Montreal's Giant Street Food Festival Will Take Over Rue Sainte-Catherine This Week

Downtown Montreal will become a "cultural and culinary playground" during its annual pan-Asian street food fest. From September 8 to 11, Shoni Market will showcase the shops of Shaughnessy Village, sometimes called the city's second, unofficial Chinatown, along with local artists and musical performers.

Thirty vendors serving Vietnamese, Korean, Japanese food, and more, will set up along Sainte-Catherine Street, which will be pedestrianized between MacKay and Chomedey.

Visitors can taste treats from Petit Poisson Dumpling, Mama Bangkok, Osmow's and Chef Lee. Argo bookstore will also have a selection to peruse.

Live art and musical performances, along with a highly anticipated corgi walk, are scheduled throughout Shoni Market.

A new mural by local artist Thaïla Khampo is already going up on Pierce Street. During the festival, he'll be painting an entrance arch between Guy and McKay. On September 2, artist Maylee Keo will begin her mural, inspired by the history of the neighbourhood.

A giant boombox and a dance floor will host a unique lineup of Kpop dancing, DJs and musical artists. This year's performers include Quebec hip-hop artist High Klassified and artists from Mexican reggaeton collective PerreoMillennial and afrobeat collective Mansa n Friend.

The festival's full programming is online.

Thousands of people attended the first edition of the event last year. This year, Shoni Market is expecting over 200,000 attendees.

"Downtown Montreal is experiencing a dramatic resurgence in foot traffic that is approaching pre-pandemic levels," said downtown Montreal's General Manager Glenn Castanheira.

"We need to maintain that momentum in the coming months. That's why we're working hard to offer a unique and memorable downtown experience with festive and unifying events like Shoni Market, which shines a light on this neighbourhood, a true symbol of the city's diversity and vibrancy," he said.