Toronto’s Hero Certified Burgers Is Making a Move on Montreal

Environmentally conscious Toronto-based burger chain Hero Certified Burgers is set to boost Montreal’s downtown burger scene, starting sometime before the end of March.

The 13-year-old company has almost 60 locations in Ontario, most of which are in the Toronto area, so this would be its first foray outside the province. The company has some fairly strong environmental cred, particularly on the agriculture front — the company only uses sustainably and humanely farmed beef (at present, from Beretta Farms), which is raised from grazing livestock, but in a way that avoids environmental degradation on farmlands.

Hero Certified Burgers

They’re also pretty forthcoming with information on their meat: Hero patties can be traced back to individual animals. That ability to know where meat comes from is also a generally responsible public health move, too.

Hero founder John Lettieri also worked as a cheesemaker, meaning beyond meat there’s a general focus on less processed items — “real cheese” appears to be a point of pride on the chain’s menu.

The Montreal location on Bishop (right near de Maisonneuve) in the old Soho’s, is set to offer the same as in Ontario.

Speaking to Eater, one team member Saima Usmani says that Hero’s outlook should jive with what customers are looking to eat right now.

“At this point people are looking into healthy eating so this is our main main thing, it’s very healthy meat, pure meat, pure protein...this is a place where they could go and eat without having to worry about all of those things.”

“It’s very successful...we wanted to bring in a unique product.”

A veritable rainbow of meats are to be available, all hormone- and antibiotic-free: Angus beef, chicken, turkey, fish, and veggie burgers are all on the menu. Gluten-free and halal options also figure prominently.

On the side, fries, shakes, and poutines are joined by sweet potato fries and tempura zucchini as options.

Our beef is angus beef, we have chicken, we have vegetarian, fish, turkey, gluten free options and sides includes a lot of stuff as well — we have sweet potato fries, onion rings, tempura zucchini.

Prices seem pretty darn reasonable for what’s on offer: Usmani estimates you can get fed for $7 to $9 — burgers start around $5, although various add-ons can add up, but it could be promising for masses of nearby Concordia students.

“We love the location, actually, it’s right by the university, there’s a lot of foot traffic…I just wish it was a corner one,” explains Usmani.

Expect Hero to crack open sometime in the next few weeks — almost certainly by the end of March.

STATUS — Hero Certified Burgers will be open 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Sunday to Thursday, and to 3 a.m. Friday and Saturday at 2019 Bishop Street.

• Hero Certified Burgers [Facebook]