30 Underrated Restaurants to Try in Montreal – Updated 2022
Montreal, Quebec, Canada is home to one of the best food scenes in North America. From trendy new restaurants to classic eateries, you’ll find something for every palate here.
Have you been looking for a new restaurant to try in Montreal? Look no further. We’ve selected 30 restaurants in Montreal for you—most of which are not-so-well known but all of which have their fans.
We’ve done our best to highlight the best of the bunch—and you’re about to get a full-body taste of the city through the lens of its restaurants!
30 Underrated Restaurants to Try in Montreal
1. Restaurant Ho Guom
Address: 2605 Rue Jean-Talon E, Montréal, QC H2A 1V1, Canada
Phone: (514) 507-8598
Website: Visit Website
Ho Guom, a popular Vietnamese restaurant in Villeray, offers a broad variety of pho and bn (rice vermicelli) meals, as well as a generous helping of herbs on the side.
Keep an eye out for these turmeric fish and their tropical fruit liquids when you’re in the neighborhood. There’s also a kid’s menu available.
2. Rose Ross
Address: 3017 Rue Masson, Montréal, QC H1Y 1X7, Canada
Phone: (514) 379-1900
Website: Visit Website
Rose Ross in Rosemont, Illinois, serves seasonal, farm-to-table meals. Pork cheek cooked in red wine and served over creamy potatoes, rice pudding for dessert and fried cauliflower with parmesan-caper dressing are all on the menu.
3. Thai Sep
Address: 1900 Rue Jean-Talon, Montréal, QC H2E 1T6, Canada
Phone: (514) 303-7767
Website: Visit Website
In the back of the laminated photo menu at this Rosemont BYOB, you’ll find some unusual Lao offerings, such nême kao (a crispy rice salad with pig) and handmade sausages, all of which could just become the food of your dreams.
Mango season is a great time to try sticky rice with mango and coconut cream.
4. Daou
Address: 519 Rue Faillon E, Montréal, QC H2R 1L6, Canada
Phone: (514) 276-8310
Website: Visit Website
This family-run restaurant serves all of your favorite Lebanese dishes, from sumac-tomato salad to grilled meats, filled vine leaves, and molokhia greens. There’s a good reason it’s been around for over fifty years.
5. Luciano Trattoria
Address: 1212 Rue Saint-Zotique E, Montréal, QC H2S 1N5, Canada
Phone: (514) 303-1204
Website: Visit Website
Luciano’s, a classic trattoria on Saint-Zotique East with firehouse windows, serves antipasti, fine pastas, and a few modest mains.
6. Santa Barbara
Address: 6696 Rue de Saint-Vallier, Montréal, QC H2S 2P7, Canada
Phone: (514) 273-4555
Website: Visit Website
With a focus on fresh, locally sourced products and international cuisine, Santa Barbara is a favorite neighborhood eatery for vegans, vegetarians, and meat eaters alike, with carnivorous alternatives offered.
Breakfast favorites include buckwheat beer crepes, beet burgers, banh-mi, and kimchi-laced eggs with daikon pickles, as well as a granola bowl that’s out of the ordinary for the area.
7. Le Virunga
Address: 851 Rue Rachel E, Montréal, QC H2J 2H9, Canada
Phone: (514) 504-8642
Website: Visit Website
Plateau’s chef Maria de Frias draws on a variety of sub-Saharan African traditions to create some very distinctive meals. Both à la carte and table d’hôte menus, with or without wine, are available at Frias.
Only a few of the culinary delights are Gabonese shredded salt fish, cassava-crusted rainbow trout, and braised mutton.
Le Virunga’s inventive menu illustrates that the delicacies of the Congo and its neighboring nations should be represented in Montreal’s fine dining scene.
8. Maria Bonita
Address: 5163 Boul St-Laurent, Montréal, QC H2T 1R9, Canada
Phone: (514) 807-4377
Website: Visit Website
Maria Chavez’s Mile End restaurant serves more than just tacos when it comes to Mexican food in Montreal.
Choose from a variety of margarita options and cazuelitas (little saucy meals in terracotta bowls) such as chocolaty and spicy mole, or stuffed poblano peppers with walnut sauce.
9. Barcola
Address: 5607 Av du Parc, Montréal, QC H2V 4H2, Canada
Phone: (438) 384-1112
Website: Visit Website
Barcola’s wine selection pairs well with their Menu Aperitivo, a three-part dinner influenced by northeastern Italian cuisine, usually consisting of an appetizer, pasta, and a main dish. Make sure to order dessert despite the cost.
