Restaurant Alep

A French Canadian version of Syrian Lebanese cuisine. The food was good but a few things were a bit off the mark. The grilled meats were a bit on the dry side. The hummus in the appetizers and the grease leaves very a bit too lemon-y. The ambiance and environment is good. Service is great, and for wine drinkers there is a massive wine list. The food is good too, I would day with a little local twist. Only minus 1 star for me as I expected stronger flavor authentic Lebanese and Syrian style foods. But a very good experience overall. Recommended.

The food and service were excellent, but I expected a bit more of a Syrian ambiance. We were a group of six, and it’s quite normal to spend at least two hours enjoying a meal at a restaurant. However, the staff seemed to be rushing us to leave after about two hours, which made the experience feel a bit pressured. Overall, the food was delicious, but the atmosphere could be improved to make guests feel more relaxed.

A restaurant worth a visit. The atmosphere is nice and the service is excellent. I had the fattoush dish and it was one of the most delicious I have ever tasted.

Our first time and what a wonderful experience! We knew that they had vegan options but did not know that they offered a vegan tasting menu! Everything was delicious with plenty of flavours. Excellent friendly accommodating service. Sorbet for dessert capped off a great meal. Tasting menu is 45$-50$ per person. Well worth it.

We ended up eating here twice during our short vacation. It's really great food and there's so many different things we wanted to try. Frankly, everything we had was good. Service was quick and friendly. My favorite dish was the Aleppo cheese.

For the price, I expected the food to have bolder flavours and have more variety in terms of the texture in each bite. I got the sea bass and I preferred it in other restaurants. The flavours they went with I found were more on the bland side. I preferred the mudjadara then the sea bass cause it was more flavourful. I remember petit alep had better flavours so would need to go back there to re-confirm.

I had just four tiny shrimp and a small portion of rice, and since there wasn’t much to eat, I asked for some sauce—but they charged $3 for it. I was really shocked at the size of the shrimp. The pre-tip total came to just over $30.

Summary: high prices, tapas portions, taste isn’t that great! I ordered fattoush, humus and a chicken tawook skewer. All of the portions were so small (like kids portions, serious talk) but their prices weren’t. They call this tapas (small portions). As for the taste, the humus wasn’t bad but was sour, chicken was fresh but I didn’t like its marination, fattoush was okay. I paid $40 and I wasn’t even full. I won’t repeat this visit for sure.

Wonderful experience! The service was so kind and attentive. Our family has dietary restrictions but we were able to do a tasting menu and explore the cuisine! Some of the most delicious middle-eastern food we've ever tasted, with wine pairings and side dishes that brought out the best in everything. Thank you!

Very good prepared middle eastern food , the spices and ingredients make it special . Dishes are big enough and tasty with special well chosen ingredients , very special place to taste Lebanese or Syrian dishes .

My family and I have been coming here for over a decade and I always leave very full and happy. I can honestly say the service and the quality of food are consistently excellent. I would rate this restaurant in my top for middle eastern food with Damas. It's no secret this place is great so make sure to call and make reservations before hand. They have a more casual branch called le petit Alep next door but I believe it fills up just as quick. The waiters and sommelier are ready to help you and offered a preset menu for groups. However, we knew exactly what we wanted to we went ahead and ordered our favourites. We started with the hummus, muhammara, fattouch salad, tabbouleh, kibbeh (baked comes with yogurt sauce) and Aleppo sausages. I honestly would recommend all of them, they were all so delicious I have no favourite out of these! We then ordered the spicy 3 meat sampler which comes with kabab, chicken and filet mignon. I could eat a whole other plate of filet mignon. These come covered with garnished pita and bring it to a whole new level. Wrap the meat with these and you'll never want to eat anything else. Very grateful for this Syrian restaurant and the consistent quality over the years, 5 star for every visit.

Made a reservation a week before we got to town and our party of 7 was seated right away. This is their larger, slightly more fancy restaurant (as the bistro type sister restaurant is next door which was more crowded and had a younger vibe). Had a great waiter who advised us to order family style as we were sharing everything. Started with some mezze including the BEST BABA GANOUSH we've ever had! Smokey with rich eggplant -- this one is a keeper. The Chicken kebabs were moist and loaded with flavor and the rice pilaf was up there with my Moms (and she's 100% Armenian). Slight letdown was the beef kebabs as we all thought there was too much clove spice in it. Other than that I can highly recommend this lovely, mid-priced restaurant -- a nice change of pace from typical Montreal cuisine.

