show all »

    • 4.0 star rating
      10/29/2010

      K.I.S.S
      e t  i  t
      e   m u
      p   p  p
          l    i
          e   d

      Yup! that's what this place does!
      7$ a double… Read more »

  • Review from Matt F.

    • 7 friends
    • 11 reviews

    Toronto, ON

    4.0 star rating
    4/23/2009

    It's theres one thing I've learned from years of watching TV's Gordon Ramsey shout at people and call them cunt faces, it's that the key to running a good restaurant is simplicity. "K'maan Big Boy, fuckin' simple, yes? Simple!" he'd get in their face and holler as they're brazing something over an open fire. If Mr. Ramsey's success in the culinary world is any indication, he knows what he's talking about. Buns, the little burger stand on Saint-Catherine in Montreal, is about the simplest take-out place I've ever seen (save for the homeless fellow who once offered to sell me ham).

    The menu is simple, just Hamburgers, Double Hamburgers, grilled Potatoes and cans of pop. The layout is simple, just 1 large grill framed by a giant open window, with 2 or 3 tables in the back. Prices are simple (I believe it was $2 & $3, no penny amounts in sight) even the name and logo design are simple. If Buns were a font, it'd be Helvetica.

    I won't say the man behind the grill was simple, because that's mean. He seemed to be enjoying himself and had an uncanny ability to switch between English and French at will, without a trace of accent. I got the hamburger (made into a cheeseburger at no extra cost), it took about 3-4 minutes and it was juicy and delicious. The meat was fresh off the grill and lightly seasoned with steak spice. The veggies were crunchy and crisp, and just the right amount of sauces were added. Oddly enough, for a place called Buns, the bun was probably the worst part (oh, sweet irony!), it was a little bland and crusty for my liking.

    Its refreshing to come across a take-out place that does one thing and does it well. I was never offered to turn it into a wrap for 99 cents, or if I'd like pan-seared avocados on top with a glaze made of ostrich egg yolk. No BS. Just simple cheap hamburgers, made efficiently.

    Right on, Buns!

  • Review from Mish A.

    • 12 friends
    • 2 reviews

    Brooklyn, NY

    USA
    4.0 star rating
    9/4/2011

    Awesome simple burgers to end your night. Prep time was a bit long, and I didn't get to try the fries as they were out by 2:30am.

  • Review from Sara S.

    Montréal, QC

    4.0 star rating
    4/14/2011

    This may just be my ultimate guilty pleasure. I remember when Buns was a hole in the wall institution, just grease and even greasier dudes, probably high, serving up burgers and potato wedges at 2 am. There's more than one Buns location now, but it's still what I crave on a drunken summer night. The portebella burger is excellent, marinated to perfection, and the bun is just right. The potato wedges are hit or miss, sometimes slightly undercooked, but usually down right delicious. This is drunk food at it's best.

  • Review from Charles G.

    • 4 friends
    • 6 reviews

    Montréal, QC

    5.0 star rating
    12/6/2010 1 photo

    This is a little hole in the wall on St. Catherine's that I think has one of the best burgers in this city. It's hard to find a good burger in Montreal, that's true, but this place REALLY takes the cake. Especially for the insanely great price.

    The menu goes like this:
    Burger $5
    Double Burger $8
    Fries $2
    Drink $1
    Vege-Burger $5
    Cheese is free.
    TAX INCLUDED

    You go in, order your burger and then you sit and wait till it's ready. There's a fridge you can just grab a drink whenever and then at the very end of your meal before you leave, the cashier will ask how many drinks you've had, you pay and go. I have 2 things I love about this: 1. It's nice seeing that they trust you in the number of drinks you've taken. 2. THERE'S NO TAX! If it's $5, you're paying $5! I LOVE that. So convenient!

    Their fries are marinated in oil and Montreal steak peppers and then grilled. They're cut into slices and they're not exactly crispy. I think they're a very original recipe on fries.

