Tous à Montréal

Photo Courtesy of Maha-Online on Flickr

Kavitha Iyer was a finalist in our food photography contest, and we liked her so much we invited her back for this illustrated narrative of her recent trip to Montreal.

July is the time of year when all of Montreal is outdoors (and not underground). The skies are blue, the cafe patios open and the squares and parks filled with activity. Our first day began with a relaxed breakfast at Narcisse, followed by a walk through the historic part of town. Rue de la Commune, which fronts the river and port, is where we discovered the Bixi, Montreal’s equivalent of the Vélib in Paris. This is a great asset for the visitor as an inexpensive way to get around a city which has dedicated bike routes on even the major roadways. We saw the Bonsecours Market, an old municipal building which now houses exhibits and retail spaces. A block away, Place Jacques is quite the tourist hub. Flanked by restaurants with open patios, it gets more crowded as the day progresses. Our evening took us to the Jazz Festival, a summer ritual featuring hundreds of indoor and outdoor concerts around the Place des Arts Square.

Day two started out with crepes at Chez Suzette, which came highly recommended by the locals. Our long walk for the day took us to Chinatown, and the Dragon Beard Candy shop. Lunch was a delicious bowl of phở and the token fortune cookie from Wings. In the evening was an amazing firework display courtesy of L’International des Feux Loto-Québec, an international pyrotechnic art competition. Thousands of people gathered along the port and the Rue de la Commune to see Portugal’s entry that night.

Photo Courtesy of Aschaf on Flickr

On the third day we visited Atwater Market in the Saint-Henri area of southwest Montreal. It’s housed in an original Art Deco building, and is home to some of the city’s premier fromageries and butchers. We made our way back on the city’s Métro to grab lunch at the renowned Schwartz’s Deli. It’s an institution since the Thirties, famous for its smoked kosher-style meat and crunchy pickles.  Afterwards, a walk through the neighborhoods around Mont Royal Park showcased some unusual castle-like homes.

Every Sunday during the summer the Tam-Tams turn Mont Royal Park into an unofficial drumming festival. We rented a couple of Bixis and went riding through the park. The trails can get pretty steep, but in great weather with the festive music on the green below it’s a must-do.

Day four took us on a quest for poutine. I’m always fascinated by the fact that in every part of the world there’s a local potato snack. Poutine, however, is more a meal. La Banquise was our choice for our Québecois potato fix. It came topped with freshly made goat curd, and we needed a walk to work it off.

Our afternoon explorations took us to the Île Sainte-Hélène to see Buckminster Fuller’s Biosphère. This was the site of Expo ’67, a man-made island formed from earth excavated during the construction of Montreal’s Métro. A fire in the Seventies destroyed the acrylic panels that used to form the outside of the bubble, but the steel lattice remains. The exhibits were underwhelming but I do recommend the aerial view of Montreal and the island from the top floor.

On our way we picked up another pair of Bixis at the station and took the route along Avenue Pierre Dupuy to catch an up-close glimpse of Habitat 67, the futuristic housing complex designed for the Expo by the then-23-year-old architect Moshe Safdie. The six-mile bike ride is a great way to cross the river and see the skyline from the other side.

Summers are hot, and a long-brimmed hat was my friend. Sipping some wine and an aperitif along the port edge as the sun went down, we toasted to the end of our walking and biking journey in Ville Marie.

Kavitha Iyer is an architect by trade, and an artist and writer by temperament. She was originally a finalist in the photo contest we ran with Food52.