Location(s):
A. 732 Sainte-Catherine Street West, Montreal
B. 1658, rue Saint-Denis, Montréal
www.les3brasseurs.ca
(All images photohogger)
Let me start with the pros of the restaurant:
Amazing beer-battered poutine. Great atmosphere: loud, bustling, was fun to be there during the Stanley Cup playoffs.
The Food (pros & cons):
Everything was grease-central (could be a pro for some?). The fish and chips came with overly battered and overly deep fried fish, so much so that the fried shell separates from the fish. 
The flatbread pizzas are so thin, which some peopel may prefer, but I say why bother! You practically have to eat the whole thing with a knife and fork which I know some prefer for eating pizza, but I like to pick it up like a pie. Loaded with lots of veggies so it wasn't bad. 
My understanding of, and the way I make, a Nicoise salad is with tuna, hard-boiled eggs, beans, tomatoes, olives, optional artichokes, red pepper and anchovies, all on a bed of lettuce. This one came with smoked meat instead of tuna. Since all of us eat mostly only fish, we opted for no smoked meat. It was alright, but would have preferred more of the original style of a nicoise salad. 
The beer-battered poutine (that we didn't order) was delish. We ordered regular poutine and thought that what we got was regular poutine, and wondered why it was so greasy. But as far as greasy poutine goes (which it all mostly is, anyway), it was a winner!
The cons of the restaurant:
What is with the section of the restaurant that is also part dish-clearing station/garbage take out? Please get rid of this section! I understand one has to clear the dishes and take out the garbage, but is there not a wall behind which this could be done? We had to sit there and be a witness to a server scraping off the plates into the trash and worse see one of them struggle to pull out the garbage bag from the trash can - minus gloves! Then the trash can fell over with a crash! Not something that you want to see before (or anytime) you get your meal.
Then, we were billed for the beer battered poutine ($8.99) which we ate unknowingly as we thought we'd simply ordered the regular poutine ($5.99). I realize it's only a difference of $3, but it was still the server's mistake which she acknowledged and insisted to correct but the manager then said couldn't be reversed. So our server told us not to tip her instead. How ridiculous is that? Needless to say we DID tip her on top of their mistake. She gave us each $5 gift cards to use back in Toronto. Thanks but you won't see us running over there anytime soon.
Sitting next to the kitchen on visit number two (St. Denis location), we had a clear view of all the cooks in the kitchen, all the orders given, all the plates being served, and all the accidents, such as the dropping of a plate of salad near our end of the table. A hearty dose of salad dressing landed on four of us and what did they do to make up for it? "2 beers on us!" Thanks fellas...we were only a group of fifty! And the group menu they gave us was crap. Four options for dinner included: some flatbread with chicken dish, some sausage and sauerkraut dish, some veg lasagna and some chicken skewer dish with fries. I had the veg lasagna and it was soggy, covered in cheese and tasteless.
Besides that, the restaurant is so cramped (why else would we have been right beside the kitchen?) that our server(s) kept squeezing their ar*** between our two tables to get to another section of the restaurant. This happened all night long and I received several scrapes to my back from their pens! Definitely not a good dining experience.
I don't know who the three brewers are but they need to get their act together. The beer they brew? Not one of them did I fancy...but I'll let Beerhogger review them for you. 
Overall, A had slightly better food and service, whilst B is somewhere I never wish to dine again.
One can hope that Toronto's location is better, but I'm not holding my breath.
A.
B.
TRAVEL: Montreal: Nil Bleu
Location:
3706 Rue Saint-Denis
Montreal, QC
http://www.nilbleu.ca/
Hands down the best Ethiopian restaurant I've been to thus far. But don't ask me, ask my Mom and Mom-in-Law who couldn't stop raving about it. And they know how to cook, if you know what I mean.
The dishes we ordered were:
YETIMATIM SALAD $4.95 (tomatoes, onions, green peppers seasoned with lemon and olive oil dressing)
the VEGETARIAN PLATTER FOR TWO $27.00 (potatoes/cabbage/carrots, lentils, spinach)
and YEASSA TIBBS $14.95 (sole cooked with green peppers ginger).
One thing to note is that the fish came on the same platter as the veggie platter, which may not be good for those who are strictly vegetarian so be sure to make this request when you order!
We also ordered the house wine, which was a Spanish red and quite good.
They gave out damp napkins to wipe our hands with but didn't take them away like one would with hot towels, so we realized we had to keep them, and it made sense later as we ate that it was easier to wipe our fingers with. Be warned that you will leave with turmeric stained fingers nails (even after washing) after dining here, but let me assure you, it's well worth it!
Everything was delicious...and the injera kept coming until we were completely and utterly stuffed.
The exotic decor, which is what I want my home to look like (think animal prints, African sculptures, white leather couches) is beautiful and seems very new. 
My hubby who'd eaten at Nil Bleu perhaps 12 years ago didn't remember it looking like this! The fancy bathrooms round up the upgraded look. 
The service was a tad slow, but since we weren't in a hurry, it didn't bother us and overall the service was sweet and attentive. Thank you to Chakib & Rahel for making our Moms very happy :)
Great place for dates or groups and has outdoor seating. I've already recommended Nil Bleu to my family and friends who are visiting Montreal next month!
