If it's wrong to visit Montreal and not have smoked meat sandwiches and all the bagels, well, it turns out that being wrong can be very right. Not to mention delicious.
The culinary scene in Montreal is full of excitement, broad global influence, and cutting-edge chefs. The city's veteran and newcomer restaurants earn accolades of all kinds and are among some of the most often cited and sought-out dining destinations for global culinarians.
Some of the most long-standing cliches about Canadian cuisine have roots in Quebec: We are a nation devoted to poutine and maple syrup, right? (Spoiler: Those both make an appearance below.)
The chance to experience tried-and-true staples alongside eye-catching contemporary dining (and cocktail-ing) is what makes eating your way around Montreal so thrilling. Savvy travellers can venture into stunning repurposed spaces, like a cool "secret" coffee shop inside a utilitarian building, as well as explore cultural icons, like one of the city's best public markets or the massive orange on the side of the highway for wallet-friendly hot dogs and juleps.
Montreal melds old and new in exciting ways
Montreal has seemingly mastered bridging old and new. You'll find this in entire areas of the city such as Old Montreal, where new adventures have cropped up amidst historic buildings, as well as in places like Crew Collective, a modern café dwelling inside the opulent main floor of the onetime Royal Bank Montreal main branch (and for another quintessential bite of Montreal, they serve Fairmount bagels).
Most recently, Montreal's Vin Lapin was named Canada's Best Restaurant for the second consecutive year, illustrating a bit of the new wave the city is enjoying on the national culinary landscape (though fine-dining stalwarts like Toqué, Monarque, and L'Express continue to enjoy acclaim).
You feasibly can go to Montreal without venturing into St Viateur or Schwartz's Deli, and you could avoid roast chicken, smoked salmon, or maple syrup entirely. But the thing is: You also don't have to. You can taste what made Montreal food famous without having to follow well-worn tracks and try a few new things.
Here are a few fantastic food spots to consider for your next visit to Montreal.
McKiernan
If you've already "been there, done that" with Montreal's legendary Joe Beef - heck, even if you haven't - the acclaimed restaurant's sibling in a stunner of a repurposed space is worth checking out. McKiernan opened in 2018 and is located in Côte-St-Paul, just on the other side of the Lachine Canal. The restaurant occupies the top-floor loft-style space with huge windows to let the evening sunshine pour in across worn wooden floors in a room packed with shabby chic and nostalgia-fulled vintage shop charm with greenery. The menu is designed to share and centres on chicken, including massive golden-fried cutlets and rotisserie cuts (quarter, half, or whole) in a rich brown gravy. Be sure to save room for their housemade donuts for dessert.
Crew Collective
Score another one for Montreal making the most of its buildings, as this coffee shop occupies a former Royal Bank in the heart of Downtown. The cafe counter is essentially the old teller row, and some of the seating uses the kiosks where bank patrons would have once stood to fill out deposit and withdrawal slips. There's a reverence for a bygone era here, beguiling meshed with modern life (there are booths you can book for groups as well as a coworking space) and all its trappings, namely brown sugar oat milk lattes and French-style pastries. If you aren't going to make it to Fairmount itself, Crew serves their bagels in their impressive downtown cafe.
La Mal Necessaire
After a successful decade as an accidental Tiki bar in Chinatown, La Mal Necessaire is a speakeasy-ish cocktail spot that is settling into its new space downtown on the edge of Old Montreal. There's no signage outside, but once through the doors, it's clear you've come to the right place, with its luxe vibes, dim lighting, and a cocktail menu presented in a charming guidebook to help you navigate your decisions.
La Mal Necessaire took on its Tiki focus when several years back tropical drinks happened to be favoured by the bar team, but the concept has evolved thoughtfully to emphasize sustainability. For example, the "Pina Fuego" (which is, as advertised, a flaming pineapple) is served in a hollowed pineapple, one of many rescued from the compost pile as the bar digs out the flesh to turn into juice and syrups for the rest of the menu.
