Bar George Preps For May Opening in New Mount Stephen Hotel

After years of planning, discussions, construction, the Club Mount Stephen is ready to assume a new form downtown. The heritage building used to be a private club, with wealthy elite comprising the membership — soon, it will be a boutique hotel in the form of Le Mount Stephen.

The historic building (considered by federal authorities as “the best example of a Renaissance Revival house in Canada”) is only part of it — much of the hotel will be housed in a new tower adjacent to the former club. That new addition caused major construction headaches for the developer, Tidan — back in 2016 the Gazette found that the building needed major repairs and a facade re-build (although it later turned out that the Quebec government knew about the problems well before Tidan took over the building).

Inside, there will be Bar George, a restaurant from Toronto’s Oliver & Bonacini group, who own several spots in Ontario from swanky to casual, such as Canoe and Bannock.

Both the hotel and restaurant are set to open May 2. On the restaurant side, direction is coming from in-house: Oliver & Bonacini’s Corporate Executive Chef Anthony Walsh (whose work has received plenty of praise at the other end of the 401, although he’s originally from Montreal) will guide the culinary aspects; a two-time Daniel Boulud employee; Kevin Ramasawmy (Maison Boulud and New York’s Daniel) is chef de cuisine. The Burgundy Lion’s Marco Gucciardi is on board as general manager.

Back in December, an Oliver & Bonacini rep told Eater that Bar George would offer “modern takes on British cuisine”; expect Scotch eggs and black pudding pasties on the lighter side of the menu, and lobster shepherd’s pie and St-Canut piglet shoulder among larger dishes.

As for ambiance, the vibe should match the heritage building — Montreal firm Metaphore’s approach is going in on “grandeur and opulence”.

All up, it’s a big operation: Bar George is a 200-seater (including the bar and terrasse) — as with most hotel restaurant operations, it’ll do long hours: breakfast, lunch, dinner, late-night, and weekend brunch. But you’ll have to wait to see what’s on the menu — Le Mount Stephen are promising a dévoilement on May 1.

• Makeover for Montreal's Iconic Mount Stephen Club Includes Toronto Restaurant Group [EMTL]
• Montreal’s Most Anticipated Openings, Winter 2017 [EMTL]
• Facade of heritage jewel Mount Stephen Club "has to be taken down" [Montreal Gazette]
• Mount Stephen Club's structural problems date back at least 15 years: documents [Montreal Gazette]
• Bar George [Facebook]
• Bar George [Instagram]