Biiru Izakaya Montréal

Biiru Izakaya is a Japanese fusion izakaya restaurant in Montréal that’s inspired by Tokyo’s lively back alleyways and the vibrant energy of downtown Montréal. The restaurant serves a variety of small, meant to be shared Japanese fusion dishes as well as signature cocktails and alcohols on the menu. Step inside the restaurant and you’ll see how the inspirations are reflected in the way they decorate the space. The Japanese artworks painted on the walls, the vibrant neon lights illuminating different corners of the room and the Japanese paper lanterns hanging from the ceiling certainly reminiscence of the energy one would find while walking around the street of Tokyo. The restaurant has plenty of seatings that could accommodate everyone from solo diners to big groups, making this place a great spot for every occasion.

I went to Biiru during my trip to Montréal because my friend suggested the place. She’s been there a couple of times before and liked the food so she wanted me to try it to while we’re in town. It was a Thursday night and we tried to get a last minute reservation online but there’s no table available for 7:30 pm on the system. Since we’re not in a rush, we decided to just try our luck with walk-in. And guess luck was on our side because they actually have a table available for us at the outdoor area. The weather wasn’t too cold (it was early October and the outdoor area was covered with heater lamps on different corners of the area) so we thought sitting outside is probably okay.

Since we’re at an izakaya, we decided to just order a bunch of dishes to share between the two of us so we can try different things. What we ordered:

🍹 Onsen (C$15.95) | 8/10

Sparking Wine, Shiso, Green Tea Syrup, Grapefruit, Passionfruit

My friend ordered this one and she said it was good. She liked it and finished the whole thing.

🍵 Matcha Matcha (C$10.95) | 8/10

I ordered the Matcha Matcha mocktail. Nice matcha, not too strong, not too bitter, not too sweet. It has a nice earthy taste and definitely not something that I usually taste in an iced matcha (in a good, interesting way).

🍽️ Korn Korokke (C$11.95) | 7.5/10

Corn Croquettes, Japanese Curry, Cream, Fukunjinzuke

The croquettes were nicely fried and the curry wasn’t too strong. 

🥟 Pork Gyoza (C$10.95) | 8/10

Homemade Pork Japanese Raviolis, Gyoza Sauce

Great pork gyoza. The gyoza skin wasn’t too thick and the pork was flavorful. 

🍳 Okonomiyaki (C$12.95) | 7/10

Bonito Japanese Pancake with Mushroom & Cabbage, Truffle Oil

The okonomiyaki was just okay for me. Seasoning was a bit under for my personal taste but texture wise, it was pretty good.

🍽️ Kaisen Don (C$20.95) | 8/10

Salmon, Tuna, Emeabi, Ikura, Eel, Tamago, Kampyo, Shiso, Cucumber, Furikake, Sesame Seed, Rice

The Kaisen Don was pretty good. It tasted fresh and and light.

🍽️ Gyudon (C$14.95) | 7/10

Sliced Beef, Caramelized Onions, Beni Shoga, Rice

Honestly I was excited to try their gyudon but the beef was pretty dry for my personal preference (I like gyudon with more tender, juicier meat and a little bit of sauce). Taste was okay, it’s just the beef that we got was a bit dry.

All and all, although I liked some of the dishes better than the others, the food overall was pretty good for a modern Japanese fusion izakaya spot. Service was great and the staff who waited our table was nice. The noise level at this place was pretty high though since it is a drinking place and the acoustic of the outdoor area isn’t necessarily the best one. We were seated next to a table of ladies who were drinking quite heavily and at some point me and my friend had to shout while talking to each other because they were talking so loud. We left not long after we finished our meal because I had no energy left to shout over the noise of the room. 

But if you’re looking for a good Japanese fusion izakaya spot with great drinks menu and lively atmosphere in Montreal, Biiru is worth to try.

 

Biiru Montréal

Address: 1433 Rue City Councillors, Montréal, QC H3B 1B1, Canada
Telephone: +15149031555
Hours: Monday-Friday 11:30am-2:30pm, 5-10pm | Closed on Sundays

Instagram: @biiru_mtl
Biiru Website

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Pizza Il Focolaio

Pizza Il Focolaio is a wood burning oven pizzeria in Montréal that has been around since 1984. Taking inspiration from the old country, the pizzeria serves authentic Italian pizza with the freshest top of the line ingredients that are made daily. They also have a whopping 77 different pizza on the menu, giving customers plenty of options to choose from.

Ended up at this place because of my friend’s recommendation. She’s been to this pizzeria before and thought their pizza is amazing so she took me here during our Montréal trip. The place was busy when we went for a visit during peak lunch hour rush on a Thursday. There was even quite a long line forming outside the restaurant of people waiting for a table. We ended up waiting for about 15 minutes or so before getting a table. The waiting time wasn’t too bad to be honest. And if you don’t want to wait, you can always order to go and eat it at the park across the street where they have limited tables and seatings available.

The restaurant itself is not too small. There are about 46 seatings inside the restaurant and every table was occupied when we walked in (I took the pictures on this post after the lunch rush was over and when we’re bout to leave so it’s a bit emptier). It’s pretty loud inside with chatter from every table filling up the room. Most patrons looked like office workers who were enjoying their lunch breaks. There are also more seatings at the patio area in front of the restaurant that’s perfect for a good weather day if you choose to sit outside.

Caesar Salad CA$18.50 | 8.5/10

Romaine lettuce with cesar dressing*, croutons, Parmigiano-Reggiano. *Cesar dressing (contains anchovies, mustard, milk and egg in sauce)

For starters, we ordered the Caesar Salad to share. It was fresh and nicely seasoned. Not too salty or peppery or cheesy. Very balanced. The portion was quite generous too.

No.23 Campagnola CA$22.25 | 9.5/10

Sauce, mushrooms, onions, spicy pancetta (Italian bacon), mozzarella, black olives. Meat pizza.

I ordered this one and I have to say this was probably one of the best pizza I’ve ever had in recent times. The pizza was cooked really well with that wood burning aroma whiffing off of the crust that’s slightly charred on different spots. The texture was nice, chewy and there’s a slight bounce to the bite. All the toppings were also evenly cooked and sitting nicely on top of the gooey mozzarella. The portion is quite big and generous and I ended up not being able to finish the whole thing. But I did half eat of the pan before feeling really stuffed and so did my friend with her pizza order.

No.68 A La Griglia CA$22.25 | 9/10

Fresh tomatoes, mozzarella, grilled vegetables (zucchini, eggplant, onions, artichokes, mushrooms, green and red peppers), fresh garlic, Italian herbs, olive oil, Parmigiano-Reggiano. Vegetables pizza.

My friend actually ordered this one and I have the same comment about the overall pizza like the Campagnola. I think their pizza is really solid and you can just order whichever pizza that have the toppings that you like and I’m pretty sure you’ll enjoy it. 

As I was editing the photos and vlog from this place, I was reminded once again on how good this meal was and ended up craving for this pizza again. And now after I’ve tried it, I can totally see why my friend likes this place so much. Their pizza is really THAT good. Next time I’m in Montréal, I would definitely come back to this place again.

 

Pizza Il Focolaio

Address: 1223 R. du Square-Phillips, Montréal, QC H3B 3E9, Canada
Telephone: +15148791045
Hours:
Monday to Wednesday 11:00 am—8:30 pm
Thursday 11:00 am—9:00 pm
Friday 11:00 am—9:30pm
Saturday 12:00 pm—9:30pm
Closed on Sundays

Instagram: @ilfocolaio

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