Top 5 places to eat in Montreal

Let’s cut to the chase here: Montreal is foodie heaven. Quebec’s biggest city is host to some of the best eateries in North America, though you wouldn’t know it just by wandering around Montreal. It’s a place where they’re modest of their talents and perhaps that’s what makes the French-speaking city all the more alluring beyond their annual world-famous jazz and comedy festivals respectively.

Schwartz

This world famous deli (part owned by Celine Dion) just outside the Downtown area is so popular; people will drive up 7 hours from New York City just to eat here just to compare their delis to this place. And yes, it is that good – their specialty, the smoked meat sandwich – is the main attraction and keeps people coming back for more. They’re very generous with their portions of meat, to the point where it’s difficult to pick the sandwich up with just the two hands. And the taste? Melt in your mouth meat with the sharpness of mustard complimented well with the rye bread. If you’re planning a lunchtime visit, arrive early as the queues can stretch quite far.

Main

Across the road from Schwartz is perhaps Montreal’s best-kept secret. Although there’s a friendly rivalry between the two establishments, Main perhaps has more on their menu to offer alongside smoked meat. Nonetheless, this is a delicatessen and restaurant serving Leonard Cohen who lived a stones throw from this restaurant used to frequent here when he was in town and for good reason. A recommended dish to try out is the smoked meat poutine, though be warned: due to the amount of cheese curds, gravy and fries it has, eating it will fill you up for the rest of the day with little room for anything else.

Bagel etc.

This is a well-known place to go for breakfasts with a wide variety of food on the menu. There are many things to recommend but what stands out particularly are the blueberry pancakes, omelettes and their famous bagels, which compared to their New York counterparts, are chewier due to being dipped in honey water in the baking process. No visit to Montreal for a foodie can be complete without trying their signature bagels. Come here to start the day off as you mean to go on by eating your body weight in food at Bagel etc.

Burger Royal

It’s a burger joint with a difference: you can choose your burger protein from mountain raised, grass fed beef, fried or grilled chicken, or as a vegan option made from scratch with roasted mushrooms, roasted eggplant, roasted chickpeas, tofu, pearled barley, sautéed leeks and celery, toasted almonds, shallots, garlic and flour. But that’s not all: you could even have it as a hot dog if you’re so inclined. Burger Royal prides itself on being eco-friendly with their locally sourced meat and it’s a great place for a mid-afternoon bite to eat. Though you might be overwhelmed by just how much choice you have.

Reservoir

For an evening meet up or nightcap with friends, whilst also a little out of the way of the downtown area, Reservoir is a decent shout for an American restaurant in the heart of French-speaking Canada. But at the same time, it’s not quite a restaurant; rather it’s a brewpub providing draft microbrews and deconstructed food. For instance, their fried chicken is served on a big plate with a green tarragon cream reduction. It’s freshly made, not too oily and light on the stomach. Wash it down with one of their domestically crafted brews.