The best French cuisine restaurants Montreal

The reputation of Relais & Châteaux Grand Chef Jérôme Ferrer is well established. L'Europea is a fine culinary art with an inventive and intuitive cuisine that takes all our senses on a journey. It's one of the best places to eat in town, and offers a taste experience to match. In the evening, let yourself be tempted by the La Grande Table menu, an epic culinary journey in 8 or 10 courses. The accompanying wine list is a hymn to happiness. A vegetarian menu is also available.

If the building where Mélisse is located lacks a bit of charm because of its modernity, the interior is worth a visit. It's simple, but very charming! In the plate, seasonal and local products, all in a healthy way. For lunch and dinner, the menu offers a nice selection of dishes to share (or not!) including crispy falafels with herb mayonnaise, grilled arctic char or the raw of the day. For brunch, we recommend without hesitation the salmon gravlax. There is also a nice selection of organic wines and cocktails.

Nestled in the heart of Old Montreal, the Bonaparte has its reputation to live up to! Open for more than 35 years, this institution offers French-inspired cuisine using local products. The menu changes every day, depending on arrivals and the chef's inspiration. The setting of the restaurant is elegant and the presentation of the table is meticulous. Lobster with vanilla, rack of lamb or duck breast are particularly recommended! The wine selection is impressive and the team is very good at advising you.

Chef Daniel Boulud is no stranger to the Ritz-Carlton restaurant, celebrated as one of the city's finest. His restaurant Daniel, in New York, is Michelin-starred and world-renowned, in addition to being a member of the prestigious Relais & Châteaux association. With Maison Boulud, he wanted to take advantage of the fusion of two cuisines, North American and European. A great success. The refinement is in the plates as well as in the dining room, and the service is worthy of top Michelin-starred restaurants. A fine dining experience.

A real lively and warm French bistro atmosphere reigns in the large dining room of the Petit Extra. The magnificent bar is inspired by the photographer René Jacques. The table d'hôtes changes every day and follows the rhythm of the seasons. The wine list, with its organic and privately imported selections, is excellent. It is also possible to organize receptions in the Lion d'Or adjoining the bistro (superb Art Deco showroom) or in the private lounge, the Lionceau. The restaurant also hosts a few events during the year.

Housed in a former presbytery in the Little Burgundy district, Candide is the address of chef John Winter Russell. The concept is simple: a fixed-price menu every evening, including two starters, a choice between two main courses and a dessert or cheese, all varying according to the inspiration of the moment, the season and what's available. Fine food, a warm welcome, pretty, airy premises, a charming, tranquil terrace and an open kitchen where you can watch the cooks at work. A gourmet evening guaranteed.

Olivia Lévêque has taken up the torch from her parents and offers a tempting card. You can enjoy good small dishes such as braised lamb shank, a large plate of fish bouillabaisse-style or crispy sweetbread. The house has been specializing in offal for over 40 years. On the sweet side, the choice will be difficult: Chartreuse iced nougat on raspberry coulis, crème brûlée with the flavour of the moment, chocolate temptation and its tarragon parfait... Bonus: all the breads are homemade.

A beautiful brasserie, classic, and famous since its opening in 1931. It is said that today the stars of the world of arts and sports like to get there to nibble a piece. Around a marble table, under the fan blades and in the characteristic hubbub of bistros, it is nice to look at business lunches, friends and lovers. In winter, you'll be advised of the hot onion soup that is right! In summer, chicken liver salad, tasted on the terrace, is very valuable. The specialties of the house are suitable for all seasons: beef tartar, calf liver, boudin to apples. The service is very effective.

Flavors, elegance and cheerful chatter are the order of the day. This renowned restaurant serves excellent cuisine, like these bites of salmon and beef tartare. It's so good, it makes you want more! Delicious rack of lamb with gratin savoyard and French peas, or lovely pan-fried milk-fed veal chop with morel mushroom sauce and rattes in duck fat. A fine wine list and successful desserts show that here, attention to detail is paramount. A message received by Montreal's relaxed, bourgeois clientele, and we understand!