Alep is my favorite restaurant in town and an absolute must if you have a deep love for Middle Eastern food. They obviously have the Middle Eastern staples, such as falafel, hummus, baba ganoush and kofta, but they also offer fish and kibbeh nayeh (tartare). Everything is spiced to perfection and they also have a superb wine menu, curated by their in-house sommelier. I especially recommend their current Serbian offering: a red 2016 Obecanje. They also have exquisite service standards and the place is always lovely. The lighting is dimmed enough for it to be intimate but they can cater to large groups regardless. I love it and I heartily recommend it.

Always passed by this restaurant whenever I went to Jean Talon market but I never really paid attention to it until this year. It was my first experience with Syrian food and I was blown away! Great service, the sommelier was super kind and helpful and they have a great selection of drinks. We started off with the fish, it was a little over cooked for my liking but the toppings were chefs kiss. The spicy fries were so tasty and flavourful (very cumin-y though!!). Despite having cheese in the spicy toshka, it was well worth the consequences for my lactose intolerant ass. The sausages were also yummy! Their plates are pretty small but it's sort of like tapas style so you can order quite a few things and have a variety of dishes. We also got 3 desserts, I really enjoyed the pudding thing I ordered (I forgot the name but it was rose water something) but it was a tad too sweet for me. The baklava and the choco ice cream were great as well! Will definitely come back

Airy restaurant with helpful and friendly staff. My husband and I shared a few items from the mazza menu, then added the lamb poutine. Everything was so fresh and flavourful!

After bragging about Damas restaurant and my workplace , my colleague told me to try Alep. So I called on a Friday night asking for reservations, I knew I would have no chance since I had heard you need reservations weeks in advance. But I guess it was my lucky day, as there had just been a cancellation. The place looked old but it had a nice feel to it. I explained to the waiter that it was my first time here and he suggested the taster menu, i was a three course meal, first was a sea bass with lemon and anis sauce, then it would be followed by three mezzes and then it would be finished with half portion of filet mignon and lamb shank on top of a cardamon rice. I explained to him that I don't like fish and I don't like lamb. The waiter then laughed and said:" Listen try it and if you don't like it, it would be my pleasure to eat the rest for you" Hahahaha that was funny. So I gave it a try, and I was astonished, I loved everything, the fish, the lamb were put of this world, the filet mignon was so tender. The Fattouche was different than your normal Fattouche but I enjoyed it. The only this that I did not enjoy very much was the hummus and that was because it had cumin in it, and I am not a fan. A great experience. I finished the meal with a delicious chocolate ice cream. Now if you ask me is Damas better or Alep, they both get 5 stars in my opinion. Either one you choose you will have a wonderful experience. Although Alep's portion are a bit smaller but the prices are a bit cheaper too.

I was not pleased with the overall quality of the food. I enjoy flavours of the Middle East. Unfortunately I didn't get that with Alep. The fattouch salad was very ordinary and lacked taste There was zero to no salt. The lamb on rice was dry and boring Sorry but it needs to be better with the all the Compitition in the city

My boyfriend is Syrian and took me here so I guess its legit! We were three people and shared everything. Just so you know Alep is the more fancy restaurant. The Petit Alep has a cute terrace and is less fancy. We shared two mazzas - hummus and kebbé nayé (beef tartare, bourghol and finely chopped onions spiced with fléflé). It was probably the best kebbé nayé I ever had. OMG it was so good! The meat was fresh! Get the bigger size for sure! We also shared the fattouche salad. The salad was very tasty. I gotta learn how to make it. We also had the spicy sampler (Kabab khach-khach, Chiche Kabab Terbialy and Shishtaouck) and the braised lamb with wine, port and spices served on rice topped with sauteed almonds and pine nuts, choice of salad or yogurt. We got the yogurt. I didn't really use the yogurt. I honestly liked it better without. We didn't get the salad because we already had the fattouche. The braised lamb is good if you like stew. I preferred the spicy sampler. It's not spicy though... at least not for my tastes. Out of the three meats I think I preferred the shish taouk. The sampler also comes with slices pita bread with some spicy powder on it. That was very good too. The pita bread that they give you at the beginning looks like the ones you buy at IGA/metro but they are warm and apparently they are not from IGA/metro but they are fresh. My boyfriend ordered dessert but I was way too full and didn't have any so I can't if it was good or not. I think I would want to try the Petit Alep and sit on the terrace on a nice, warm night.

