© Marie-Eve Vallieres
Montreal has changed quite drastically over the past few years, and one of the neighborhoods that was most affected by these transformations is Griffintown. Nuzzled between Old-Montreal, downtown Montreal and Saint-Henri, this once post-industrial area has become Montreal’s most trendy locale. Warehouses now host locally-sourced cafés while abandoned shops are renovated and transformed into tiny shopping meccas.
Griffitintown has blossomed into a destination that even Montrealers flock to, hopping from a cocktail bar to a vintage glasses shop to a celebrity-chef restaurant or pâtisserie. Rue Notre-Dame Ouest is Griffintown’s main thoroughfare, and it stretches from the ultra-modern ALT Hotel on the eastern to the Atwater Market on the western side – and in between stands a plethora of original things to do.
Here are a couple of places Montrealers particularly like:
- Le Boucan Smokehouse (1886 Rue Notre-Dame Ouest): Although the restaurant is quite tiny itself, the portions are not; Le Boucan serves one of the biggest, most hearty poutine I’ve seen and their BBQ pork ribs are to die for.
- Griffintown Café (1378 Rue Notre-Dame Ouest): An ode to the neighborhood! This atmospheric café serves simple but delicious meals that can be enjoyed to the sound of a live jazz band.
- Itsi Bitsi Cupcakes (2507 Rue Notre-Dame Ouest): Because where else could you find beet velvet, pink lemonade or beer & apricot cupcakes?
- Le Bureau (1642 Rue Notre-Dame Ouest): This hole-in-the-wall tapas and cocktail bar has an obvious speakeasy feel to it, with its thick velvet drapes and soft lighting, which make it one of Griffintown’s most sought after spots.
- Stockmarkt (2664, rue Notre-Dame Ouest): The home of curated Swedish designer brands like ACNE and Filippa K, as well as Kitsuné and Filippa K.
- Marché Atwater (138 Avenue Atwater): Not quite as touristy at Jean-Talon Market but just as enjoyable, this little gem of a farmer’s market is ideally located by the canal, a perfect excuse for an al fresco lunch.
-Contributed by Marie-Eve Vallieres
