Tuesday 8 May 2012

Eating Green Across Canada: Montreal


With so much cultural diversity, Montreal is a city that has everything. All the fast-food conveniences of a major city, combined with mom and pop restaurants that offer a one of a kind culinary experience, and menus stretching from every corner of the globe. Tucked in amongst the French bistros and ethnic delicacies that make Montreal the gastronomic capital of Canada are a fair share of cafés and dining spots which pride themselves on local, fair trade, and organic products. Most offer more than just delicious food and are integral part of a lifestyle trending toward the promotion of everything that the city has to offer including arts, culture, music and theatre.

Aux Vivres

4631 boulevard Saint-Laurent
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
(514) 842-3479

Located in the heart of downtown and best known for its chapati sandwiches, Aux Vivres is the most popular destination among vegans. Promoting health through vegan cuisine, Aux Vivres has an international menu but gives priority to local and seasonal produce in all of its dishes.

Le SainBol
 
5095 Fabre St.
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
(514) 524-2292

Using only market fresh and in-season ingredients, Chef Houtin serves up a meal that's made to order. It's an unassuming little place tucked away along a side street in Montreal's trendy plateau region. Vegetarian that includes fish, it's a small menu with each mouthwatering dish tailored to perfection.

Café Zosha (Le Zigoto Café)

5731, ave du Parc 
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
(514) 867-9005

As renowned for the works of art that line the walls as it is for its fair trade and organic coffees, Café Zosha is as much a place to meditate as it is to enjoy a meal. The café offers an array of vegetarian and vegan dishes and is well-known for its Mediterranean style breakfasts made with organic eggs and served all day.

Cabaret-Boutique des BonsVoisins

247-A Lakeshore Road
Pointe Claire, Quebec, Canada
(514) 505-0578

Cabaret Boutique des BonsVoisins is more of a community centre that offers dining. In addition to their meals they offer live music and other cultural events or workshops almost every night, as well as a grocery store selling local, organic, and fairly traded food stuffs. Located in the quaint old village of Pointe Claire, a thirty-minute bus ride outside the city, it's worth a trip in itself.

Fait Ici

519, Notre-Dame O
Montreal, Québec, H3J 1N6
(514) 439.3888


Fait Ici stands by its name which means "made here". They promote supporting the local community and creating better relationships between producers and consumers. Besides their store which sells local and organic foods, Fait Ici offers a small sit down café with a menu offering a variety of sandwiches and salads made from the same ingredients that are on their shelves.