Bringing my mother here was a joy for me, for "every bite reminded me of my childhood". Raised by an Armenian father, the dishes and flavors served were what she was raised on. And they are delicious bites indeed! White linen dining, a sommelier, and knowledgeable servers serving rustic, Old World food. Elevated and refined, yet the food is not fussy or modern. It is as my mother remembered. We had reservations, but on a busy Wednesday night, the restaurant was full. We waited a long time to order, both our wine and our food. But once we did, our server was apologetic and attentive, and the food flew right out of the kitchen. Absolutely get the large kibbeh. Bring home all the leftovers. Our server threw in an extra bag of pita for us to take home: I just wish we had ordered double of everything!

This place go so much detailed review already so I will try to keep mine to the point. Also keep in mind that I come from Israel so I am very familiar with this type of food and have a spacial place for it in my heart (or should I say stomach). I cam here with my wife and we tried the Vegetarian starter plat. The food looked amazing and tasted just as good. In fact it was so good we ordered 2 extra things from that plat since we wanted more. The only problem with this place is that I feel it is a little over priced. Sure the food is very good and for quality you need to pay BUT knowing this food from age 0 and my mom makes it and so do I (some of the things) I know that there are things that are more complicated and things that are very basic. So once again my bottom line great food for a bad price. And Yes 4 stars and I may go there again for the atmosphere, but only on rare or spacial actions.

Firstly, there are two Alep restos. This one is for the more traditional, "old school" fine dining for families and the one next door is for the more modern, younger, trendier crowd. When I walked in, I couldn't help but notice how really nice this place looked. The entrance is in the middle of the restoraunt with a long corridor that splits the dining area in two sections with tall walls that protect patrons from the flow of air, a particular issue that can happen during the long winter months. We were well received and guided to our reserved table. All in all a great start. Since we were dining for two, our selection was limited to : Falafel (leguminous doughnut with spices served on finely chopped lettuce topped with tahiné) - I'm a huge falafel fan however this version of the falafel fell short to my expectations. It was clearly a variation of the falafel I know and love but sadly this version didn't agree with taste palette. Fattouche (romaine, tomatoes, cucumbers, grilled pita, garlic) - The fattouche was good... but not great. I feel the spices for this version of the fattouche were somewhat different to what we know and love. Vine leaves (stuff with rice and meat) - Probably the best the star of the evening. We've probably eaten vine leaves at countless restos and have always been disappointed. Most places have the cold variety of this meal however Alep has the warm version of it and it's quite exceptional. My wife was very happy about this plate and said "Almost as good as mom!" This is high praise. The Sampler (Aleppo kabab, Chiche Kabab and Chiche Taouck) - Out of the three, the chiche taouck was probably the weakest of the meats, yet, it was still quite tender and flavorful. The Aleppo kabab was out of this world good!!! My mouth drools right now just thinking about it. We also ordered a side of fries and they were perfect. Well cooked, crispy on the outside and tender on the inside. It complimented the Sampler plate well. Am I making you hungry? Atayef (fried pancake stuffed with either walnuts or ricotta cheese, orange blossom syrup) - We opted for the ricotta and we loved it. It was thinner than usual, with a slightly more syrupy taste but it came out tasting great! Arabic coffee with cardamom - We've never tasted cardamom and most likely won't again. Cardamom has been long known to me being something either folks love or hate it as it has a very potent flavor to it that is very spicy, quite bitter and citrousy. As we tend to love our Arabic coffee, it kind of ruined the experience. The service was exceptional. Our waitress Tania was friendly and accommodating. We never waited very long for our food or water refills. Once she knew this was our first visit and the fact we wanted the bill earlier than expected (because of babysitter), she was even more accommodating. Kudos to the staff of being as awesome as they were. Even my less than 24 hours reservation was worked by Sabrina who was able to come through thankfully for us. We generally liked our experience with Restaurant Alep with a cuisine that was either a hit or miss for us. It's perfectly normal. This was our first experience with Syrian cuisine and while we have eaten at many different Lebanese and Armenian restos, the spices always somewhat differ, the method of how certain things are done are slightly different and the end result can be incredibly different from what you'd expect with food you've eaten previously elsewhere. The price tag can be pretty expensive but then again, you're practically fine dining around the Jean-Talon market area. It's nothing unreasonable but I'd suggest going with at least 4 people, order bigger plates and have a more economic experience with folks splitting the bill. Finally, if you plan to come here to dine, make sure to reserve well in advance as this resto can be busy on weekend.

The meal we had here was right up there with the meal we had at Joe Beef. Alep's wine was better. Also, the service was excellent and the sommelier is a dear. We only ended up here because Air Canada sat us on the tarmac for so long that we missed our reservations at Damas. Honestly, no offense to Damas, I hope to eat there someday, but we walked away feeling very lucky to have had a chance to spend an evening at Alep.