Arthurs Nosh Bar
You might have to get up early to snag a table at this popular Saint-Herni deli-inspired restaurant known for its modern take on Jewish staples like latkes, smoked fish, and more. Brunch is king at Arthurs and is a huge draw for a wide spectrum of diners tucking into signature morning plates like the Karolina Waffle or Shakshuka. On the breakfast menu is where you'll find one of the restaurant's most popular dishes, the Latke Smorgasbord, which comes with soft scrambled eggs, salmon gravlax, Israeli salad, a griddled challah roll, and latkes with apple sauce and sour cream.
Jean-Talon Market and neighbourhood food tour with Spade & Palacio
One of the best ways to get to know a city is through its food, and public markets are often a crucial component. Marche Jean-Talon (Jean-Talon Market) is a food fan's haven, featuring year-round vendors in permanent indoor stalls and a seasonal outdoor (covered) expansion zone for produce and more. The market is not only a destination for visitors but also for locals who do their shopping there, and it is always bustling. To get to know the market and some of its incredible vendors, spanning scoops of gelato to funky foraged mushrooms (with stops to sample Quebec cheese, cured meats, and local seafood) a guided visit via Spade & Palacio Tours is the way to go.
The veteran tour biz offers a Beyond the Market tour that kicks off nearby Jean-Talon in the Latin neighbourhood where you get to know Salvadoran cuisine and the deletable pupusas at a female-own community staple. Enjoy cannoli at one of Little Italy's cherished bakeries before diving into the market to get to know some of its purveyors and enjoying some free time to roam the plentiful stalls. The adventure continues with a stop for coffee and finishes up with an artisanal chocolate tasting at Etat de Choc (be sure to try the Maple, Miso & Grilled Rice, 65% Dark chocolate bar). The tour is lively and engaging and the certified guides are experts on the local food scene. If you need recs for where else to dine or enjoy a cocktail, they'll come through big time, too.
Restaurant h3
One of many Montreal ventures headed up by Chef Jean-Sébastien Giguère, Restaurant h3 at the Hotel Humaniti is known for its seasonally-driven approach to dining. After making your way through the lively lounge, the h3 dining room is a sleek second storey space with an elegant dinner service featuring a la carte options or a five- or seven-course tasting menu.
Emblematic of the shift in major urban big label hotels to create dynamic restaurants that showcase food from the region, Restaurant h3 was conceived as a way to give guests a taste of Quebec's terrior. To wit, April's elk loin with fiddleheads has given way to May's rack of venison with wild garlic. As a tantalizing addition, diners can opt to do wine pairings at one of three levels. The staff is very savvy about h3's extensive bottle inventory and can also handily suggest an individual pairing for your tastebuds and meal.
Hotel guests can also visit Restaurant h3 at breakfast, which features a fairly classic menu of morning staples with some local twists. You'll get Quebec maple syrup for your pancakes and can also order smoked salmon and dill cream cheese on a St Viateur bagel (just in case you can't resist one of Montreal's infamous foods but don't make it to the bakery itself).
Time Out Market Montreal
If a mall food court and a nightclub had a baby, it would be Time Out Market. Situated on the second floor of downtown Montreal's Eaton Centre shopping mall, the Time Out Market is, in its own right, a bit of a food court and nightclub. Here, under the dim lights and (very) loud, pulsing music, mall-goers can roam an impressive line-up of vendors with equally as impressive culinary pedigrees, set up around the perimeter in a sprawling mezzanine space that also has an ice cream cart, a mocktail bar, and a proper bar (separate from the general action).
Diners can settle in with a platter of freshly shucked oysters and a glass of wine or opt to roam the food court to compile an assortment of eats. Each stand issues guests a buzzer for their order, which means you can meander to newcomer Climats, a modern brasserie from Chef Jean-Sébastien Giguère (Restaurant h3), for their signature shrimp and lobster roll, while you're waiting for your smashburger from Chez Simon Cantine Urbaine (another recent addition).
With Vancouver poised to have its own Time Out Market at Oakridge (likely in 2025) curious epicureans may want to hit up the mall for a fancy food court experience to get a sense of what we're in store for.
