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Santos
Categories: Restaurants Tapas Bars Nightlife Bars Lounges Tapas Bars, Lounges [Edit]
191, Rue St-Paul OuestMontréal, QC H2Y 1Z5
(514) 849-8881
- Hours:
Mon-Sun 5 pm - 3 am
- Good for Kids:
- No
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Attire:
- Dressy
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Price Range:
-
$$$
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
- Delivery:
- No
- Take Away:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Good For:
- Late Night, Dinner
- Music:
- DJ
- Best Nights:
- Fri, Thu, Sat
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
- Smoking:
- No
- Coat Check:
- No
- Good For Dancing:
- No
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- No
18 reviews for Santos
18 reviews in English
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Review from Elise R.
Pickering, ON
6/24/2011 1 Check-in Here
I am a finger food lover and that definitely includes tapas. Needless to say I did enjoy this place.
I ordered their six vegetarian tapas and shared it with one other person. It was filling but we weren't stuffed. So about three tapas each is a good serving.
All the food was delicious, my favourite was the nachos; my parters favourite was the rice and mushrooms in garlic butter.
I should also point out that a meat-eating friend ate with us and noted that his fillet minon was very tender and delicious. His salad also came with fresh figs that impressed me.
If you don't mind spending a little money, give this place a try. If you want to be on the conservative side, stick to the vegetarian options... They are a couple bucks cheaper. -
Review from Ty S.
Montréal, QC
4/27/2012
If you have a big group with dudes and chicks, bottle service is required to get you thru that door to have fun. It's a small place to listen to drink and party. No dance floor to get your jiggy on but create your own. The boy's I have been there with have told me stories about girls heading to the boys washroom with them. IDK......... but overall it's fun but expensive.
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Review from Arwen L.
4/24/2011
This place is a 3.5 stars but I am going to round down and let me tell you why.
Like many others who come to Santos, our hearts were shattered when we could not only not get a reservation at Garde Manger, but we couldn't even get inside for a drink to warm us up. So we opted for Santos. And I can tell you I am happy we ended up here!
We knew immediately that getting obliterated on booze was not in our future as we were going to behave like adults, so we ordered two bottles of wine. To start.
Anyhow, back to being a grown up. I selected the wine but was REALLY disappointed because get this...NO SPANISH WINE?!?!?! At a Spanish tapas place?!?!?! Did I miss the memo? Can they not import Spanish wine into Canada???
Well, as it turns out, this poor place has faced an uphill battle with Quebec's strict regulations (and blah, blah, blah, some boring story about why, inserted here). So because of this, they lose two stars. I am sorry, but this place could be great, but no Spanish wine = 3 stars.
Now, on to the GOOD stuff! The service was unbelievable! I am almost inclined to say it was 5 stars. The wait staff was very attentive refilling our glasses of wine and water through the evening. Oh and for those of you who don't know, in Quebec, they split the bills for you, per person at the table, without you having to beg for it the way we do in the States! How easy is that? At the end of the night our bill(s) arrived and poof, bingo bango, separate tabs!
There was no pressure on ordering quickly even though the house was packed!
Fantastic music selection with everything from Chromeo and Beck to Iron and Wine and Tribe playing all night long.
The decor was sick and not at all over done in red as Devan R. mentioned, but it has been nearly a year since his review, so perhaps Santos heeded Devan's critique.
As for the wait staff, they were dressed all in black with red accents. I am also pretty certain that in order to be a member of the wait staff, you must be the offspring of either Aphrodite or Adonis.
Good lord, these were some of the most mesmerizing people I have had the chance to watch work in a long time. It was like being at a strip club but with fully dressed people who weren't taking their clothes off asking for dollah, dollah, bills y'all (C.R.E.A.M. for those of you not getting the reference, http://www.youtube.com...).
The food was 3 stars. Not the best nor most traditional Spanish tapas I have had but a worthy effort. We had the croquettes, rack of lamb, salmon tartare, a meat lovers paella, asparagus, patatas bravas (IMO such an overrated dish, anywhere), manchego stuffed meatballs, veal mini burgers and the big green salad. Personally, I would have been more adventurous, but I was in a group and at their mercy.
I would also gladly come here just to have a drink at the bar. It was slammed and definitely an "It" spot! I want this place to be 5 stars, it has the potential!Listed in: Good for Groups, My Quest in Quebec
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Review from Brittany D.