With what is happening in Syria these days, everyone owes it to themselves to try out this amazing restaurant to understand the flavours and diversity of that ancient country. Alep and it's sister restaurant Petit Alep, next door, offer amazing food at great prices and really gives an excellent overview of the diverse tastes and flavours of Syria and Syriac culture. Every last dish here hit it out of the ball park. The lamb nearly melted in your mouth, the grilled shrimp was seasoned to perfection, the salads and rices, all of it flavorful. Little known secret: Alep has one of the the best wine lists in Montreal and easily rivals many of the finer wine bars and chichi French restos of Montreal. They privately import wines from obscure and off-the-beaten track wineries from all over the world. The wine list here practically comes in it's own booklet and choosing your wines will be a harder task than ordering your food, with it's many, many selections. Service is very friendly, the ambience is a study in understated and relaxed casualness, this is great place to come to for dinner either with a special someone or a group of friends.

Yum so good. Was in Montreal for the weekend with my bf from NYC. We are big fans of any cuisine that is kabab-oriented including Indian, Persian, Turkish, Middle Eastern etc. So I was so happy to find Syrian cuisine in Montreal, having never tried Syrian food before. People mentioned that rezzies should be made in advance but I managed to snag one for Saturday night just a couple days before. I had original rezzies at Damas and despite the reviews, I eventually decided I just didn't need to be spending so much for salads + kababs, nahmean? Anyway, the waiter recommended the tasting menu, which sounded super reasonable for $35/pp but I had already checked out the Yelp reviews and basically knew what I wanted. We ordered everything to share and everything was fantastic + filling! Armenian salad - decided to branch out from the usual fattoush and it was great! Tangy, so flavorful + delicious. Small is tiny + individually-sized. Maybe we should have gotten a large. Aleppo kabab - ah SO good!!! Reminded me of Indian seekh kababs, which I basically live for. We did the skewer of 3, which was more than plenty for 2 people. Shrimps Terbialy - delicious. Asked the waiter which of the two shrimp dishes he recommends and he said if you like spicy, def this one. So much masala (for lack of a better word) with flavors I have not tasted in NYC. Loved this dish. Also, the sommelier recommended an Armenian wine (CAD 55) - Artsakh Kataro Dry Red 2015. I like my red wine full bodied + dry, and while it was more medium bodied, it was smooth, dry + delish. Complemented the food very well. Def a fan. Bottom line - yes, Alep lives up to the hype! Wish they were open on Sunday + Monday, would def have gone back!

I go to the Petit Alep all the time. It is the same food but bigger dishes. The food is amazing. One of the best, if not the best Syrian in the city! Holy smokes try the fish or the lamb. I'm in a food coma - I want to eat more because it is so delicious but the servings are too big to finish. Fab lunch for tomorrow.

Excellent friendly service and AMAZING food. Define worth the extra long cab ride from our hotel. We were more than satisfied with everything. Highly recommend this place.

The food was ok but overpriced. Staff was rude and very slow service. Small portions. Overrated for whats its worth. The decoration is very nice though. Too bad

This is a really good Syrian restaurant! But I need to make something very clear. There are two sides to this place, Alep & Petit Alep. Alep is for your Syrian grandfather, Petit Alep is more modern, trendy. But... You can, and should ask for the Alep menu which is larger and more complete. I usually order the tasting menu and it's always great. You get to try about 10 different things in a few services. They also have a fantastic wine list with a huge collection of private imports. Also, plenty of bio wine which is nice to try. Same taste, less sulfites, less hangover;)

All I can say is WOW! My mom is an incredible Lebanese cook so I'm pretty fussy when it comes to middle eastern food. My friend mentioned this place as he had heard good things about it. We made a reservation and headed on over on a Friday night. Decor is really nice, service is great, and the food is amazing. We had the fattouch salad, felafel, and mixed grill platter. My friend hates tomatoes, yet he loved the salad. The steak, chicken and kabob all had nice spices on them to add to the great taste. Everything was perfectly cooked and seasoned. I haven't been there in a while but would definitely go back.

Amazing food and service to match! Alep takes reservations; Alep Petit, next door, is more casual, but does not - and reservations are highly recommended, both fill up fast. And for good reason. We went with their fixed menu, which started with spreads and salads and then moved into kabobs and a lamb stew of sorts. The spreads were creamy, with a very nice baba ganoush and a creative tomato/chevre combination. The main course was not only amazingly spiced, but perfectly executed. The kabobs were tender and caramelized on the outside but medium rare in the middle, and the lamb was all but addictive. On top of that, the service was attentive, with a fantastic sommelier.