Lettuce Eatery now Freshii
Since we're on the topic of how the word "fresh" is being used in marketing, let's talk about the once named named Lettuce Eatery which is now known as Freshii...making us question:
Salad King
For this review of Salad King, I've invited one part of the wonderful couple (and fellow bloggers) I dined with at SK, to contribute her take on this restaurant which will be up soon.
~~
A couple of the neon lights in the "Salad King" sign were out when we went - so it read "SAD KING" ...which is absolutely APT for this dump of a restaurant that 275 of you on Urbanspoon claim is the best Thai resto in Toronto.
Are you kidding me? Where else are you people eating that this has become the place to go for Thai??!
To start, we ordered the Papaya Salad (which boasted "dried shrimps"...the salad that came to our table had non-existent dried shrimp (must have been so dry that it shriveled away?) and a garnish that had black spots on it. Good start, right?
Our "medium" heat Shrimp Delight ($8.95 - Shrimps, bell peppers, onions, yellow bean sauce, chilli sauce, lime juice, steamed rice) arrived with neither heat NOR shrimp (nor delight for that matter!) and plenty of accompanying liquid "spicy" water. We weren't aware we'd ordered soups?
The Spicy Fish dish ($8.95 - Red cod fillet, lime leaf, carrots, onions, bell peppers chilli, garlic, shallots, palm sugar, steamed rice) came with hardly any fish although what was there certainly was still swimming..in a pool of oily liquid!
And the Evil Jungle Prince ($6.75 - Egg plant, baby corn, peas, carrots, onions, chilli sauce, lemon grass, bamboo shoots and steam rice) which was supposed to contain eggplant and veggies came with one tiny piece of eggplant, plenty of frozen peas and a generous portion of WATER!
How disgusting.
I asked the server whether the dishes were always that watery - to which she replied 'yes that's how they are made'. I told her it was a disappointing meal to which she shrugged and moved along to serve the next table of assembly line patrons.
Salad King will forever be SAD KING to me - it's the worst thai food I've ever had and I'm really sorry that so many of you think that that's what Thai is supposed to taste like! I'd really love to see where else the 275 of you are eating and stay the hell away from those places!
Peter Pan Bistro
Location:
373 Queen Street West, Toronto
Cost: $10 per entree
www.peterpanbistro.com
A landmark on Queen St. West since 1921 (read the history here), Peter Pan Bistro has always been a prime lunch time spot, perhaps for it's ambiance (spectacular tin ceiling) or delicious lunch dishes for under $10.
Whatever the case, how befitting it was to have a baby-shower gathering at a venue named Peter Pan.
I was more interested in the dessert menu than anything else that day.
Mmm.....Death by chocolate sounded like the way to go!
Very rich, very deadly. (I think I passed out about 1/2 an hour after eating this. :))
Everyone else's dishes looked fantastic (and from what I heard, tasted just as good!)
You can see the expectant Mom's beautiful polka-dotted belly in the background of this shot, nicely contrasted by the pretty almond cheesecake and wildberry tea. Here's a close-up of the almond cheesecake.
Lemon tart.
Warm beet salad, honey roasted pears, walnuts, goat cheese on mixed greens $9 - photo credit: Jen D.
Daily special - Omlette - photo credit: Jen D.
"Bistro Salad", olive oil & rosemary cake, arugula, proscuitto & tomato, finished w/ a two minute egg, truffle oil and shaved parmagiano $10 - photo credit: Jen D.
With new condos springing up everywhere, Peter Pan Bistro, now in it's 88th year at the corner of Peter and Queen, is practically a historic site, so go now! Go and enjoy it.
Plaza Flamingo
Location:
423 College Street, Toronto
Cost: $7.95 for the lunch buffet
www.plazaflamingo.com
Plaza Flamingo is one of those places you fall upon one day, having been there years before but have no recollection of the food. Ages ago, (at least 8 years) I remember dining with the whole family and watching a flamenco performance at Plaza Flamingo. It was highly entertaining as far as I can recall. The food, however, I could not bring back to mind.
So when we were searching for a place to dine for lunch on a bitterly cold day, not only did the "lunch buffet" clapboard stand out to us, but feelings of familiarity began to stir within me. Somehow Plaza Flamingo had seemed a lot further West when I was younger; not smack in the middle of busy College street near Bathurst.
It was an easy decision once we'd seen the buffet and knew that it was all for only $7.95. Perfect.
Chicken. Rice. Pasta. Beans. Salad.
What more could one ask for, for lunch?
These fried sweet plantains were especially tasty.
I enjoyed them so much, I had them with the dessert, as well!
While the fare isn't spectacular by any means, it certainly isn't bad. And it hit the spot that day. I wouldn't run back to PF everyday for lunch, but if I was back in the area and needed a nice place to sit down and not be disturbed by what can sometimes be annoying wait-staff, this is the place!
And although it certainly wasn't packed for lunch that day, it's fairly obvious that there are a few devoted patrons who have probably been frequenting Plaza Flamingo for many years.
Those who, unlike me, have not forgotten about it.