5/29/2011
Enough of sober time, I'm ready for more drinks so we check out this really swanky tapas bar called Santos in the area. For those of you who knew me in DC, you know that my license plate was named after the Flirtini, from which I earned the nicknamed following a relatively tame family event in a martini bar in uppity Connecticut. Naturally then, I would make my way towards the Fucktini which I tried at Santos. Let me break it down for y'all. Fucktini = Absinthe + Smirnoff + Red Bull, which appropriately tastes like ass.
The place was really big and I hear it gets really packed but on that Sunday it was pretty dead. It's nicely decorated and there was some easy going jazz music. Overall, pretty chill place. -
Review from Daniel F.
Montréal, QC
9/9/2011
Was here for a party last weekend and had a blast. They play great Jazz music on Sundays and the tapas are really amazing. Would highly recommend.
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Review from Beth M.
2/14/2010 1 photo
Traipsing around on a Sunday night, looking for a spot to eat dinner, we discovered many restaurants were closed.
After reading a few menus posted outside, Santos' looked the most appetizing to our light appetite. This tapas restaurant is trendy and loungy with red lights, house music, and waitresses in short black dresses. Clientele were young and good looking.
Our server asked us what kind of wine we were having but we decided on cocktails (Sapphire Fizz for me which was tasty).
We ordered a green salad (good sized with sweet balsamic dressing), grilled chorizo (good, looked like a chicken breast) and goat cheese croquettes (awesome, recommended by our waitress).
Drinks + food = $45 (not including tip)Listed in: A Midwesterner in Montreal
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Review from Devan R.
6/14/2010
I feel compelled to this write review so that I may save others from the brutal dining experience I endured at Santos.
My friends and I had never planned to attend Santos that night in Vieux-Montreal, we were planning to go to a recommended restaurant named Garde-Manger, but unfortunately GM was absolutely packed without a free seat in the house.
We then decided to walk along Rue Saint Paul to find another resto as we were all famished. As we turned the corner, there was Santos. Their menu was posted outside (like most restaurants in the area) and they had a fairly diverse and interesting Tapas selection. We decided to go in even though the place was decorated and lit like a nightclub.
Upon walking in I could not believe how red everything was. Tables, chairs, fixtures, lights, candle holders, even the staff were mostly dressed in red. The décor of the establishment was hurting, there was art on the wall that didn't flow and did not belong. Essentially this place was the exact opposite of what Vieux-Montreal is, IMO.
To start, we ordered a pitcher each of Mojito & Sangria along with an array of Tapas. The Mojito mix could have used some more sugar and perhaps some more muddling, although it wasn't terrible, I have just experienced much better (Copacabana/anywhere in Miami). The Sangria tasted like fruit juice, so much so that we had to ask the waiter if there was any alcohol in it. He instructed us that he gets asked that all the time and guaranteed there is the correct amount of alcohol in the pitcher, it's simply the way the bartender mixes it you don't really taste the alcohol. Our waiter had been solid up until that point and truthfully, I believed him.
Unfortunately...our Tapas began arriving:
Tomatoes w/ Mozzarella di Bufala- 4 slices of tomato on a plate with a half ball of mozzarella cheese on top, that's it. No salt and fresh black pepper or EVOO on the tomatoes, no EVOO drizzle on the cheese, no chiffonade of basil, no garnish? It is very disappointing when you order an item from a restaurant only to find that you could make it 10x better at home wearing a blindfold.
Teriyaki Beef - tough, chewy, overcooked and riddled with sesame seeds, uninspired and poorly executed. If you are going to borrow a dish from another culture, do it properly. Santos is a 15min walk from Chinatown, no excuses.
Fried Calamari w/ fried aioli - not bad at all, but then again, it's fried calamari. My only quam would be that it may have been a touch undercooked as the batter was a slightly softer than that crisp bite I am accustomed to. Overall though I can't really complain, I would rather have the calamari slightly undercooked then over.
Lemon Garlic Chicken - I think that's what it was called. Again... uninspired and chewy. Clearly forgettable.
Beef Tartare - the best executed dish of the night, nice presentation and solid flavour, especially with the capers. However, it was room temperature when it should have been at warmest cool. It did arrive last so maybe the meat wasn't chilled properly or it sat on the pass a minute too long.
Last but not least we come to the toast. I believe it first arrived with the tartare, and the waiter brought us some more a few minutes later. This toast was the hardest toast I have ever received at any food establishment. At first I thought hey, maybe the chef left it on the grill too long and we got the one-off batch. Negative...The 2nd batch was harder than the first which led me to believe that they toast (maybe with a flamethrower) all their bread at once earlier on in the night so it's easier to get it out to the tables quicker. This is completely unacceptable. At the restaurant where I work our cheese toast is made to order, if it sits on the pass for a minute too long, or is on the grill for a second longer than it should be it gets tossed out right away. Santos should give out dentist referrals with their bread.