Absolutely incredible! One of the most elegant and intriguing meals one can have in Montréal! From the moment you enter you are warmly greeted and ushered into a refined restaurant serving modern and contemporary takes on Syrian food. This is certainly a gem among many great places in the city! I would highly recommend a tasting menu and advice from their sommelier who will guide you through various Syrian wines and liquors. Do not miss dinner here whilst in Montréal!

This was the highlight of my trip to Montreal. My father and I went in not knowing what to expect, and we got an amazing 4 course meal with wine pairings and were thoroughly impressed. You could eat their hummus with walnuts and pomegranate syrup off of a shoe and it would still be absolutely delicious! Our server was incredibly sweet and knowledgeable about the restaurant, the menu, and the traditional Syrian cuisine. I would recommend it to anyone looking for a nice dinner.

Wow. It's been a few days since our meal, but I am still raving about the food. The dishes we shared were phenomenal, from the mezze entres, which included labneh, hummus and mouhamara, to the two spectacular mains: slow cooked lamb and braised fish. Probably the tastiest fish I have ever had. For those wondering, Alep is very similar to its sister restaurant Petit Alep, but with larger portions and a more ups late environment. Great for a date night!

I had the pleasure of dining at Alep a couple of weeks ago with a small group of people. We were there for my girlfriend's birthday and by all accounts, it was a wonderful and very satisfying evening. Everything from the service to the food to the price was top notch. I can't recommend Alep highly enough. We will definitely be back sometime soon!

Very good restaurant. Since it was the first time we went there, we opted for the tasting menu. Everything was good but some appetizers had too much cumin for my taste. I just wouldn't order those again. The salads were so fresh and tasty. Shrimp were big and delicious. The star of the evening truly were the meats. The lamb and filet mignon were outstanding, even if you are not a meat eater. The chicken was out of this world... Never had such a tender juicy tasty chicken ever! And the oiled pita on top and bottom of the brochettes.... Just so yummy. The portions are a little small for a tasting menu. You only get about 2 bites of each thing. However, the prices are very reasonable for what you get. Service was good. A little forgetful at times, but very friendly.

The folks at Alep hosted our Staff Holiday party last night and it was 100% wonderful! Our waiter was very funny, it was a beautiful space, but most importantly- the food was out of this world. Definitely going back in the new year.

Girlfriend and I had an amazing time for Valentine's Day! They had a special tasting menu with 7/8 courses, paired with 6 wines. It was fantastic - really a tour of excellent cooking by the chefs and pairings by sommelier. We shared one set and it was good for us. We added the spicy filet mignon - so spicy but extremely well balanced.

Absolutely the best falafel you will ever have. We are visiting here from California and I rarely write reviews, but I had to acknowledge this place! Incredible service, fabulous food!

Being in this restaurant made me feel like I was in Syria! The food is delicious and the staff is beyond amazing. Couldn't be happier, will definitely come again when I come to Montreal again.

Great restaurant!!! I went to this wonderful place a few days back with a bunch of friends and everybody was pleased with the food and the environment. For sure we will go back!

One of the best restaurants I've ever been to. I had the Fattoush, Kebbe naye, Shish Kebab, Shish Taouk and everything was mind blasting. It's really the best Arab restaurant.

After spending 10 months in Montreal, I got to choose the restaurant for my 'last meal' on the project. The choice was an easy one. About 8 of us went out for dinner - some with more discerning tastes than others - and all walked away thinking, "this was the best meal ever". The atmosphere, the service, the combination of foods - Alep is a fantastic venue for family and team events. The food platters work well with 4+ people. (Equally fine for smaller groups). This is the place I tell all to experience when in Montreal... if no where else! It is for sure on my top food experiences of all time.

Great place with dishes that will blow your mind with the variety and depth of spices used. We ordered the tasting menu which I would highly recommend and the lamb had a combination of spices I have never tasted before. If you are staying closer to downtown it is worth the trip out and is very easy via Metro.

Excellent authentic Syrian food. We spent about 24 hours in Montreal and Alep was our favorite experience. The Moussakaa, an eggplant dish, was beyond delicious, as was the kebab kach kach - both were "last meal"-quality dishes. The garlic labneh and braised lamb were also outstanding. The service was excellent and the ambience is modern with a tasteful nod to Syria. If we lived in Montreal this would be a regular go-to date night restaurant.

Excellent Levantine cuisine, professional and efficient staff, but unfortunately lacking in ambiance: very comfortable, but cold atmosphere. Still one of my preferred restaurant in Montreal.

There are two areas adjacent to each other, but with separate entrances. The one on the right is the dining area, and to the left is the bar. We had dinner in the restaurant, and we loved the ambiance and the decor, and the food was good, nothing special though