Love, Laughter, and Poutine: Our Montreal Two Day Adventure

Having never been to Montreal, I was thrilled when my wife, Anne, was booked as a headline entertainer onboard a cruise that ended in Montreal, Canada. Luckily, we both had time in our schedules to plan a couple of fun days in a city I’d always wanted to visit.

Montreal is located on an island in the Saint Lawrence River and is the largest island in the Hochelaga Archipelago, which contains around 234 islands in total. It’s the second-largest French-speaking city in the world, after Paris, but it’s also a bilingual city. Most Montrealers are fluent in both French and English, giving the city a unique cultural blend.

Our journey began with checking into the beautiful Warwick Le Crystal Hotel, located in the heart of Montreal’s action and close to the popular Bell Centre. Our suite combined chic and urban styles, with gorgeous lighting from large windows. To top it all off, we had a fireplace and a soaking tub to warm up after touring on a chilly fall day. Their customer service was fantastic, and the staff was warm and helpful.

Our first afternoon was spent exploring the Old Town area. We had just wandered through Old Town in Quebec City and couldn’t wait to do the same in Montreal. We were amazed by the variety of restaurants and eclectic dining choices around us. We learned that Montreal has the highest number of restaurants per capita in Canada and ranks second in North America, just behind New York. After a week on a ship without any Mexican food, we both craved it and loved our chicken enchiladas at the adorable Sabrosa. After lunch, we continued wandering and shopping throughout the area. One of our favorite stops was a café and shop called Dépanneur Café. We ended our afternoon with a visit to the beautiful Notre Dame Basilica.

That evening, I wanted to explore and support some local LGBTQ businesses and had heard a lot about an area called The Village in Montreal. The Village, also known as Le Village Gai, is Montreal’s vibrant LGBTQ neighborhood. Located primarily along Sainte-Catherine Street East, it’s one of the largest and most well-known LGBTQ districts in North America. This neighborhood is celebrated for its inclusivity, colorful atmosphere, and dynamic nightlife.

Our evening started at an authentic Vietnamese restaurant called Le Red Tigre. This small, welcoming spot had a festive atmosphere with a limited but delicious menu. We enjoyed the most amazing bok choy, spring rolls, and fried rice, all at a price that made us both smile. Their craft cocktails were also incredible. Since it was a Monday night, we expected a quieter evening, so we tucked into a local bar called Le Normandie, an LGBTQ karaoke bar. It was quiet when we arrived, but as more people showed up, the karaoke started. It was so much fun to watch groups of friends supporting each other as they took turns singing, and many of them were amazing singers! Anne, who rarely sings karaoke because she believes it’s for non-singers to have fun, even got up to sing a song.

The next day, we planned one of our favorite activities when exploring a new city: a food tour! One of my favorite companies for this is Secret Food Tours. Food tours are a wonderful way to learn a city’s history through its cuisine.

Here are a few things I learned during our tour: Montreal is famous for its bagels and poutine. Montreal-style bagels are smaller, denser, and sweeter than New York-style bagels, typically boiled in honey-sweetened water before being baked in wood-fired ovens. Poutine, a comforting mix of fries, cheese curds, and gravy, originated in Quebec and is rumored to be a great hangover cure!

We had an amazing tour guide named Eric, who helped develop food tours in Montreal and has trained many guides over the years. Our tour took place in a neighborhood that’s not touristy and more of a local hangout called Mile End. We tasted fried baloney sandwiches at the historic Wilensky’s, St. Viateur bagels, gnocchi from Comptoir’s street window, poutine at Poutineville, and ended at Café Grazie Mille for cannoli and espresso. The entire experience was informative, fun, and left us feeling happily full!

For our last night, we decided to fully enjoy our beautiful room at the Warwick Le Crystal Hotel. We ordered room service from their delicious Thai restaurant, Siam Downtown. Sitting in front of our fireplace, we savored a relaxing meal to prepare for our journey home.

What an amazing trip we had! We can’t wait to return to Montreal for a longer visit. With its blend of French culture, diverse communities, and distinct traditions, it’s easily one of the most vibrant cities in North America.