I tried 6 Montreal late-night food spots while sober to see if they hold up to their hype
The opinions expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect the views of Narcity Media.
It’s late. You’re wandering down boulevard Saint-Laurent after a night of dancing. Or, maybe you’ve just stumbled out of McLean’s, McKibbin’s, or some pub on MacKay. Either way, you’ve probably been to an establishment with "Mc" in the title and now you're ravenous.
From garlic sauce so good it makes you want to fill a kiddie pool with it and swim in it to the perfect poutine to the humble bagel, at that hour, anything goes — and all of it hits the spot just right.
But have you ever wondered if the greasy grub you love is actually as delicious as you think it is? What would that shawarma or poutine taste like in the light of day, without the beer goggles on? I went on a mission to find out, visiting my favourite post-party eateries while stone-cold sober. Hey, it's a tough job, but someone's gotta do it.
Here’s a deeper dive into which late-night Montreal restaurants hold up to their hype during daylight.
Boustan (rue Crescent)
Price: 💸
Cuisine: Lebanese
Address: 2020A, rue Crescent
Appealing to both club-goers and pub-goers, Boustan franchises have been sprouting up all over Montreal (and beyond) since Emad Saad took over, expanding on Imad “Mr. Boustan” Smaidi's great legacy.
The Lebanese fast-food sandwiches and plates are dangerously delicious in the wee small hours of the morn, no matter which location. And if you haven’t ordered extra garlic sauce on each element of your trio (including your soft drink?) at 2 a.m., you’re doing it wrong.
During the day, however, there’s a secret sauce that’s only offered at the OG Crescent location: nostalgia.
While you may want to bypass the extra garlic sauce between work meetings downtown, the flagship pita palace is just as scrumptious midday as it is mid-night.
I’d recommend getting the Creation Pita. Once an off-menu item, this poorly-kept secret is an orgy of Shawarma, omelette, grilled eggplant, garlic potatoes, hummus, and Boustan sauce. If legend holds, ask for the kibbeh.
Fairmount Bagel
Price: 💸
Cuisine: Bagels
Address: 74, av. Fairmount O.
Ah, bagels. The great debate amongst Montrealers. Fairmount or St-Viateur? While my Outremont-born-Fairmont-favouring grandfather would turn in his grave, I have to say that St-Viateur is the superior option... but it's not open 24/7, so point goes to Fairmount this round.
Fairmount is the go-to spot for digging into a dozen sesame (hot!) with fellow post-partygoers while passing 'round the Philly on a Mile End staircase. And, as it turns out, this carbo-loading experience is just as satisfying sober.
They’ve got plenty of pumpernickel, there’s always something fresh out of the oven, and popping open a bag of lox before delicately placing it atop your bagel and schmear — a skill reserved for the uninebriated — adds variety fit for sunny days, not just sunrise haze.
Greenspot Restaurant
Price: 💸
Cuisine: Casse-croûte
Address: 3041, rue Notre-Dame O.
Whether you braved the line-up to savour a Strawberry Fields at Atwater Cocktail Club, or spent your 5 à 7 throwing back pints of Burgundy Lion Ale, Greenspot Restaurant (aka The Green Spot) delivers.
While it doesn’t stay open quite as late as most downtown after-party eateries, this classic diner has been serving the good people of Montreal for over 70 years and produces some of city’s most reliable loaded poutines. Their St. Henri poutine (ground beef, sautéed peppers, and onions) and Brontosaurus poutine (ground beef, pepperoni, bacon, and hot dogs) have both been known to scratch an intoxicated itch or two.
When sober, Greenspot's poutines are just as mouthwatering. Additionally, they have classic Montreal diner staples on the menu, like steamies, subs, and clubs.
In broad daylight, I’d recommend bypassing the Pizzaghetti, an individual pizza sliced in half and topped with a heaping portion of pasta. The carbs-on-carbs-covered-in-carbs option is a tad too heavy for lunch. So, unless you’ve cleared your afternoon schedule, I’d save it for the weekends.
Greenspot Website
Al Taib
Price: 💸
Cuisine: Pizza / Middle Eastern
Address: 2125, rue Guy
While you might think manakish (a circular dough topped with za'atar, cheese, and/or ground beef) would be the star of this rue Guy establishment, it’s the pizza that reels in the masses. From a slice of Mexican pie, with spicy beef, banana peppers, onions, and fresh tomato, to veggie, all-dressed and the like, if you ask, Al Taib answers.
