Critic Finds ‘Good Guacamole’ and ‘Drippy’ Tacos at Venice

Back in March, Venice, the new California-style restaurant from entrepreneur Charles Manceau, of Griffintown's Nini Meatball House, opened as a sunny spot at 440 St-Francois-Xavier. With fresh juices, plenty of avocados, and bright interiors, Venice is positioned as a "summer vacation" in the middle of Montreal. Now that it’s actually summer, how has the eatery stood up?

Montreal Gazette critic Lesley Chesterman stopped by Venice recently to sample the poke, toasts, tacos, and more. She deemed the gazpacho "fabulous" and the guacamole "good," and the salads "well balanced and delicious." However, the restaurant only received two stars out of fours, so what went wrong? The tacos were "drippy," the poke didn’t "feel all that special," and the peach pudding "was undermined by a sprinkling of rancid pecans."

Chesterman concludes her review with an observation that the restaurant was filled with a "number of beautiful young women" when she visited, which she wrote, "no doubt [added] to the all-around loveliness of this sunny new restaurant."