In summation the 1 star goes to our waiter named Médi (sp?). He was kind and attentive to us and deserves not to be working in that establishment. Will I return to Santos? I don't see how that would be possible. I can't stress enough how this establishment does not flow with all that Vieux-Montreal should be, there is no sense of history, architecture, preservation or substance in it. It really kills me to write such piss poor reviews on restaurants, but it just had to be done in this case. Because of Santos' location and their over the top flashy appearance, I'm sure this review will have little sway on the majority of their customers as it appeals to the masses. The end. -
Review from Lucy G.
9/5/2011
Came in for quick tequilla shots on saturday night. No charge but music was tooooo loud. And no space to dance.
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Review from Carmen M.
8/1/2009 1 photo
I came across Santos the old-fashioned way -- it was recommended to me by the bartender at the hotel in which I'm staying. It also came with a free drink card and who am I to turn down a free drink?!
I hadn't planned on eating at Santos, but after trying to secure reservations at a few other very popular Montréal restaurants without success, I decided I'd redeem my free drink coupon after all, and have a tasty dinner while I was at it.
I got there fairly early in the evening on a Saturday and it was nearly empty. The staff seated me right away and, although I was eating alone, they sat me at a table, when I'm usually seated at the bar. Most places can't be bothered to take up expensive table real estate with a single diner, so I was appreciative! I actually found the staff to be attentive and friendly throughout my entire meal. When I gave them the drink card, my waiter didn't even blink and said "I'm sure my manager will take care of this for you." Next thing I knew, the manager walked over with two shot glasses and said "for eating with us tonight on recommendation from your hotel". Sweet! And delicious. Also, seeing how Santos is a martini bar, I also ordered a "So Fresh" martini. I'm not a huge martini drinker and it wasn't as sweet as I'd have liked, but it was fresh and good.
Santos is a tapas-style restaurant, so I ordered the Blackened Salmon with Avocado Salsa served with seasonal veggies and, of course, the frites! Nom, nom, nom! The presentation of the food was fantastic and was appropriately hot. Lukewarm or lukecold food is a pet peeve of mine, but Santos did not disappoint. The food was good and, while I don't think there was any avocado in the salsa, it was tasty nonetheless.
They cleared my table quickly, but I ended up sitting far too long after dinner before they brought me my cheque. I find this quite often in Toronto, too, but this was a little excessive. They were busy, but I felt like the girl in the bubble who everyone was ignoring! Once I finally got my cheque, I saw that they'd not only brought me the complimentary shot, but they'd also comp'd the martini. Even sweeter. And very generous. I paid my respects by moving over to the bar after dinner and spending an appropriate amount of money on their delicious mojitos. :-)
Overall, I found Santos to be a great experience. Is it the best restaurant on the planet? No, but it's perfectly located in Old Montréal with good food, great drinks, fantastic and helpful staff, and super cool decor. -
Review from Simon R.
Milton, ON
7/2/2010 1 Check-in Here
You want Tapas people? You got it.
I went on a Thursday night and it was not that busy. The music was blasting and I asked for a good local beer. Once I was brought a bottle called M (I assume it stood for Montreal) I was kind of let down. It tasted like feet.
Ok, I'm not reviewing the beer, it just put a bit of a damper on things. Anyway, we ordered about six plates to share between two people and it wasn't bad. I guess I was hoping for a little better. Basically, I'll come back, but I'll probably go somewhere else first. -
Review from Chris G.
8/8/2010
To be honest, I want to go with 3 stars. For a tapas joint, the portions were pretty small.
All of the food was good or great. My mojito made with maple syrup was awesome. Definitely one of my favorite drinks ever.
But it was the poutine that put me over the top. Their poutine was some of the best poutine I had on my trip to Montreal. -
Review from Rebecca H.
North Vancouver, BC
6/4/2010
I was here at the end of April for a last dinner before I left the city for the summer. We arrived fairly early in the evening; the restaurant was almost completely empty and the staff was still setting tables. The décor was modern, with lots of red and black accents. The temperature of the restaurant was a little too cool to be comfortable and I had to still my companion's sweater in order to keep warm.
They appeared to have a full bar running and the wine list was decent.
It took a while for a waiter to bring the menus and water. However, when we asked him his suggestions on the menu, he was more that willing to help out and point towards things that he thought we might like. To split between two, we ordered a garden salad, boeuf tartare, bruschetta, and tuna mini-burgers. The wine list was also decent and we both found reds to try. They appear to be running a full bar and were advertising a $1000 bottle special while we were there.