10. Le Nil Bleu
Address: 3706 R. Saint-Denis, Montréal, QC H2X 3L7, Canada
Phone: (514) 285-4628
Website: Visit Website
Both vegans and carnivores will be pleased with the wide selection of colorful salads, whole grains, legumes, meats, and hearty sauces available at Nil Bleu.
Is it difficult to make a decision? Menu options include a tasting menu with a choice of either injera, Israeli couscous or rice as the main course.
11. noren
Address: 77 Rue Rachel O, Montréal, QC H2W 1G2, Canada
Phone: (514) 397-1141
Website: Visit Website
Elyse Garand and her boyfriend Hidenori Tsuda manage a small Japanese street food restaurant that serves takoyaki octopus balls, okonomiyaki cabbage pancakes, and bowls of oden stew and miso soup.
Calpico drinks and Elyse’s carefully curated sake selection are just some of the items in the supermarket’s cold food section.
12. Kanbai
Address: 1110 Rue Clark, Montréal, QC H2Z 1K3, Canada
Phone: (514) 871-8778
Website: Visit Website
Kanbai in Chinatown serves food from Sichuan and Hunan, two of China’s most popular culinary regions.
Even if you’re not fluent in Chinese, you may locate dishes like poached fish filet in hot chili soup or eggplant and minced pork in hot garlic sauce by searching for translated key terms like “hot,” “chili,” “garlic,” and “sauce,” all of which go well together.
Seasonal Cantonese food is available for those who aren’t a fan of spicy dishes.
13. Avesta
Address: 2077 Rue Sainte-Catherine, Montréal, QC H3H 1M6, Canada
Phone: (514) 937-0156
If you’re in the mood for a plate of hearty Anatolian delicacies, Avesta in Shaughnessy Village is the place to go.
On the menu you’ll find köfte and kebabs that have been grilled or braised, lavash sandwiches, and sweets prepared with pistachios, walnuts, and honey.
14. Chez Sophie
Address: 1974 Rue Notre Dame O, Montréal, QC H3J 1M8, Canada
Phone: (438) 380-2365
Website: Visit Website
Sophie Tabet, a Paul Bocuse alumna, serves up a simple menu of appetizers, seafood, beef, pasta, and dessert in the Sud-Ouest region of France.
Her husband Marco Marangi has handpicked the wine collection, making this one of the most upscale mom and pop businesses in the city.
15. Les Délices de l’Île Maurice
Address: 272 Rue Hickson, Verdun, QC H4G 2J6, Canada
Phone: (514) 768-6023
Website: Visit Website
This Verdun restaurant is one of Montreal’s few Mauritian restaurants, so anticipate a well-spiced meal with Indian and East African influences.
The table d’hôte offers a variety of vegetarian, meat, and seafood entrees, all served with a choice of a curry, creole, sweet-and-sour, honey, or saffron sauce. Most selections cost approximately $25.
16. M sur Masson
Address: 2876 rue Masson, Montreal, Quebec, H1Y 1W9, Canada
Phone: (514) 678-2999
Website: Visit Website
Masson and Vieux-Rosemont are no longer known for their little restaurants and tiny kitchens. Regardless, this is a top-notch restaurant.
17. Tri Express
Address: 1650 rue Laurier Est, Montreal, Quebec, H2J 1J2, Canada
Phone: (514) 528-5641
Website: Visit Website
The Montreal haute sashimi scene is dominated by Antonio Park, Junichi Ikematsu, and Shinji Nagai, but Tri Du has been in business for two decades and is still going strong.
Although this is not in the austere Jiro-san style, the cash-only, alcohol-free environment remains. Fun is guaranteed with Tri Express.
18. Alep
Address: 199 Jean-Talon Est, Montreal, Quebec, H2R 1S8, Canada
Phone: (514) 270-6396
Website: Visit Website
Close to Marché Jean-Talon, you’ll find a quiet restaurant called Alep serving traditional Levantine food.
The restaurant has been in operation since 1976 and has a lovely, informal sibling bistro – Le Petit Alep – next door. The wine selection is one of the best in the city.
