Montreal is lucky to have so many restaurants that specialize in fresh fish and seafood. The city is also fortunate to be fostering an effort to support ocean-friendly, sustainable seafood, which means you can feel confident that your dinner was caught or farmed in a fashion that ensures the long-term vitality of the species. Hungry yet? Check out these top spots.
Lucille’s Oyster Dive is a neighbourhood gem in NDG and the big sister of Brasserie Lucille’s in Westmount. Both have a similar menu filled with fresh seafood and in-house aged meats, perfect for that surf n’ turf dinner. Start your meal with their epic seafood Bloody Caesar loaded with an oyster, crab leg and shrimp. Both restaurants have some of the best lobster rolls in the city, a huge variety of oysters and beautiful seafood platters full of shrimp, oysters, lobster and crab.
Chef Antonio Park’s name is linked to the best sushi in Montreal, and rightfully so. He creates masterful platters of nigiri sushi and sashimi that has everyone flocking to Park in Westmount, celebrities included. The Omakase menu is the best way to enjoy all that Park has to offer, as your menu is the chef’s choice and includes available seasonal ingredients like sea urchin, wild sockeye salmon and more.
Danny Smiles’ contagious smile is not the only thing that keeps customers coming back to Le Bremner. Their selection and quality of food is on point at this Old Montreal restaurant. Start your meal with fresh oysters or their smoked trout with avocado and bacon toast. Indulge in their snow crab cakes with homemade kimchi, or their mouth-watering lobster pizza.
Chef Chuck Hughes’ Garde Manger has been a staple in the heart of Old Montreal for locals and celebrities alike. Their ever-changing chalkboard menu is seafood heavy with favourites like jerk crab and their infamous lobster poutine. Garde Manger’s seafood platter will take you to seafood heaven, filled with scallops, oysters, lobster, crab legs, jumbo shrimp and homemade gravlax along with all the accoutrements to enjoy it with. After 11pm, things start to get rowdy, with a DJ spinning and people dancing, sometimes even on the bar ;)
Marché 27 is a tartare restaurant in the Plateau where you can create your own tartare combinations by choosing the base, whether it’s meat or fish, and then the style in which it is prepared. Tuna, lobster, scallops and salmon are just some of the raw seafood options that can be made in various styles. Marché 27 isn’t just about raw seafood though, they also serve grilled black tiger shrimp, and braised octopus in a miso broth. They also have a food truck roaming around Montreal and two express locations downtown.
La Sirène de la Mer is a mix of traditional Mediterranean dishes with an emphasis on fish, seafood and a few Middle Eastern treats. They have an adjoining fish and seafood shop, which guarantees the freshness and high quality of the seafood in their restaurant. You can order a whole fish at La Sirène de la Mer, they’ll cook anything from their fish shop for you, never mind what’s on their menu.
One of the many stalls filled with local products in the Jean-Talon Market is La Boîte aux Huîtres, an oyster specialty shop. They have an outdoor kiosk in the summer, and they can be found in Poissonnerie Aqua Mare during the colder months. Our love of oysters knows no bounds and the experts at La Boîte aux Huîtres serve many varieties of oysters in a range of sizes and price points, as well as a killer lobster roll, crispy calamari and more treats depending on the season.