Savsav
I'll confess, I had to stop some locals out for a stroll to double-check where the map was steering me when I set out to find Savsav. That's because it is tucked inside a sort of utilitarian building away from other businesses. They pointed me in the right direction and said they'd heard a bit about this "secret" coffee shop. I found Savsav, which is a cafe/wine bar making the absolute (and aesthetic) most of a high-ceilinged corner room, on social media, via a video showing how they make their strawberry matcha. A drink, they noted, was inspired by Vancouver's wildly popular Cowdog, a pop-up cafe operating out of Mount Pleasant's Dear Gus wine bar. The room feels effortlessly cool; even the furniture looks like it was repurposed. The iced strawberry matcha (big enough to share) comes in a large decanter with a small cup. Pair it with a fresh pastry (set out beautifully in a big open space) and get ready to take some snaps for sharing on social.
Dobe & Andy
Unpretentious, wallet-friendly, and immensely satisfying, Dobe & Andy in Montreal's lively Chinatown is emblematic of how the city deftly bridges old and new. That's because the restaurant - the first in the city to serve Chinese BBQ from its original location and under its original name, Fung Lam - is the result of its own second generation of ownership. Siblings Eric and Edmund Ku are sons of the original owners and they have been at the helm since 2019 and are part of Chinatown's slow resurgence as a culinary destination in Montreal.
In the unassuming second-floor space, diners will find a sort of time-stands-still vibe in hues of orange with a lot of nods to martial arts films. It's kitschy without being cheesy and even well past the usual lunch hour is packed with tables of guests diving into steaming combo plates of rice or noodles with BBQ duck and pork or soy sauce chicken.
Gibeau Orange Julep
The iconic "Big Orange" that is home to Montreal's beloved Gibeau Orange Julep hot dog and drink stand is so massive you'll likely spot it from above if you're flying into YUL. The second location of a local brand that began in 1932, Gibeau Orange Julep has been slinging snacks and their signature creamy, frothy orange drink since the mid-1940s inside the sphere. It's a bit off the beaten path but does happen to be halfway between downtown Montreal and the airport, so you could easily make it your first or last stop.
Domaine des 15 Lots
Quebec is the global maple syrup mecca, and the sugaring season is short, but the ingredient is a year-round staple in the province. While you'd have to head outside the city to visit a traditional sugar shack, in Montreal there is a bakery that uses syrup and maple sugar from the owner's family farm for all their treats. Domaine des 15 Lots opened just ahead of the pandemic, and pastry chef/owner/maple syrup producer Nathalie Simoneau had to quickly pivot to position her new business as a go-to in the community for take-out treats and eats.
The mini-marketplace, showcasing Quebec-produced artisan products and foods, remains the front portion of the shop, while she also serves beverages and her line of house-made pastries and sweets with no white sugar, sweetened only with Domaine des 15 Lots maple sugar.
Poutine Centrale
Obviously, you're going to run into poutine in Montreal. You can easily get into arguments about who makes the best in the city. There are high brow versions and cheap and cheerful versions, and since you're in Quebec, you're getting a version with real cheese curds. Poutine Centrale specializes in poutine, from the classic gravy and cheese curds iteration to all sorts of globally-inspired concoctions, available in several sizes and categories: Gourmet, Extravagant, and Veggie.
If platters of poutine aren't enough, the restaurant also does smashburgers and donut holes, and they have a kids' menu, too.
Watch: A food lover's visit to Montreal
@forkingawesomevia What I ate on an extra long weekend trip to Montreal. Let me know which spots you’d like me to tell tou more about! Featuring: 📍Restaurant h3 📍Crew Collective 📍Poutine Centrale 📍Domaine des 15 Lots 📍McKiernan 📍La Mal Necessaire 📍Jean Talon Market (Spade & Palacio tours) 📍Time Out Market Montreal 📍Arthurs Nosh Bar 📍Savsav 📍Dobe & Andy 📍Gibeau Orange Julep #creatorsearchinsights #forkingawesome #montreal #montrealfood ♬ Nice and Easy - Louis Adrien
Thanks to Tourisme Montreal for facilitating a portion of the meals and activities. All opinions and inclusions are those of the author and were based solely on personal experience. None of the businesses or entities featured were granted any previews of the story before publication or paid to be mentioned.
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