The food took a while to arrive; however, when it did arrive I was delighted by the artistic presentation. It was all very good, but my favorite was the boeuf tartare. It was creamy with slight lemon undertones, absolutely perfect to spread on the crispy bread that was provided. Equally delicious eaten by the spoonful. The bruschetta and green salad were both fairly standard restaurant style. Good and flavourful, but nothing to elaborate at great length upon. The tuna burgers were....well... beef... I think they probably messed up our order as both were on the menu. The beef ones were delicious, yet I had been looking forward to trying the tuna and was a little disappointed.
The total for the entire meal including alcohol came to around $70. While it was a good meal, I think the price was a little high considering the not-too-stellar service, the small portions, and the fairly standard quality. I'm not entirely convinced that I'll return, as I think that I can do a little better for that much. -
Review from Lyssa P.
6/14/2010 1 photo
Went on a Tuesday night and the place was virtually empty when we arrived. Montreal must have a later dinner crowd, because by the time we left around 10pm it was starting to fill up.
Our waitress was new, so she couldn't help with a lot of recommendations as she hadn't tried much yet (other than try to upsell, which she did a lot).
We had the salmon tartar, which was fantastic. Also had a bottle of La Crema pinot noir, which is now one of our favorites and we're hoping to find it at home.
The space is very cool, and the music was great. Good spot. -
Review from sabine t.
2/16/2011
I have to admit, there is absolutley nothing bad i can say about this place. We got the goat cheese and spinach tapas. Delicious. We also got quesadillas. Honestly, they were more like fajitas. Usually when i order quesadillas, i expect cheese. These had tortillas, chicken, peppers with choices of sour cream, guacamole and salsa. Fajitas right? That's okay, because they were delicious. My husband got the ribs. They were a tab bit dry for our taste, but still great. The sangria is amazing, nothing wrong with them and everything right. Our waiter was exceptional. I wish i could remember his name, but we gave him a great tip. Bigger than we've ever given. He was just that good.I would def go again.
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Review from Deborah G.
Montréal, QC
4/26/2009
Beautiful place but HORRENDOUS SERVICE!
Issues:
1. did not have our reservation
2. seated us in the worst place in the restaurant because they had other big reservations but managed to lose ours...
3. Super slow and bad service
4. Very, very limited menu
5. Expensive for quality of food (meat was undercooked)
6. Supposedly a tapas place?!? yeah....
7. Ordered a brazilian coffee, was told the machine was broken, coffee mysteriously appeared in a cup, was luke warm and cup half full. Gross..Was then charged 7$ for that nasty coffee!!
8. Was then told by the waiter that they had another reservation coming so we would have to give up our table... Unbelievable!
9. Waiter poorly attempted to remedy the situation by offering us a shot
10.Had to hunt down the waiter to get bill and then again later to pay it.
This place is only passable, if you already happen to be in the area and are only there for a drink or 2, besides that, DON'T WASTE YOUR TIME AND MONEY!
-The only good things I have to say about this place is that the decor is lovely and the DJ (Eric Chorney) was outstanding- -
Review from Benoit S.
5/29/2010
Very trendy and happening. This place is usually quite busy on Friday and Saturday night, with a relatively young and good looking crowd.
All the tapas that we have tried were good, but I would particularly recommend the Filet Mignon, and the "Honeydew melon with prosciutto and Porto reduction". And, you might want to try the Rosé Sangria! -
Review from Hassan A.
Toronto, ON
4/25/2010 1 Check-in Here
great place. awesome ambiance. the servers were top knotch....not to mention the ladies that were coming in and out. Its something out of the movies. Somewhere I will be going back to for years to come for sure
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Review from Urban D.
5/29/2010
Located in old Montreal, this place has a very nice athmosphere. It is trendy, young, and has great food and service. We went there on a Friday night and the DJ that was playing there was really good, mixing old and new songs.
It is a tapas restaurant so we ordered several dishes:
AAA filet mingnon with sauteed mushrooms - it was divine. The meat was cooked with perfection.
Mini tuna burguer - not so "mini" actually. To me it was a full size burguer. It was light and very tasty.
Goat cheese salad with pine nuts and strawberry vinagrette - very light and delicious salad, and the warm goat cheese really gave it a special touch.
Manchego cheese and nut foundue - I guess I was expecting something different, but I was not very impressed. By the time I got to that dish, the cheese was hard and just didn't do anything for me.
Overall I had a very good experience, and I would definitely go back to Santos.