    That's my opinion, I honestly have no idea why other people are saying it's normal. I think the meat is delicious! It's also seasoned with Montreal steak peppers.

    A tip though: The branch on St. Catherine's St. is by far the best tasting, has the best atmosphere and the best music. No idea why that is.

  • Review from DAVE I.

    • 24 friends
    • 96 reviews

    Montréal, QC

    3.0 star rating
    1/18/2009

    I love dives, love them. You find the tastiest fast food in those. And someone opened a new one and went to great lengths to NOT make it look like a chain restaurant. They went for the street-food look but indoors. The logo design for Buns is reminiscent of the 70s. All the place need was a few pinball machines and it could have passed for The Hub from That 70s Show.

    The place feels like a couple of students got tired of working for McDonald's and opened up this joint to keep working during their studies but I could be terribly wrong. The menu couldn't be simpler. You have Hamburgers, Double-Hamburgers, Roasted Potatoes and Soft-Drinks. And that's it - of course cheese is an option on the burgers and it's free. Everything is prepared on a single fire grill parked in the window display to attract pedestrian traffic indoors, keeping with the street food inspiration.

    If you've been keeping up, that's right, no fries but grilled potatoes. And that's a great change from the insane amount of fried potatoes we get to eat in the period of a month. And they are pretty damn tasty and much more filling than fries.

    I wish I could be as enthusiastic about the burger though. Sadly there's nothing to be wowed about the BUNS Burger. It's a standard issued dry over-cooked burger you've eaten before at your uncle's poolside BBQ during the summer time. Good filler but a good burger it is not. The meat was dry, unseasoned, bland and very ordinary chuck. The bun was good so were the fixings. But an ordinary burger, nothing to make me understand why everyone in the dive were raving about the burgers? Maybe the patrons are also tired of eating pre-fabs at the food chains and simply enjoy the home-made taste of BUNS and I so get that. But the patty could have used a little imagination to seriously create a demarcation point from your run of the mill burger.

  • Review from Andrew A.

    • 11 friends
    • 35 reviews

    Montréal, QC

    4.0 star rating
    8/21/2009

    I love the simplicity of this place. A good burger, but nothing mind blowing, OK potatoes, and cheap. The atmosphere is what makes it, the characters that are behind the grill make me laugh each time i go in. Worth stopping in while you're wandering around on St Catherine's.

    You can wait awhile for your food if there are a few people waitng.

  • Review from Olivia G.

    • 0 friends
    • 4 reviews

    Montréal, QC

    5.0 star rating
    9/8/2010

    I disagree with the people below in that I think Buns IS mindblowing.

    All dressed with extra cheese and hot sauce, people, come on.

    4 dollars of yummmm.

  • Review from Nadia O.

    • 1 friend
    • 57 reviews

    Toronto, ON

    3.0 star rating
    8/7/2011

    The burger is great but don't take the fries, it's like a slimy patato soup it's disgusting, seriously!

  • Review from Stefan C.

    • 23 friends
    • 8 reviews

    Montréal, QC

    4.0 star rating
    2/11/2009

    Very basic ''simple" hamburger shop. I really loved this place.  Small, barely any place to eat, its probably better as a take-out place, but still great.

    I liked the burger a lot, the meat was tasty, buns fresh, and fresh crisp vegetables.

    For what it is, a great place.

  • Review from Amber D.

    • 3 friends
    • 23 reviews

    Wellesley, MA

    USA
    5.0 star rating
    9/9/2010

    3 burgers, 2 sodas, grill fries, and tip for a little under $20 is not bad! The guy making food was really nice, and the place seemed like a pretty busy (though small) burger joint. No complaints about the burger (nothing amazing, but not at all bad) or the buns (unique but pretty good). A nice quick place to refuel.

  • Review from Nikolaos N.

    • 14 friends
    • 64 reviews

    Montréal, QC

    3.0 star rating
    7/1/2009

    There are not many good burger places in Montreal. This one is decent good for a cheap bite, but nothing mind blowing.

Read more reviews for this business: French (2)

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