I lived in Montreal (Plateau Area) for 4 years and it’s an amazing city. When I see friends and family going there I share a few great things to do. I’ve decided to make a list of places to eat at and see while in town. I love eating so the list is heavier on eating. 😛

If you have any questions or want a specific suggestion, feel free to ask. Be sure to tweet (@HootReid) me a photo sometime!

Things to Eat:
* Everything with a * is something you can eat late at night…especially after a few drinks.

Bagel Etc. – Amazing breakfast and brunch place. They have fantastic poached egg options on the weekend. Show up on the early side or else there will be a line. (Second choice is Beauty’s – Up the street a bit more and quite famous).
4320 Boulevard Saint-Laurent
(514) 845-9462

Benelux – Belgian style beer and snacks
245 Rue Sherbrooke Ouest
(514) 543-9750

Bocadillo* – Latin American style sandwiches that are out of this world delicious. Recommend the one with Pear and Cheese or the Spicy Chicken sandwich. My friends all loved the Meatball one too.
1224 Rue Bélanger
(514) 508-7172

La Banquise* @restolabanquise – Best Poutine in the world. No contest here.
994 Rue Rachel Est
(514) 525-2415

Schwartz’s* – Truly Delicious and mouth watering smoked meat sandwiches. Think pastrami but better.
3895 Boulevard Saint-Laurent
(514) 842-4813

Cafe Santropole @CafeSantropol – Amazing unique style sandwiches and soups.
3990 St Urbain St
(514) 842-3110

Big in Japan* – Japanese Street Style Restopub. Delicious dishes and very friendly staff. They also have a nice bar “speakeasy” up the street that’s nice but a bit dark.
3723 Boulevard Saint-Laurent
(514) 847-2222

Patati Patata – This is a very small restaurant in a really cool building. They serve these sliders that are delicious. I used to order 2 meat and 1 tofu one (just to feel a bit healthy).
4177 Boul St-Laurent
(514) 844-0216

Romados – Amazingly juicy Portuguese rotisserie Chicken. More of a local to go style place. If you like chicken this is a place not to miss.
115 Rue Rachel Est
(514) 849-1803

St. Viateur Bagels @StViateurBagel –  It’s not the same as a New York bagel, it’s completely different and it’s delicious! Arguably better than Fairmount Bagels (their competitor)
263 Rue Saint Viateur O
(514) 276-8044

Ripples Ice Cream – Delicious ice cream right along St. Laurent. It’s only open in the warmer months. My girlfriend  swears by the mint chocolate chip
3880 Boul St-Laurent
(514) 842-1697

Joe Beef @joebeef – if you’re exploring Marche Atwater, try and time it so that you end up here for dinner. They’ve been featured on Anthony Bourdain’s show multiple times. Their steaks are to die for and you will be so happy you went. Also make sure to try their “baked potato” dessert. It’s not actually a potato…it really is dessert. A little bit on the pricier side, it is steak after all, but worth it, I promise.
2491 Rue Notre-Dame O
(514) 935-6504

Restaurant Creperie Chez Suzette – a great Crepe place in the old port. They have a lot seating and great staff so you won’t be waiting forever.
3 Rue Saint Paul Est
(514) 874-1984

The Green Panther @lapanthereverte – If you feel like maybe you’ve had a bit too much Poutine and smoked meat there is a great vegan place that’s casual and serves some pretty tasty things (try Traditional Falafel Sandwich).
2153 Mackay Street     /  145 Mont-Royal Avenue East
514 903 4744                /  514 503 4800

Things to do:

Mont-Royal – Take a hike up to the top of Mont Royal and enjoy the view. It’s not a long hike and there are often activities and things going on up there in the Summer.

Old Port – Walk through Old Montreal in the afternoon or evening as it starts to fill up for dinner.

BioDome @espacepourlavie – It’s a pretty cool “Space for life” and also has an insectaurim and a planetarium. It’s about $15-20 to go and definitely has a lot of stuff to see if you’re in to more science stuff.
4777, avenue Pierre-De Coubertin
514 868-3000

Marché Atwater – Large marketing where you can try fruit, cheese, sausages). For a smaller scale but more intimate market go to Marche Jean-Talon it’s the one I went to every weekend.

See a Concert – Montreal has a great music scene. One of my favorite websites to find upcoming shows is Blue Skies Turn Black.

Tam-Tams – Every Sunday (If the weather is nice) Up Parc on the side of Mont Royal below the George-Étienne Cartier Monument is Tam-Tams, a pretty large music festival “Think Large organic drum circle”

Chess at Cafe Pi – If you happen to like playing chess. There is a cafe I used to go to a lot where people are always playing chess from early in the morning up until they close at midnight. I did almost all my studying here.
4127 Boulevard Saint-Laurent
(514) 286-4828

Habs Game  – It’s true, Montreal loves its hockey team. When they win everyone’s happy and cars honk their horns. If you have time (and money) take some time and see a game. The Bell Centre is actually one of the best buildings in Montreal.

Cover Photo Credit:
“Montreal – QC – Skyline” by Taxiarchos228 – Own work. Licensed under CC BY 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons – http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Montreal_-_QC_-_Skyline.jpg#/media/File:Montreal_-_QC_-_Skyline.jpg