If you like or have never had pupusas, El Amigo is a good, family-oriented, hole-in-the-wall cafe. In case you haven’t had them, are thick tortillas, filled with beans, cheese, pork, etc. (your choice), and fried. You top them with a slaw and red sauce (mildly spicy). Their Mexican stuff is pretty good, too. We liked the chimichanga–it was unlike what you would find at an American Mexican place. Very cheap.

Malhi (880 Rue Jarry West) Our favorite Indian place in Montreal. You will have to circle a little to find parking, but it shouldn’t be too hard to find a spot. Weeknights are much less crowded than weekends, especially since their write-up in Gourmet magazine’s special issue on Montreal in March 2006. I would highly recommend their samosas. The goat curry is delicious, though sometimes full of bones. The saag is not my favorite, as the spinach is more pureed than I like, but others like it. The Chicken Tikka Masala is quite nice, and the eggplant is scrumptious. Chili Chicken is also quite tasty. I could go one…Delicious, fresh spices, and heat –all in the right combination.

Casa Tapas (266 Rue Rachel East) is a fun, excellent place. Service is great, atmosphere is great, and food is great. Moderately pricey, but not too much so, and worth it. Typical tapas dishes. We really enjoyed it. Excellent garlic shrimp and garlic mushrooms (and I don’t normally like shrimp or mushrooms!).

Pizzaiolle (600 rue d’ Youville)—This was one of our favorites in Montreal. The ol’ stand-by. Very casual, no reservation needed. The carbonara is excellent, in my opinion, because the onion and garlic and pancetta flavors blend together deliciously. I thought their other pasta selections are limited, but there really was never another choice for me: always the carbonara. Our favorite pizza was the Campanella, which had olives, onions, and pancetta. Toppings were crispy and delicious. People like their calzones, too, though I don’t think we ever tried one. I also really loved the green salad, which is very nice—simple, fresh lettuce with a delicious, light vinaigrette. There are a few locations around Montreal.

I first read about this quaint little shop that is diagonally across the street from Olive & Gourmando before moving to Montreal in a Bon Appetit article from December 2004. We stumbled upon it after arriving, not associating the two until I recognized the proprietors. On that cold, snowy day, we enjoyed our traditional and perfectly prepared lunch-size quiche. Later, we returned for a variety of things—from their fantastic croissants and baguettes to their to-die-for pate de fois gras ($350/kilo). A simple dinner of pate and a baguette from here is truly divine.

Very yummy and hip, but often too crowded for its own good.Olive et Gourmando (351 St. Paul West) is another Seattle/Paris blend place. This is an excellent cafe with great coffee and delicious pastry! It is unfortunate that the staff is miserably rude, the ordering system confusing, and it’s always crowded. It’s been written up in so many guides that it’s become too popular to provide the good service and good atmosphere it ought to have.

—On Rue St. Paul…, Stash Café specializes in Polish food. It is surprisingly good, given its popularity and location in the heart of touristy Montreal and the fact that it was on Rachel Ray’s “$40 A Day.” With the exception of a minor egregious misunderstanding between myself and the server, which almost led to my walking out, the dinner was very enjoyable and tasty. I always meant to go back and try it again, but never made it. The restaurant also has live piano entertainment, which might be initially off-putting, but is actually very nice and makes for a unique and pleasant atmosphere.

On Rue Notre Dame next to the Cathedral in Old Montreal…..very good sushi, great miso soup, and very tasty and spicy bulgogi. Tokyo, another place nearby that looks great, is overpriced and not as good (and the sushi are so large that you are hard-pressed to fit the entire bite in your mouth).

Brunch: Go early or there will be a long wait. Le Cartet (106 Rue McGill) is a really neat restaurant with inventive breakfasts, and the food is all very good. Service can be lacking, but the rest makes up for it. They do french toast, croissants with goat cheese and ham (really, really good!), granola and eggs. You can order a la carte, but they have “breakfasts” that have a few of the items all combined for $15, including coffee and juice. A really good choice if you’d like to do an early brunch–I’d say go around 9.

l’Anecdote (801 Rue Rachel East) or Maamm Bolduc (4351 Lorimer). If you haven’t tried poutine –the Quebecois specialty of french fries with cheese curds and gravy– you should! And, you should try it at one of these places. Both are little neighborhood cafes/burger joints–some of the best burgers in town, actually, in our opinion. Both are kid-friendly as well. Check out this Montreal Poutine website if you’re curious about poutine.