Dyan Solomon and Eric Girard, co-owners of the famous Olive+Gourmando, opened Foxy in 2015. Unlike its big sister, which works morning and noon, Foxy is more of a night spot, offering charcoal and wood-fired cooking with a homemade philosophy. Meat and seafood products are very popular, not forgetting starters such as homemade feta cheese or the famous flatbread. The decor is muted and subdued, "halfway between a hunting lodge and a speakeasy " as Ariane Krol of La Presse aptly put it.

Brasserie Bernard, an essential institution in the chic and vibrant Outremont district, is brilliantly run by the Holder brothers, a reference in the city. This elegant brasserie transports us into the atmosphere and flavours of Europe. The great classics are on the slate and the menu makes room for local Quebec products, notably the Quebec cheese plate. A wide selection of wines and spirits is offered. The summer terrace adds to the many pleasures of this choice establishment.

In a chic and immaculate atmosphere, La Chronique's colourful menu tends to explore the very limits of French cuisine. Chefs Marc De Canck and Olivier de Montigny break free from traditional shackles and create dishes with new flavours. Aromas and tastes are pushed to such a degree that the palate loses its bearings. Beautiful wine list. When cooking becomes such a highly artistic material, we can then speak, without question, of one of the best tables in Montreal. To be discovered!

Definitely an address that will please the gourmet night owls. The place oscillates between restaurant, bar and nightclub. The decor honors the name of the establishment with its stylized wooden trees and its enchanted forest on the walls. On the plates, Chef Guillaume Daly and his team create dishes where raw and grilled meats take center stage (mention the AAA Tomahawk to share). To take the experience a step further, enter the hidden bar to enjoy a delicious cocktail in the atmosphere of a speakeasy.

The atmosphere is exactly that of an American diner, but revisited in a rather original way: long wooden counter with stools, lamps of all kinds, mismatched chairs, bottles and preserves from another era, deer head, knick-knacks as varied as they are numerous... As for the à la carte menu, you can order several small dishes to satisfy your stomach: smoked mackerel spread, oysters according to arrival, beef tataki, marinated salmon, 12-inch hot dog (a big star on the menu) or whelks with herb butter and parmesan.

A chic, friendly neighborhood wine bar and restaurant that's been tastefully imagined. The atmosphere is that of a place of friends, as evidenced by the terrace, which is always cheerful on summer evenings. The wines, natural or otherwise, are accompanied by small snacks such as the unmissable smoked meat roll with sauerkraut and Emmental cheese, or seasonal dishes such as duck and chanterelle ravioli. The quality of the products is a must for the chef, and it shows. On the other hand, portions are rather small and the meal can be a tad expensive.

We love the superb white decor, with a few islands of greenery here and there, but above all its partly glazed roof and greenhouse which, in addition to making the place extremely bright, give the impression of being on a terrace whatever the season. The old garage door also opens onto one of the restaurant's rooms, reinforcing this impression. The place offers several concepts: a weekend brunch spot, an evening restaurant with a menu rich in regional products, and a refreshment bar with cocktails and organic wines. A must-see!

Here is a brasserie with crazy charm, with its wood-covered walls, all in relief, where blackboards display the menus, and where modern meets rustic. Les Enfants Terribles is a famous name in the Montreal area. If all its addresses are not the same, the one in Outremont still has a certain charm. You can, for example, enjoy the spectacle of life in Outremont behind the large bay windows, while tasting a knife cut beef tartare with parmesan crumble and basil oil. A well-known address.

Having swapped premises with its little brother Larrys, the restaurant now operates in a smaller room with a cosy ambience. So it's in a decor of dark, coppery tones that the magic happens. The menu, true to form, promises a wealth of new discoveries: tripe with pine nuts, winter radish and chili gorria, double ravioli with liver and poultry heart, or doré with sauerkraut, leeks and sausage with smoked whelks - just a taste of the regularly changing menu. Lawrence continues to outdo itself year after year!