© BENEDICTE BROCARD
Restaurant Toqué!
For fine dining par excellence: Restaurant Toqué! Chef Normand Laprise’s cuisine – the very one that started the Montréal food revolution – will leave you speechless and wanting more.
© Tourisme Montréal, Mayssam Samaha
La Chronique
For the foie gras enthusiasts: La Chronique. This is where you go for the best foie gras in Montréal, and keep returning for the flawless French-inspired menu.
© Ritz-Carlton Montréal
Maison Boulud
For a Michelin-star type experience: Maison Boulud. Chef Daniel Boulud’s extensive expertise shines through his chef de cuisine Riccardo Bertolino, and the exquisite service that reigns within the sumptuous dining room.
Joe Beef
For the quintessential Montréal night out: Joe Beef. You’ll be treated to the best Montréal has to offer, paired with a glass of natural wine (or 5) from one of the best curated lists in town.
© Two Food Photographers (Alison Slattery)
Le Filet
For the fish and seafood aficionados: Le Filet. The delicate ocean-based dishes have become the toast of the town. And speaking of toasts, do try the one with sea urchin and seaweed butter.
© Alison Slattery / Two Food Photographers
Le St-Urbain
For those willing to travel for food: Le St-Urbain. One of the city’s best tables, it’s located a tad out of the way, but is very much worth the trip. You’ll enjoy the elegant food and excellent wine list.
© Mathieu Dupuis
Le Serpent
For the design lovers: Le Serpent. The industrial chic restaurant design will wow you just as much as the Italian-inspired menu.
© Estiatorio Milos
Estiatorio Milos
For those in search of exotic flavours: Estiatorio Milos. You’ll savour the vast array of delicate Mediterranean dishes, fresh seafood and scrumptious desserts in a décor reminiscent of a Greek holiday.
© Bouillon Bilk
Bouillon Bilk
For those who want to feel like a local: Bouillon Bilk. This restaurant is so inconspicuous, that it’s easy to miss, but it would be such a shame because the cuisine here is sophisticated yet unpretentious, set against a minimal décor that lets the dishes shine.
© Alison Slattery / Two Food Photographers
Le Mousso
For the art lover: Le Mousso. Chef Antonin Rivard-Mousseau comes from a long lineage of artists, and it shows! Just because this artist has chosen food as his medium doesn’t mean his work is less impressive since every dish here is a veritable chef d’œuvre.
Le Club Chasse et pêche
For the Québécois traditionalist: Le Club Chasse et Pêche. Savour a modern and fine dining twist on Québécois traditional cuisine in an elegant and sophisticated décor reminiscent of a hunting and fishing lodge.
Primo & Secondo
For those looking for la bella vita: Primo & Secondo. Opened in Little Italy since 2001, Primo & Secondo is the place to be for simple Italian cuisine prepared in an elegant ambiance with impeccable service.
Chez Sophie
For l’amour of French food: Chez Sophie. After honing her skills at many Michelin-starred restaurants in Europe, chef Sophie Tabet brings her haute gastronomie skills to Montréal along with her sommelier husband and partner.
Jun I
For the sushi devotee: Jun I. Chef Junichi Ikematsu is a master of his craft. His cuisine elegantly walks the fine line between Japanese tradition and a more modern approach.
© Four Seasons Hôtel Montréal
Marcus Restaurant + Terrace
For the celebrity chef spotters: Marcus Restaurant + Terrace. New York-based star chef Marcus Samuelsson’s stunning restaurant is conceived by Montréal designer extraordinaire Zebulon Perron, while the cuisine focuses on seafood and a raw bar offering.
Vin mon lapin
For wine enthusiasts: Small sharing plates featuring some of the finest local ingredients are the stars at much beloved neighbourhood restaurant Vin mon lapin. Wine enthusiast will be happy to dig into one of the best natural and biodynamic wine list in the city with rare bottles often finding their way here.
Restaurant Candide
For the admirers of regional cuisine: No one adheres to a more strict policy of only serving a market-driven menu than Restaurant Candide. The reasonably priced, 4-course tasting menu is a joyous celebration of local ingredients (or those preserved at their peak). The impeccable service, exquisite wine list and elegant ambiance of this cozy establishment located in a former rectory all contribute to a memorable dining experience.
Hoogan et Beaufort
For lovers of open-fire cooking: Hoogan et Beaufort's soaring ceilings and light-filled dining room are centred around its open kitchen where the wood burning oven reigns supreme and where local ingredients are prepared with love.
Damas
For a glamourous culinary voyage: Let Damas transport you into a world of alluring flavours and scents, where luscious dips, toothsome meats and exotic spices dance together in a thousand and one night-inspired décor.
La Sobremesa
For a taste of Spanish flair: La Sobremesa’s gorgeous Barcelona-inspired dining room, tapas menu and Iberian wines will immediately transport you to the Mediterranean where the living is easy, and diners linger at the table telling tales and enjoying each other’s company.
Mayssam Samaha
Mayssam Samaha is a food and travel writer and blogger and the founder behind the blog Will Travel for Food. She travels the world in search of the next culinary discovery. From Iceland to South Africa, she’s already visited over 30 countries and there’s nothing she enjoys more than wandering around a farmers’ market in a foreign city. She is also the founder of the SAISONS intimate dinner series highlighting Québec products and chefs.