The beauty of this place late at night is the upstairs hideaway, which is usually pretty empty. It’s a hidden gem where you can dig in, get messy, and not be judged (or at least try not to be).
Open until 5 a.m, every day, the buffet of sides can get a tad stale by midnight. That’s the beauty of going earlier in the day. While fresh, Al Taib’s assortment of Middle Eastern salads is a perfect pairing to an oven-fresh slice.
Shawarmaz
Price: 💸
Cuisine: Middle Eastern / Mediterranean
Address:
- 277, rue Sainte-Catherine E.
- 1340, rue Saint-Catherine O.
- 5790, boul. des Grandes-Prairies
While it’s newer to the game than Boustan, Shawarmaz takes the cake with location, location, location. Steps away from Pub Le Sainte-Élisabeth, this Middle Eastern-Mediterranean joint brings something special to the counter: Saj bread, a super thin and slightly crispy style of flatbread.
Shawarmaz is great for soaking up terrasse microbrews with a vengeance, but — when not three sheets to the wind — the Saj pitas are equally delicious, if not tastier, because they aren't being devoured in four bites (three if you’re ambitious).
The environment mid-day also exudes a more calm, cool, and collected energy, which is a nice touch.
Plus, being there clear-minded allowed new menu items to catch my eye — namely, the Sushi Shawarma. Forewarning: it’s not actually sushi and shawarma. It's the same Saj pita filled with sliced chicken or meat, only it’s divided into sushi bite pieces; but for some reason, it tastes ten times better that way. Maybe it’s the presentation. Maybe it’s the pomegranate molasses. Maybe it's the ingenuity. Does it really matter?
For whatever reason, my eyes were also set on the macaroni salad that day. While I have managed to conquer an entire container of the stuff at night, by day, it was like driving up avenue Pine (a steep AF climb).
Side note: The Shawarmaz BOMB introduces melted cheese, coleslaw, and French fries to the party. The perfect hangover cure, or post-one-night-stand-pick-me-up.
Chez Mein (aka $2 Chow)
Price: 💸
Cuisine: Chinese
Address: 3671, boul. Saint-Laurent
A man… in a window… making some sort of peanut-noodle lovechild — and it’s only two dollars?! Did I go too hard at the club or, in the words of David After Dentist, "Is this real life?"
There’s nothing more satisfying than an ooey-gooey plate of Chow Mein drenched in peanut sauce at a more-than-reasonable price — plus, spring rolls! Good thing you forgot to tip at coat check. It’s time to put that Toonie to good use.
As the sun shines light on bad decisions and questionable queries, the “two-chow” sorcerer disappears into the night, letting his cauldron of nutty nirvana age, like a fine wine, for tomorrow’s after-hours crowd.
I’ve tried those noods sober. I’ve become disillusioned, as I watched the sorcerer unscrew that iconic green lid off the KRAFT peanut butter and pour it over overcooked noodles — no soya sauce, no rice wine vinegar, no sesame oil. Just that distrustful teddy bear smiling back at you from the peanut butter jar. Did he just wink? This is one pitstop worth detouring past sober, even if mildly tipsy. It requires Big Drunk Energy to keep the magic alive.
MTL Blog does not condone the overconsumption of alcohol or other substances. If you're going to drink alcohol or consume cannabis, please do so responsibly and only if you're of legal age.
This article's cover image was used for illustrative purposes only.
"No hole" bagels smeared with cream cheese.
A selection of the limited edition bagels, including sesame, all-dressed, plain and poppy seed.
St-Viateur and the Montreal bagel go head-to-head with New York bagels.
Simu Liu on a Toronto billboard for his newest campaign with Cheetos Canada.Cheetos Canada
Vince Morena showing Sofia how to shape the dough.
Wrapping the dough around the hand to get the size and shape right.
The boiler, aka. bagel hot tub.
After their steamy honey dip, the bagels are piping hot, so a quick shimmy in the sesame seeds cools them off.
The St-Viateur wood-fire oven bakes four dozen bagels every rotation.
Sofia and Vince take the bagels they prepped out of the oven.