Le Plateau-Mont-Royal
Le Plateau-Mont-Royal, or simply The Plateau, is a hippy neighborhood famous for its colorful houses, bohemian aura, chill cafes, and happening nightlife. It was the main destination for our Montreal trip so we decided to rent a newly renovated Airbnb apartement in the neighbourhood. We spent a good amount of our first day exploring the neighborhood on foot. The closest analogy we can think of to describe it is a mix between "Lower East Side" and "Greenwich Village" in New York City. One street could seem a bit dirty and grungy but the next is very quaint and upscale. You can find a hang out spot here no matter you are a young student, an indie musician, a uber-chic yuppie, or a Portuguese old lady (the area was home to a strong Portuguese community who were mostly factory workers). A few highlights for the neighborhood:
- For cute brownstone houses, check out Rue Drolet and Avenue Laval (btw Avenue du Mont-Royal and Square Saint-Louis). Parc Lafontaine, a square surrounded by quaint houses, is also worth a visit (reminded us a lot of Washington Square Park in NYC).
- For restaurants and cafes, Avenue Duluth (btw St Laurent and Parc Fountaine) is a cute cobblestone street filled with restaurants. We had lunch on this street for both days. Rue Prince Arthur E is another popular restaurant street but was under heavy construction during our visit.
- The Plateau also has one of the richest collections of street art. Half of our pictures on the trip were snapshots of creative graffitis. Some of our favorites are "The Waves" (Ave Duluth E/Rue Saint-Denis), "The Wall of Cats" (outside Café Replika), and "The Graffiti Granny" (Boul Saint-Laurent/Ave des Pins E).