And we’re back with another round of “Where to Eat in *insert foreign city here* in Less Than Five Days.” If you’re just tuning in, catch up with this article from London/Barcelona, this one from Paris, and maybe even this one from Florence. I’ve been to five countries (not including the US) in the past six months and can honestly say I’ve eaten some of the best meals of my life in that time. So without further ado, let’s dive into this episode of Where to Eat in Montreal in Less Than Five Days.
It was Columbus Day weekend for us Americans (and Thanksgiving weekend for the Canadians!), but a four day weekend for me (praise for no class on Fridays.) After coming to the conclusion that my single 50 minute class on Thursday was a total waste, I treated myself to five days, and rounded up my three closest friends for a quick trip into Montreal. In case you were wondering, the flight took the same amount of time as the class I was skipping would’ve. Ridiculous.
We found the ultimate Airbnb in the ultimate neighborhood (Le Plateau-Mont-Royal) and wasted no time: eating, shopping, eating, walking over 15 miles a day, eating, and going for runs in the incredibly picturesque Parc Mont Royal. But you don’t care about that. You care about the food. Read on, eh?
It’s me, thriving, in Montreal.
Le Passé Composé
This was my day one breakfast. I literally hopped off the plane with my best friend and we hit this spot, immediately ordering Waffles with caramelized apples, a Croque Monsieur with ham, cheese, tomatoes, asparagus and pesto, and Eggs Benedict on brioche with smoked pork shoulder, porcini mushrooms, and boulet sauce. This spot is known for their various types of egg benedicts, but after seeing rave reviews about this waffle, I knew it was a must have. Seriously, the benedicts and that damn waffle (!!!!) are must haves.
Impasto
I was so excited to land a reservation at this restaurant in the Little Italy neighborhood, and for good reason. This was some of the best pasta I’ve ever had in my life. After chowing down on the Chef’s selection of charcuterie and roasted peppers and tomatoes, my friend and I split Spaghettoni with rapini pesto, caramelized onions, and guanciale and the special Spaghetti alla Chiatarra with carbonara. The pasta was perfectly al dente, neither dish needed salt, and the flavors were each so bold yet complemented each other beautifully. We followed the pasta with Roasted Piglet Shoulder with poached pear and rapini. I would fly back to Montreal just to have this meal again.
La Diperie
With a couple of locations around Montreal, I knew I was never far from having some of the best soft serve. This spot specializes in dipped ice cream to the point where they only serve vanilla soft serve – and the creamiest vanilla soft serve at that – and coat it in a variety of dips, from peanut butter (topped with pretzels and Oreos!) to praline sauce, spiced chocolate, or basically anything else that you can think of. Get it in a dish to get more than more dip!
Boulangerie Samos
I went to this bakery every morning after my run. I would get four coffees and some sort of Greek confection, like these almond and chocolate “croissants.” I like to think I became very close friends with the adorable Greek husband and wife duo, as I tried to decipher their broken English/half French half Greek accents. From croissants to coconut cake, baklava to whatever the Greek and French croissant hybrid is, everything was 10/10 at Samos.
Bouillon Bilk
I was so excited to eat at this restaurant after reading and rereading their menu. I walked into Bouillon Bilk and immediately felt afraid: the stiff waiters, extremely modern straight lines, and over-the-top minimalism really took any aspect of culture or comfort from the ambience. It actually felt cold in there. However, as soon as we ordered probably too strong of drinks for an 11:45am reservation, we immediately warmed up to the spot. Duck Tartare, Sweetbread Tartelettes, Pappardelle, Doughnuts, Cookies, and six other dishes made up for the lack of creativity in the decor. I seriously haven’t had food this paired and balanced before. (I dreamt about these apple sour cream doughnuts that night.)
Le Trou de Beigne
Everyone knows I’m obsessed with donuts. So I did my research and found that Trou de Beigne was one of Montreal’s top donut shops. Made with all natural ingredients, coconut oil, and only real fruit and Lindt chocolate, how could they not be? And although I firmly believe that NYC and Philly have the best donut shops, these were pretty damn good as well. Maple Bacon, S’Mores, Apple Crumble, Blizzard, Coconut Lime, and Blueberry (my personal fave) were our six mini donuts of choice, but yes, you can get them in full size as well.
Au Pied de Cochon
I’m not exactly how to talk about Au Pied de Cochon because it was such an incredible experience, from the warm ambience, to the most personable wait staff, to the insane food. The appetizer course was actually my favorite course, with that massive pork shank being shaved at the table and served with duck-fat-fried pancakes soaked in Canadian maple syrup. We also ordered the most delicious mozzarella dish with roasted squash puree. We followed that with the restaurant’s specialty, Duck in a Can, the Foie Gras Burger, and the veal special of the evening. Dessert was an insane Pecan Pie, a Maple Crème Brûlée, a Maple Syrup Milkshake, and an on-the-house Pouding Chômeur because I couldn’t decide between that and the pie. Specializing in all-things duck (and obviously maple syrup,) this is one of Montreal’s best restaurants, and one that is most highly recommended.
Le Moineau
I obviously love restaurants with great ambience: warm lighting, dark colors, and cozy seating make a good restaurant great. Lining up (yes, even before they opened!) Le Moineau, or The Sparrow, ten minutes before open, I could already tell from peeking in the large windows that this experience was going to be more than great. The pancakes were clearly the star of the show: Buckwheat Pancakes with apple butter, candied walnuts, fruit, and maple syrup. We actually devoured them as an appetizer course, before moving onto Yogurt & Granola, House-Smoked Trout, Steak & Eggs, and a breakfast sandwich of na’an, eggs, and cream cheese, which we then followed with dessert (yes, we are that kind of extra,) of PB&J donuts and a blueberry croissant.
La Banquise
Confession: I don’t really get the hype of poutine. Even eating at La Banquise, a 24 hour poutine spot that had lines out-the-door constantly, didn’t help me get why Montrealers are obsessed with these glorified overloaded french fries. It’s not to say that I don’t necessarily like french fries landed in gravy, cheese curds, maybe some pulled pork, apples and bacon, or peppers, onions, and mushrooms, because who wouldn’t like that kind of thing, but what’s the whole obsession? (Someone please DM me and let me know.) However, if one is going to consume 10,000+ calories in less than 10 minutes, it should be at La Banquise, with their great Canadian beers and poutines topped with everything you could imagine.
St.-Viateur Bagel & Cafe
Montreal, like New York, is known for its bagels. They’re dense, chewy, slightly sweet, and smaller than any bagel you’ll find in the five boroughs (maybe that’s why they literally serve 4 as one serving.) With that being said, there’s nothing like a New York bagel, but I knew I had to get my hands on Montreal’s favorite bagel, from St. Viateur. If I had never experienced the doughy deliciousness that is the NY bagel, I would probably call these dough babies my favorite too. They are sweet, enhanced by the strong sesame flavor, and they’re chewy but not like “oh god this is like gum” chewy (we’ve all had a bad bagel that was like that.) They come lightly toasted – I heard this was the only way to have them – and, paired with cream cheeses like sun-dried tomato or pesto, they make for a great Sunday breakfast.
Bonus content: If you have time, definitely hit up the Jean Talon Market. It’s reminiscent of Reading Terminal (if you’re familiar with the Philly scene,) or La Boqueria in Barcelona. Get some cheese, get some chocolate, eat some fruit and call it a day.
Montreal is filled with such incredible food, the friendliest people, and beautiful sights to see. It’s a perfect weekend trip, and it’s super convenient to get there from the Northeast. I would totally recommend coming here, and I would totally recommend eating at every place on this list. Eh!