Montreal
Montreal is one of the best food cities I have had the chance to enjoy in my travels. While I only spent two days in Montreal, I ate as much food as possible, and over 80% of the restaurants I visited were noteworthy. This is an amazing hit rate I rarely see in cities. Whenever I get back to Montreal, I am confident that the food will continue to astound me.
Chicken
Rank: 45
Sparta Chicken is the highest-ranking restaurant in Montreal; their chicken will help you understand why quickly. When you come, I highly recommend you order at least one, if not two, chicken legs. Good chicken is always known by the flavor being present throughout the whole chicken, and Sparta clearly hits home on this front. Their seasoning is prevalent and perfectly spicy in every bite. Additionally, the hot sauce they have here is absolutely glorious. I highly recommend stopping at Sparta Chicken for some amazing chicken in downtown Montreal.
Portuguese /Portuguese Poutine
Rank: 125
Poutine is clearly a must-get while you are in Montreal, and so is Portuguese food. So why not bang out both at once? Ma Poule Mouillee represents an iconic place to snag both simultaneously. Their Portuguese Poutine is the best poutine I have had in my life and is absolutely amazing. Their gravy here and fries are, of course, fantastic. However, the highlight of this poutine comes from the chicken on top of the poutine. This Portuguese chicken is grilled to perfection and packed with an enormous amount of flavor. I highly recommend it to anyone in Montreal.
Pizza/Cannoli
Rank: 130
While Café San Gennaro may be a pizza place that serves some pretty good pizza. If I were you I would skip the pizza and order as many cannoli as you can muster down. The cannoli here is the clear highlight and is up to par with some of the best cannoli I have had. The ricotta is perfectly delicious and the shell has an amazing crunch. While the pizza here isn’t bad, the necessary item on their menu is their cannoli.
Poutine/La Scooby
Rank: 186
This is the most famous place in Montreal to obtain poutine, and it is right across the street from Ma Poule Mouille. La Banquise is famous for a reason: their poutine is simply fantastic. My clear favorite was the La Scooby poutine with fried pickle, ground beef, bacon, onions, and Caesar dressing garlic, covering this amazing gravy and fries. This poutine is so delicious that it is a must-order, in my opinion. It might not be my highest-ranking restaurant, or even highest-ranking poutine. However, this poutine lives in my dreams. My stomach is growling just thinking about it right now.
Bagels
Rank: 198
If you have heard about how delicious Montreal’s bagels are, you are correct. St. Viateur should be the first bagel joint to come up in this discussion. Their bagels are elite. I would recommend ordering a poppy seed bagel, as it is their specialty, but whatever suits your fancy should be what you order here. While St. Viateur does not beat out the top bagel I have in NYC, it comes in a close second to the best bagel in NYC and therefore is an amazing place for a bagel.
Bagels
Rank: 231
Fairmount is one of those defining hole-in-the-wall places that I absolutely adore. This small bagel shop makes bagels that compete with the likes of NYC bagels. While it does not top my list of bagels in Montreal, if you are looking for another bite at the apple when it comes to Montreal’s bagel scene, you should look no further than Fairmount. Once again, I recommend poppy seed as it is the Montreal staple, but whatever bagel suits your fancy will definitely be amazing here.
Café/Cookies
Rank: 233
Olive+Gourmando is another off-the-beaten-path restaurant that just always seems to hit the spot for me. Here, the Cuban is definitely a highlight, but my favorite item on their menu was definitely their cookies. I believe that no matter the cookie you order, you will not be disappointed. I am confident their other baked goods are probably also delicious. However, I saw the cookies standing out for me, and I went and ordered them. I advise you to do the same.
Dumplings
Rank: 239
If I lived in Montreal, I would refer to Petit Poisson Dumplings as dumpling heaven, as I would come here and order different dumplings every time. While I could not try all of them, I am confident that you will enjoy whichever dumpling stands out to you at the time. The dumplings here are absolutely phenomenal.
Desserts
Rank: 249
If you have a sweet tooth and you are in Montreal, I have the place for you. While Fous Desserts may not be at the top of my list, when you sweet tooth strikes you might just have it at the top of yours. Everything here is absolutely delicious and rich in their own way, so I recommend ordering whatever your heart desires when the moment strikes, and I know you will not be disappointed.
Bakery/Croissant
Rank: 290
If you are feeling a nice stroll down a beautiful street with a croissant in hand, look no further than Kouign Amann. While everything I devoured here was fantastic, the clear winners for me were all their croissants. Each one had the perfect combo of fluffiness and crunchiness that you are so desperately looking for in your croissants, and their fillings, from chocolate to cheese, are a fantastic addition as well.
Diner/House Omelet
Rank: 312
While Famous Cosmo’s may not be the highest-ranking restaurant on this list, it definitely would win the Vibe Check award. This small diner is a classic hole-in-the-wall joint that everyone in this neighborhood likes to frequent. Nothing on the menu will disappoint; however, their Famous Cosmo’s house, Omelet, is the clear winner for me. Along with making a killer omelet, their potatoes are fantastic.
Kosher/Meat Poutine
Rank: 331
Schwartz’s may be the most famous of everything here on the list, and it also had the longest line of everything on the list by a substantial margin. While it may be coming in last on my list, that does not mean it is not worth the wait. It is, especially if you feel a classic pastrami sandwich, and their meat here is so flavorful. However, if I were you, I would skip the whole sandwich situation and get right to the best part: the meat poutine. Their meat is great on the sandwich, but on fries with gravy, this meat is an even better hit. So, I recommend snagging that while you are in the area.