A little guide to get to know the best of Montreal in a weekend.
Montreal has became one of my top favourite cities of the world. As I always say, it’s a piece of Europe in America.
The architecture, the food, the french, the fashion sense, the enchanting streets. If you know where to go, Montreal will be an unforgettable experience. Keep reading this post to make it happen.
FOOD
Montreal is specially famous for their bagels, poutines and smoked meat. Also, there are many independent restaurants, little coffee shops and brunch places worth trying. Below a list of the ones I’ve personally tried and loved.
Allô ! Mon Coco
This restaurant is located all across Montreal and Ottawa. Think of an upscaled Sunset Grill with mimosas! I tried the Grilled Cheese of Scrambled Eggs, it was to die for!
La Basquise
We did a 30 minutes line for this one and it was totally worth it. They offer any kind of poutine you can imagine. The portions are huge (the small size will get a hungry man full). If you’d like to try something more traditional go for the smoked meat one like me (or the traditional which is fries + cheese + gravy).
Schwartz’s
Another famous restaurant that did not disappointed me. This is a restaurant and deli at the same time (the oldest deli in Canada). It is so popular that is considered a cultural landmark in the city! The line up is almost guaranteed but is totally worth it as well. My little tip: Ask for the smoked meat in medium or medium- fat, if you ask for it lean you will miss the fun.
Spanel Crêpes Et Gourmets
Located in a cool neighbourhood called Griffintown. I found it the last day, desperate to find a yummy gluten friendly restaurant (Montreal ended up not been so gluten friendly). I was pleasantly impressed with a menu full of gluten free crepes. The chai latte was also delicious!
St-Viateur Bagel
This is another guaranteed line (can you blame them though? Anyone waits in line for fresh, out of the oven bagels).They are open 24/7 and have 2 locations in the same street, St. Viateur. Little tip: The one in St. Viateur with Jeanne Mance street tends to get more busy. This is also a great souvenir to bring back home.
Other Famous Restaurants
The places above are the ones that I visited on this trip but there are so many others FANTASTIC restaurants that I’ve tried in Montreal that are making me wonder if I should’ve created a post for restaurants alone lol! Here I leave you a list of more places to eat in Montreal:
– Beauty’s
– Gibby’s
– Moishes
– Grinder
– Fairmount Bagel
– Smoked Meat Pete
– Le Petit Dep
WALKING / BIKING
Montreal is a beautiful city to explore. Renting a car is definitely not worth it, the parking system is expensive all around the city (if you are lucky to find parking).
This time we grabbed a bike and got to every touristic place in a record time. If you are not into biking in the streets (there are not many bike lanes) then walking is your best choice. You will be able to walk the entire city in half a day.
BTW Renting a bike is way cheaper than in Toronto! We biked for 3 hours and ended up paying about $9 each.
Places worth seeing and walking by:
Old Port
Mount Royal
Old Montreal
Saint Joseph’s Oratory of Mount Royal
Verdun Beach (Summer)
The Biosphere, Environment Museum
Le Plateau
Insta-ready Spots
Montreal is virtually Insta-ready but nothing better than some time saving tips on how to find spots for the perfect pictures. Some of the pictures I am showing you are from last week’s trip and some are from my Summer 2019 trip. Same season, very different weather.
Notre-Dame Basilica of Montreal
Old Montreal
410 Place Jacques Cartier 
101 Rue de la Commune O
Old Port
The contrast of these pictures was too funny not to post
Random Streets
Wow, I am impress, really want to go knowing Montreal.