Best Places for Brunch in Montreal

Sparrow

One part pub, one part hipster haven, Mile End's Sparrow had people buzzing from the time it opened thanks to its relaxed vibe, quirky decor, and delicious breakfast sweets like scones, crumpets, and homemade doughnuts.

During weekend brunches, which are served from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., you'll find house-smoked trout served with a soft boiled egg, spinach, and green onion pancake and beet salad or steak and eggs with chimichurri and sweet potato home fries.

Other menu favorites include Sparrow's Moroccan shakshuka or the Turkish breakfast, which is perfect for people who enjoy finger foods. This unique serving includes feta, olives, chopped tomatoes, cucumbers, a soft-boiled egg, walnuts, dried apricots, fig jam, and a side of flatbread. 

To get to this cozy spot, take the Laurier Metro. Sparrow is located one block south of St. Viateur on the corner of Maguire and St. Laurent. Brunch reservations are only accepted for 10 a.m., so anticipate lineups and a crowd leaning heavily towards twenty and thirty-year-old patrons.

La Récolte

The weekend brunch menu is hyper-seasonal at La Récolte, a small restaurant gem four blocks from Marché Jean-Talon. While you can typically order housemade sausages, snow crab eggs benedict, or smoked trout with fried shrimp, the menu changes often.

Brunch is served on weekends from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturdays and until 3 p.m. on Sunday, and customers rave over the laidback ambiance contrasting with upscale, elegant plating. Located at the corner of rue Bélanger and avenue de Châteaubriand, La Récolte is easily accessible from the Jean-Talon Metro.

Café Régine

Ever since Café Régine opened up or the borders of La Petite Patrie in 2012, the place has been packed. Service is warm, portions are generous, and menu items are clever, original, and sometimes even gluten-free, like the Gauffré, a dish composed of corn waffle, trout gravlax, cream with chives, and tomato salsa.

People with sweet teeth will love the Sweet Régine—homemade crumpets, candied oranges, pistachios, chocolate whipped cream and ganache—and the Doré, which includes french toast, mascarpone cream, macadamia nuts, bananas, and dates.

If you feel like sharing (or if you're just really hungry), order Un Peu de Tout, which is French for "a bit of everything." Served on a tiered tray comparable to what you'd find at high tea, you'll enjoy crumpets, fruit, and other assorted pastries accompanied with house spreads.

Café Régine serves brunch every single day of the week—8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday to Friday and from 9 a.m. on Saturdays and Sundays—but you should expect lines most days. This cozy spot offers a family-friendly environment, complete with high chairs, a changing table, and a microwave oven for diners to warm up baby formula. Located on the corner of Cartier and Beaubien Est, one block east of Papineau, Café Régine is easily accessible from the Beaubien Metro station.

Le Cartet

Located steps away from the Square-Victoria Metro in the heart of Old Montreal on the corner of Wellington and McGill, Le Cartet is open for brunch on weekends from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Offering sleek interior design and a mini-food market with jams, chocolate, specialty goods, and meals-to-go, Le Cartet brunches scream freshness and are fairly on-trend. Brunch plates come complete with complimentary extras like sides of stuffed figs, sweetbread and fresh-squeezed orange juice.

While it may not be the cheapest brunch in town, it's a great destination if you're hosting posh guests or want to live a little lavishly during your trip. The portions are generous, and it's located near the Old Port, the Montreal Museum of Archaeology, the Montreal Science Centre, and the Notre-Dame Basilica, just to name a few attractions. There's enough to do in the area to keep you busy the rest of the day.

Olive & Gourmando

While Olive et Gourmando always offers great takeaway meals, the best way to experience this Old Montreal restaurant is by sitting down for one of its brunch services, which are served on Tuesdays through Saturdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Their this-is-not-a-cupcake cupcake, the housemade ricotta, and the Cuban panini stuffed with pancetta, roasted pork, and raw milk gruyère are all delicious, and the service is charming, doting, and patient amidst the controlled chaos that is a near-perpetual given at Olive & Gourmando. Wait times are reasonable, maybe 20 minutes at most, so don't be scared by the crowd—it's more tempered than you think.

A great spot to start off a day of Old Montreal sightseeing and easily accessible from the Square-Victoria Metro, Olive & Gourmando is barely a five-minute walk from Montreal's archaeology museum. From there, it's another five minutes to the Montreal Science Centre and the Notre-Dame Basilica. While you're at it, go for a skate or linger along the Old Port's urban beach. 