19. Kitchen Galerie
Address: 60 Jean-Talon E., Montreal, Quebec, H2R 1S5, Canada
Phone: (514) 315-8994
Website: Visit Website
With a chef from Club 357c and Les Caprices de Nicolas, Kitchen Galerie was a sensation when it opened in 2007. The 2010 Gold Medal Plates winner Mathieu Cloutier is still in the kitchen, so that’s good news.
20. Primo e Secondo
Address: 7023 rue Saint-Dominique, Montreal, Quebec, H2S 3B6, Canada
Phone: (514) 908-0838
Website: Visit Website
Even in a bustling foodie mecca like Marché Jean-Talon, a great restaurant like Primo e Secondo might get lost in the crowds of diners and shoppers. In contrast, Roberto Stabile is a hardworking cook with considerable talent.
This is a family affair, with Natalina at the helm.
21. Lucca
Address: 12 rue Dante, Montreal, Quebec, H2S 1J5, Canada
Phone: (514) 278-6502
Website: Visit Website
While Impasto is currently in the spotlight, Lucca’s Little Italy roots in Dante extend back to 1999.
22. Brama
Address: 6701 boul. Saint-Laurent, Montreal, Quebec, H2S 3C8, Canada
Phone: 514) 270-6701
Website: Visit Website
Mike Ursini, a former Osteria Venti pasta cook, supervised the Brama kitchen until recently. Despite only being open for a little more than a year, the restaurant has been a big hit with both critics and regular customers.
23. Tripoli
Address: 679 rue Saint-Roch, Montreal, Quebec, H3N 1L2, Canada
Phone: (514) 277-4689
Family-style salads, meze, and gonzo meat platters like the lamb ribs are served at this Park Ex Taverna, which has queues out the door.
24. Cocagne
Address: 3842 rue Saint-Denis, Montreal, Quebec, H2W 2M2, Canada
Phone: (514) 286-0700
Website: Visit Website
With chef Alexandre Loiseau, Alexandre Loiseau’s meals are among of the most imaginative in the city, despite being tucked away in the ancient Toqué building.
25. Pintxo
Address: 256 rue Roy Est, Montreal, Quebec, H2W 1M6, Canada
Phone: (514) 844-0222
Website: Visit Website
Pintxo has had to go to great lengths to establish itself as a go-to destination for upmarket tapas. It’s worth a look, and 2014 marks the company’s tenth anniversary.
26. Casa Minhota
Address: 3959 boul. Saint-Laurent, Montreal, Quebec, H2W 1Y4, Canada
Phone: (514) 842-2661
Website: Visit Website
Because Casa Minhota has been on the Main for so long, it’s easy to take it for granted. On weekends, the restaurant is always full of Portuguese families who have long ago left the region but return to eat charcoal-grilled fish and meats from the ‘burbs.
27. Big in Japan
Address: 3723 boul. Saint-Laurent, Montreal, Quebec, H2X 2V7, Canada
Phone: (514) 847-2222
Website: Visit Website
In the Montreal edition of The Layover, Martin Picard and Normand Laprise served Anthony Bourdain izakaya-style hangover cuisine. Many of our readers believe that this book is still underappreciated.
28. La Porte
Address: 3627 boul. Saint-Laurent, Montreal, Quebec, H2X 2V5, Canada
Phone: (514) 282-4996
Website: Visit Website
In a June, 2010 review, Lesley Chesterman awarded La Porte a whopping 3.5 out of 5. However, it appears that Chef Thierry Rouye and his wife Pascale need to do more to spread the word about their excellent French cuisine.
La Porte closed its doors in May of this year. The Laurentians will soon see the opening of a new restaurant owned by the couple.)
29. Furusato
Address: 2137 rue de Bleury, Montreal, Quebec, H3A 2K2, Canada
Phone: (514) 849-3438
A 2012 review by Sarah Musgrave of the downtown Japanese restaurant Furusato described it as “a place of modest charms, a reminder that comfort food doesn’t always mean mac ‘n’ cheese.”
30. EVOO
Address: 3426 Notre Dame West, Montreal, QC H4L 1P2, Canada
Phone: (514) 846-3886
Website: Visit Website
Chefs Sophie Ouellet and Peter Saunders have a devoted following in the Sud-Ouest, but their inventive food deserves a broader audience.
Conclusion
While there are plenty of amazing restaurants in Montreal, it’s not always easy to find the ones that are worth a visit. I’m going to share with you 30 under rated restaurants that I think are definitely worth a try.
Some of them are very well known, others less so. All of them are affordable and delicious. They all offer something special. Enjoy!
