Montreal's first-ever oyster bar is closing after 34 years

Saint-Laurent Boulevard is losing another piece of its history. Just days after Le Rouge Bar announced it would close after 23 years, one of Montreal's most beloved seafood restaurants is preparing to say goodbye.

Maestro SVP, the city's longest-running oyster bar, will soon close its doors after 34 years of slinging oysters and champagne to Montrealers.

"My lease is over, and I don't see myself going another 10 years," owner Ilene Polansky told MTL Blog. "I'm 64, and in this economic climate, it's time. Although I love it, the business is just not there."

Polansky opened Maestro SVP on Masson Street in 1992 after working at a seafood joint in Toronto. At the time, Montreal didn't have a single dedicated oyster bar. A couple of years later, she moved to Saint-Laurent Boulevard, where the restaurant became a fixture of the street's golden era.

"When I opened on Saint-Laurent, oh my god — beautiful people, beautiful cars, nightlife, everybody had money in their pockets," Polansky recalled. "We were selling bottles of champagne every day. It was a completely different vibe."

Over the decades, Maestro SVP became known for world-class seafood and a celebrity "Wall of Fame," where famous guests would sign oyster shells that were displayed in the front hall. Bo Derek, Leonard Cohen, Macaulay Culkin, Jean Paul Gaultier, and members of the Jackson family all left their mark on the Montreal eatery.

But in recent years, she's watched the street change dramatically.

"Saint-Laurent is taking a downfall," she said. "There are so many 'for rent' signs here. It used to be full of clubs, people. Those days are gone."

Polanksy says the shift has been especially stark since COVID. And while the first year after the pandemic brought a boom in business, the momentum didn't last.

"The first draft after COVID was the best year I ever did," Polansky said. "Everybody came out, everybody wanted to eat in restaurants. And then slowly, the decline."

Beyond the changing neighbourhood, Polansky pointed to broader shifts in Montreal's dining scene. More restaurants are opening than ever, but fewer are surviving.

"There are so many restaurants opening now — someone has a dream of opening a restaurant, serving the best food, making tons of money," she said. "But within two years, it's gone."

She's also noticed how customers' tastes have changed.

"People are looking for quick, fast, trendy food — like a great smash burger," she said. "I'm not saying I'm fine dining, but when it comes to the trend of going out for dinner, people just don't have money."

And so, after more than three decades, Polansky is ready to step away for good. What she says she'll miss most isn't the business itself, but the human connection.

"A woman came in last night — she must have been about 75. She said she used to come with her husband, but her husband passed away," Polansky added. "That's what I'm going to miss — not being a part of everybody's life when they come to the restaurant."

Maestro SVP will continue regular dinner service until March 22.

As for plans for the final night? Polansky is keeping it simple.

"I'll probably have some alcohol left over — more than normal," she said. "So shots will be bigger than normal. I don't have a party plan, but I'm gonna give out huge shots the last day and probably get everybody drunk."