3 Best Restaurants in Downtown, Montreal

Step inside Caffettiera and you just might be convinced you've entered a caffè in Italy circa 1994. Here in this faux-wood-paneled space with its stand-up espresso bar, beige and blue banquettes, and formica tabletops, you'll drink flavorful coffee made from arabica coffee beans roasted in Rome by Fantini and brewed from Vittorio Arduini Lever machines or classic aluminum Bialettis. At the bar, you'll choose from an assortment of panini and Italian dolci, such as brioches, crostate (jam tarts with a lattice pastry top), and bomboloni (ball-shaped doughnuts filled with jam or Nutella). And, since Caffettiera is an authentic Italian bar, not just a café, you'll see bottles of Aperol, Campari, Fernet Branca, and Amaro Nonino behind the bar. There's no detail Italian-Canadian owner Andreas Vecchio and his partner and cousin Diego Lovino haven't thought of. Imported Italian chocolates and bonboni? Check. Italian chips and snacks for aperitivi? Check. Cheap-quality Fantini paper napkins (they also have higher-quality napkins) in Fantini dispensers? Check. Just like in Italy.

A Montréal institution since 1985, the refined Le Taj carries a piece of Montréal's history with its ornate mud wall originally made for India's pavilion at Expo ’67. With its northern Indian cuisine, which isn’t as spicy as its southern counterpart, thali—platters comprising a variety of curries—are ideal for sampling unfamiliar flavors. Vegetarians and vegans will feel right at home with the veggie menu, notably the saag paneer (white cheese with spinach), the tandoori vegetable platter, and the channa masala (chickpeas seasoned in coriander, garam masala, mango powder, onions, and garlic). Le Taj is also open at the Time Out Market, an upscale food court at 705 rue Ste-Catherine Ouest.

Eaton's 9th floor restaurant, an Art Deco masterpiece meant to simulate a 1920s ocean liner, was a paragon of sophistication during Montréal's zenith as a jazz age capital. Here, husbands took their wives for an elegant dinner. It was also where anglophone society women lunched, and where many mothers and daughters, as recently as the 1980s, marked special occasions. When Eaton's stores across the country shuttered in 1999 due to bankruptcy, the beloved restaurant sat collecting cobwebs for 25 years. Now, after a full restoration, the legendary 9th-floor restaurant reopened in May 2024. The ship-like dining room is used only for performances and special events, with the former grand hall and art gallery now serving as the restaurant and cocktail bar spaces. Some of the original Eaton's classics remain on the menu, but most of the cuisine can best be described as "French, with a Montréal twist". The cocktail bar, Le French Line, adjacent to the restaurant, is small but magnificently restored, featuring mirrored walls, some of the original, fantastical art tableaux, curved banquette seating, lots of windows, and pale green velvet curtains. Here, patrons can snack on tasty bar plates while sipping fabulous cocktails when the kitchen is closed. Or, any time the bar is open. 

To access the 9th-floor, take one of the restored elevators in the original entrance hall at 1500 boul. Robert-Bourassa. Here you'll find a grand corridor filled with window displays of historical objects, which leads to the reception desk.