Auberge du Dragon Rouge

Auberge du Dragon Rouge is an off-the-beaten-path medieval tavern complete with service staff dressed in period-appropriate garb where you can eat with your hands if you want.

This unique restaurant serves a solid brunch completed with standard eggs and bacon fare, but the service comes at a premium cost. If you're looking for an entertaining way to spend the brunch hour on weekends (from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.), you can get lost in the theater of Auberge due Dragon, which is located on the corner of Lajeunesse and Émile-Journault near the Crémazie Metro station.

Restaurant l'Avenue

Quaint and creative, Restaurant l'Avenue offers casual, upscale dining in the heart of the Plateau and attracts rather long lines for its daily brunch service—from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Mondays to Wednesdays and until 11 p.m. from Thursdays to Sundays.

From l'Avenue's trademark service to the effort staff puts into design and presentation, patrons can expect large portions of omelets, poached eggs, steak Benedicts, and fruit at affordable prices served well into the afternoon hours. However, the menu is French only, but staff will typically translate to English for patrons who can't read the language.

Located on the corner of St. André and Mont-Royal East, l'Avenue is easily accessible from the Mont-Royal Metro.

The Famous Cosmo Restaurant

The Famous Cosmo Restaurant, Le Fameux Restaurant Cosmo Montreal, lives up to its name with amazing service, the best in greasy breakfast fare, cheap prices, and the spatial ability to listen in on any conversation in the diner. Located in the heart of the Notre-Dame-de-Grâce district (NDG), on the corner of Sherbrooke West and Draper, Cosmo is just steps from the Vendôme Metro station.

With ten stools, one countertop, and modest terrace space out front, customers are served fast and with family-run warmth that should never go out of style. Be aware though, weekend lineups are probable by 10 a.m. and guaranteed by noon, but they wind down by mid-afternoon before closing time.

Try Cosmo's Creation Sandwich, made with eggs, cheese, bacon, thick salami, tomato, lettuce, and the bread of your choice and served with home fries that are among the best in Montreal. Brunch is served from Tuesdays through Sundays from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., but the restaurant may close early if business winds down by 4 p.m.

Gryphon d"Or

Gryphon d'Or bakes what are arguably the very best scones in Montreal and offers an amazing eggs Benedict on its house-baked cheese variety with house-brewed Guinness sauce. Brunch is served on Saturdays and Sundays from 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

The service is friendly, and if you're in the mood for high tea, you couldn't pick a better place in Montreal for that. Just be sure to make reservations 24 hours prior if going the high tea route because staff needs time to prepare the massive, tiered tray of snacks included with this special service.

Located on the corner of Royal and Monkland, Gryphon d'Or is within walking distance of the Villa-Maria Metro station. Lines typically start to form before brunch service, and all meals include fresh fruit, a house salad, caramelized onion potatoes, and tea or coffee.

Leméac

If you're looking for a posh and polished ambiance for your weekend or holiday brunch look no further than Leméac, an elegant French bistro known for its consistently fantastic menu and skilled service staff.

Served on weekends and holidays that fall on a Monday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., brunch favorites include the poached eggs, smoked salmon, and Spanish caviar on blinis. Consider getting a fruit plate to share, which comes with a pleasantly-abundant assortment of produce as well doughnuts and soft cheese reminiscent of labneh.

Leméac is located on the corner of Durocher and Laurier West, in the heart of the Laurier Avenue West district, which is known for its antique stores. To get here, take the Bus 80 or the metro to Place-des-Arts station.

Hof Kelsten

Located on the corner of Mont-Royal and boulevard St. Laurent, which is also known as The Main, Hof Kelsten is right in the middle of the action. Known for making some of the best bread in the city, it's also been a popular staple for gluten-free diners since its storefront debuted in 2013.

Hof Kelsten serves up a bread-heavy brunch on weekends from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Favorites on the menu include borscht, matzo balls, latkes, and a wide variety of sandwiches served on fresh loaves. Try the curry chicken sandwich, grilled cheese with eggs, or gravlax served with capers, cucumbers, and dill dressing. Alternatively, grab dishes like schnitzel, North African shakshuka, or smoked mackerel with eggs on a house-baked English muffin.

Beauty's Luncheonette

Located in Montreal's Plateau district a few blocks from Mount Royal Park at the corner of Mont-Royal West and St. Urbain, Beauty's Luncheonette has been offering breakfast and lunch service since it opened in 1942. Made famous by Mordecai Richler's 1970s novel "The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz,"

Breakfast and brunch are served weekdays from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. and weekends from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., but you'll need to get there before 10 a.m. on weekends unless you want to wait more than 30 minutes for a table. Morning favorites include brunch staples like eggs benedict and fresh fruit pancakes as well as treats like The Special, a Montreal bagel lox sandwich with smoked salmon, cream cheese, and sliced tomatoes and onions.

