A foodie’s guide to Montréal City

It’s not just a market for fresh produce; there are numerous bistros, kiosks and restaurants there too, where you can enjoy a small snack or sit down to a freshly cooked meal, no doubt made with some of the produce on sale in the market. Montréal’s smaller market, Marche Atwater, is also worth a visit, if only for breakfast or brunch at the Première Moisson – here you can enjoy a freshly made almond croissant or cinnamon bun, whilst sipping a bowl of creamy café au lait and watching the world go around.

After breakfast or brunch, why not lunch at Olive et Gourmando in Vieux Montréal (Old Montréal); situated just down from Hotel Nelligan, the fabulous boutique hotel I was staying in, this popular café-cum-bistro is charmingly situated on the corner of two streets with a warm and friendly atmosphere, as well as a wonderful array of ‘daily plates’, freshly baked pastries, sandwiches and the most amazing fresh coffee. I enjoyed the house speciality of house-made ricotta, which is served with seasonal garnishes and assorted grilled breads. The ‘Mac + Cheese’ is legendary and comprises mushrooms, caramelised onions and truffle tapenade baked with Parmesan and breadcrumbs; a real ‘le must have’! Breakfast is also served here and I loved their ‘Poached egg on your face’, which was spicy poached eggs with herbs and mayonnaise, Louis d'Or cheese, speck and slow-roasted tomatoes one cold and frosty morning.

It’s probably time to engage with Montréal’s most famous dish now – a Montréal-style smoked meat sandwich. Montréal smoked meat, simply called smoked meat in the vernacular, it's a type of kosher-style deli meat product made by salting and curing beef brisket with specially mixed spices. The brisket is allowed to absorb the flavours over a week, and is then hot smoked for the final step. It’s typically served in light rye bread, with mild (yellow) mustard and a sweet dill pickle, as well as a can of cherry cola. The most famous smoked meat deli in Montréal is Schwartz’s Deli, which is co-owned by Celine Dion, although Reuben’s Deli in downtown Montréal is also a great place to enjoy this iconic dish.

If smoked meat sandwiches are one of Montréal’s most famous hot meals, then you cannot leave the city without trying (and buying) a Montréal-style bagel. Smaller, thinner, sweeter and denser than a New York bagel, it is always baked in a wood-fired oven, which I had the opportunity to see as well as shape and bake a full batch at St-Viateur Bagel bakery. There are two main bagel bakeries, St-Viateur and Fairmount, and in true competitive fashion, they both claim to be the original bakery and to have the best bagels! Both bakeries also sell all the ‘fixings’ for a quick snack – Lox (smoked salmon), sour cream, capers, pickles, sliced onions, etc. so you can pop in to buy a bag of bagels for breakfast and grab a snack at the same time. Both bakeries are open twenty-four hours too.

Other Montréal food specialities are pâté chinois, a local dish that is similar to cottage pie or the French hachis parmentier; it’s made from creamed corn, minced beef with spices and mashed potatoes and is often served with tomato ketchup. Another favourite of mine, and I enjoyed this in a small bistro at Marche Jean Talon, is tourtière, a spiced minced meat pie, usually made with a combination of beef, pork and veal with a flaky pastry crust. It’s often served at Christmas and New Year and every home cook has his or her own special spice mix; my friend who lives in Montréal swears by celery salt as her secret ingredient, whilst others say that a good tourtière has to have mixed spices such as cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves in it. I enjoyed mine with a spicy relish, similar to ketchup, with mounds of mashed potatoes and steamed veggies.