Recently as I was looking back through my phone's camera roll, I came across all the pictures of food in Montreal from my trip over the summer. This city is known for being European- esc from the combination of the "Old City" streets and the "New City", but it is also known for its delicious food. Needless to say, we all ate very well that week, so much we left the city stuffed.
Breakfast/ Brunch:
Brunch is always a good idea to me. The restaurant chain Eggspectation claims it was one of the first to introduce brunch to Montreal and whether or not it was, their menu filled with crepes, omelets, egg benedict's, and more will leave you flipping through the menu. Not to mention the large espresso menu, with drinks served in decorative mason jars.
This cafe, Java- U, is another great breakfast stop, especially for the on-the-go adventurer. They have an assortment of egg sandwiches, bagels, and pastries, as well as coffee drinks for a quick yet yummy breakfast.
Remember when I said I love brunch food? This place Chez Suzette was a quaint little cafe in the Old Montreal neighborhood with crepes and coffee as good as they look. And yes, the maple syrup in Canada is extra delicious (which is also found in many different foods in Montreal).
One of Montreal's breakfast specialties does not contain the typical egg dishes, although it does contain honey which is sweet like fresh maple syrup. This bagel place, St-Viateur Bagel which is only to grab and go, claims to have the best bagels (sorry New York friends) and is open 24/7. The bagels are hand-made and fed through the large oven as seen in store.
Lunch/ Dinner:
Now besides being famous for bunch and breakfast food, food in Montreal is also great for lunch and dinner spots. These burgers, The Californian Burger on top and The Hangover Burger below, and mac & cheese were from Burger Royal. Fries are not included with the burgers, but that just means you can get a side of those or mac & cheese for the table instead.
Next up is the restaurant Jardin Nelson where the restaurant is inside/ outside with an almost fairy-like atmosphere. Located in Old Montreal, we stumbled upon this restaurant just by walking by and seeing the staggered garden seating. A live band is set up offering light classical music to enjoy during your meal.
The menu offers many different options depending on your mood, and the food photographs as colorful as the atmosphere of the restaurant do set a mood too.
Now this restaurant, Bis, was by far the fanciest place we went to during this trip, although it was well worth it. The Gnocchi and Carbonara dishes were filled with authentic flavors, and were enjoyed with a nice pairing of red wine.
Dessert:
Now the restaurant Bis also had delectable desserts to enjoy after our dinner, such as this chocolate cake and creme brulée, with the walnuts being a complementary touch.
Sometimes the food in Montreal could be extreme from what is inside to its looks, or in this case a whole restaurant dedicated to crazy chocolate desserts. C' ChoColat is the restaurant chocolate lovers dream of. We got the C'Wow (which is a dessert that lives up to the name), loaded waffles, a blackberry crepe, hot chocolate, and an espresso.
Another restaurant found in Montreal that is known for just dessert is called Cacao 70. They are known for their assortment of extravagant desserts but especially their parfaits, the Raspberry Brownie Parfait pictured here.
Jean Talon Food Market:
The last stop we made before leaving Montreal was stopping at the beautiful Jean Talon food market. This market is the ultimate "farmers market" as everything is displayed fresh and colorfully as you walk down the isles. Any kind of ingredient you could imagine could be found in a booth here.
This market is kind of out of the way from downtown Montreal and parking is difficult to find, but it is well worth the trip. Many of the booths take only cash, which is a necessity to bring, but even just taking pictures (just be careful of the few "no pictures" signs) and enjoying the samples is a fulfilling experience for visiting.
Montreal is a city meant for the adventurous foodies who are always looking for the picture-worthy spots to try and foods to eat. From the large assortment of food in Montreal I tried, I would enjoy eating it all again sometime.