La Banquise is a street food restaurant in Plateau, Montreal.
La Banquise is Montreal's round-the-clock poutine institution on Rue Rachel, slinging more than thirty gravy-soaked variations to a 24-hour crowd.
Editorially verified July 1, 2026 by Lewis Vaughan, TableJourney editor. Source.
Must order: La Taquise poutine with guacamole, or the classic with extra cheese curds.
Tip: Weekend nights bring a long post-bar line; go on a weekday afternoon for a seat straight away.
Address: 994 Rue Rachel Est, Montreal, QC H2J 2J5
Ma Poule Mouillee is the tiny Plateau counter grilling charcoal Portuguese chicken over Rue Rachel, its piri-piri birds and francesinha drawing daily lines.
Order: A half charcoal chicken with piri-piri and a poutine topped with chicken.
Tip: Seating is minimal and cash speeds things up; get it to go and eat in nearby Parc Lafontaine.
Romados is a Portuguese rotisserie and bakery on Rue Rachel in Montreal, drawing daily lines for its charcoal piri-piri chicken and custard tarts.
Order: A charcoal chicken with spicy sauce, plus a pastel de nata for dessert.
Tip: Order the chicken and a couple of natas together; the queue at noon is worth beating early.
Tri Express is chef Tri Du's cramped, joyful sushi counter on Laurier Est in Montreal, a Plateau favourite for inventive maki eaten elbow to elbow.
Order: Whatever the chef sends out; the omakase-style specials beat the menu.
Tip: The space is tiny and cash-friendly; go early or expect to wait for one of the few seats.
Ma Poule Mouillee is the tiny Plateau counter grilling charcoal Portuguese chicken over Rue Rachel, its piri-piri birds and francesinha drawing daily lines.
Order: A half charcoal chicken with piri-piri and a poutine topped with chicken.
Tip: Seating is minimal and cash speeds things up; get it to go and eat in nearby Parc Lafontaine.
Romados is a Portuguese rotisserie and bakery on Rue Rachel in Montreal, drawing daily lines for its charcoal piri-piri chicken and custard tarts.
Order: A charcoal chicken with spicy sauce, plus a pastel de nata for dessert.
Tip: Order the chicken and a couple of natas together; the queue at noon is worth beating early.
Chalet BBQ has roasted hardwood-charcoal chicken in NDG since 1944, an unchanged Montreal rotisserie whose quarter-chicken and gravy fries define the genre.
Order: A quarter chicken with fries and the house barbecue dipping sauce.
Tip: The room looks frozen in the 1960s on purpose; dine in for the full retro rotisserie experience.
Nouilles de Lan Zhou hand-pulls its noodles to order in Montreal's Chinatown, the dough stretched at the window over bowls of cumin-spiced beef broth.
Order: Hand-pulled beef noodle soup, watched being stretched at the counter.
Tip: Ask for your noodles thin or wide when you order; the beef soup is the one to get.
Tri Express is chef Tri Du's cramped, joyful sushi counter on Laurier Est in Montreal, a Plateau favourite for inventive maki eaten elbow to elbow.
Order: Whatever the chef sends out; the omakase-style specials beat the menu.
Tip: The space is tiny and cash-friendly; go early or expect to wait for one of the few seats.
Qing Hua fills its soup dumplings by hand in Montreal's Chinatown, a bustling counter where the pork-and-crab xiao long bao arrive by the steaming dozen.
Order: A dozen pork and crab soup dumplings, plus the coriander ones.
Tip: Order fewer dumplings than you think; a dozen each is plenty and they come out fast.
