Fresh grilled squid, refreshingly fruity bubble tea, piping hot soup dumplings… If you’re spending this summer daydreaming about Montreal’s Asian restaurant scene, you’re not alone, and your prayers will be answered this September at Montreal’s Shoni Market.

Named Time Out’s Best New Event of the Year in 2021, Shoni Market returns for its second edition this year. The market’s name comes from a local nickname for its location: Shaughnessy Village, Montreal’s unofficial second Chinatown. Sainte-Catherine will be pedestrianized between rue Guy and rue Lambert Closse for the event's duration.

“Chinatown's like your original traditional neighbourhood, but on Sainte-Catherine is where we can find the new owners and new stores that opened their doors,” Cristina D'Arienzo, director of operations for the Montréal centre-ville business development corporation (SDC), told MTL Blog last year ahead of the inaugural event.

Last year, the event featured more than 100 local businesses and restaurants on Sainte-Catherine, including perennial favorite Sammi & Soupe Dumpling and underrated showstoppers like A Beverage Store. The organizers promise Shoni Market 2022 will be another “epic culinary journey across Asia,” including Vietnamese, Korean, and Japanese establishments serving tasty treats from September 8 to 11.

Shoni Market 2021 also showcased DJ sets, dancing, and – extremely important – over 100 corgis at a dedicated corgi appreciation event. We can only hope and pray for them to return for this year’s edition. We’ve made it a full year in Montreal without a massive corgi party, and frankly, the wait is getting painful.

Businesses located between St-Urbain and Atwater and Sherbrooke and Saint Antoine are encouraged to contact the production teams to participate this year.

When: September 8 to 11

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