La Binerie Mont Royal

Open since 1938, La Binerie Mont-Royal serves up Quebec soul food dishes that all include a serving of fèves au lard (baked beans)—which are also known as the joual anglicism bines (pronounced "bin)—and can be ordered with a side slice of tourtière (meat pie).

Brunch options are available all day at La Binerie, and menu favorites include eggs and bacon, buckwheat pancakes, omelets, and the Assiette Québécoise (Quebec platter), which comes with pea soup, meatball stew, tourtière, potatoes, veggies, baked beans, a pudding chômeur, and coffee or tea. Cheaper than a sugar shack meal but just as good, La Binerie's menu also offers a wide selection of Quebec maple syrup and pancakes.

La Binerie is located at the corner of St. Denis and Mont-Royal East, just a few blocks from the Mont-Royal Metro. Restaurant hours vary by day, and La Binierie is closed on Mondays, but you can typically order breakfast starting at 6 a.m. on other weekdays and 7:30 a.m. on weekends.

Hoogan et Beaufort

Located on the corner of Rachel East and Molson, Hoogen et Beaufort is just a few blocks from the Préfontaine Metro. Touted as one of Montreal's best restaurants, Hoogan et Beaufort proposes a sensational à la carte brunch menu at a moderate price on Sundays from 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

The highest-priced dish on the menu is a braised lamb dish with poached eggs, sausages, sour cream, and baked beans, but you can also get relatively inexpensive dishes like blood sausage paired with tart, marinated apples, burnt apple puree, and a refreshing touch of celeriac. There is also the standard selection of eggs Benedict dishes as well as a variety of scones seasoned with sea buckthorn.

Stash Café

Although Old Montreal's Stash Café doesn't open until noon on weekends (and 11:30 a.m. on weekdays), its lunch menu lends so well to brunch that it might as well be a stand-in for the hybrid midday meal.

The menu at Stash Café is full of Polish staples like pierogies, potato pancakes, and kielbasa with potato salad and sauerkraut, but you can also order specialty meals like breaded veal scallops with a sunny-side-up egg, a beet salad, and a side of potatoes. They've even got crepes stuffed with meat or mushrooms and topped with a creamy mushroom sauce.

Stash Café is located near the Place d'Armes Metro station and is open Mondays to Thursdays from 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m., Fridays from 11:30 a.m. to 11 p.m., Saturdays from noon to 11 p.m., and Sundays from noon to 10 p.m.

Lawrence

Barely more than a block away from Sparrow is another Montreal brunch buzz generator, Lawrence, where you can enjoy a midday meal here on weekends only from 10 a.m to 2:30 p.m.

Menu specialties include lemon doughnuts, french toast, and an authentic English breakfast with bangers, blood sausage, bacon, beans, potatoes, and eggs. Other options, depending on the week, may include lobster rolls and smoked mackerel with sauerkraut. Prices are on the high side, and as with Sparrow, anticipate lineups and a crowd leaning heavily towards twenty and thirty-year-old patrons.

Kim Fung

Head to Montreal's Chinatown at the corner of René-Lévesque and St. Urbain to enjoy different kind of brunch at Kim Fung. Featuring a huge, loud dining room and push-cart service of dim sum, Kim Fung is the perfect place to step away from the ordinary brunch any day of the week.

Along with shrimp, pork, scallop, and beef varieties of dim sum, Kim Fung also offers fried counterparts like chicken's feet as well as exotic delicacies like the beef stomach stew from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily. Get there before 11 a.m. for a prime table close to the push-cart action.

Jardin Nelson

Dining in Old Montreal's Jardin Nelson is an experience that's nothing short of glorious. Served on weekends and Monday holidays from 10 a.m. to noon from mid-April through Canadian Thanksgiving, this special meal is only available with advanced reservations.

The brunch menu includes staples like French toast, eggs, and breakfast burritos along with a delicious assortment of crêpes and pastries, but it's not really the reason people visit. The best part of the experience is that brunch is served in a courtyard surrounded by assorted flowers and blossoming trees.

Jardin Nelson is conveniently located between Old Montreal and Old Port, just off the Champ-de-Mars Metro at the corner of St. Paul East and Place Jacques Cartier. Nearby attractions are within easy walking distance, and the service is generally quick, so dining at Jardin Nelson makes for a great way to start a day of sight-seeing.