Let’s do lunch: Business lunch essentials in Montréal
Gastronomy Downtown Old Montréal
Business lunches in Montréal are an art form. In a city where people love to connect over food, the midday meal isn’t just about breaking bread—it’s about making an impression. From intimate institutions to lively brasseries, these spots offer the perfect balance of flavour and finesse. Whether you’re simply getting to know a client or looking to really wow, these restaurants help set the stage for conversations that matter over dishes you won’t soon forget.
DOWNTOWN
Île de France Restaurant
Île de France Restaurant offers a unique setting for a business lunch in Montréal, blending modern cuisine with an elegant 1930s Art Deco atmosphere. The meticulously restored venue, featuring original materials and grand design elements, provides a sophisticated yet welcoming environment, ideal for professional conversations over fine food and cocktails.
1500 Robert-Bourassa Blvd., 9th Floor
Galaxie Brasserie
This excellent spot for a business lunch in Montréal offers a refined yet approachable European-inspired menu with local twists and décor so dynamic it helps smooth out lulls in conversation. Situated in the Quartier des Spectacles, its stylish approach, attentive service, and thoughtfully curated dishes make it an ideal place to enjoy a professional meal in a vibrant setting.
1414 Clark Street
Hiatus
Hiatus is an ideal business lunch destination offering refined Japanese-inspired cuisine and panoramic city views from the 46th floor of Place Ville Marie. With private meeting rooms, impeccable service, and a sophisticated atmosphere, it provides the perfect blend of elegance and professionalism for a productive yet enjoyable session.
1 Place Ville Marie
Time Out Market Montréal
This food halls’ where the city’s top chefs and mixologists come together under one roof. With a diverse range of top-quality dishes from some of the city’s best chefs, its communal dining setup allows for flexibility, while the lively atmosphere provides an ideal backdrop for casual meetings over excellent food and drink. Enjoy discussing the food you and your group choose before getting down to business.
705 Sainte-Catherine Street West
Chez Alexandre et fils
Alain Creton’s French brasserie is a downtown classic that has been looked to for its steak-frites, boudin, and foie de veau since it first opened in 1977. Consider visiting its cigar lounge for a smoky digestif.
1454 Peel Street
Bar Caffettiera
Styled after 1990s-era Italian cafés, this Golden Square Mile stand-up spot is good for quick drop-ins for espressos, apreitivos, sandwiches, snacks and desserts.
2055 Stanley Street
Bar George
Serving Scottish and British cuisine inside the Le Mount Stephen hotel, the quality of the food and drink is only matched by its heritage mansion interior dating back more than 140 years—great for impressing out-of-town clients.
1440 Drummond Street
Café Holt
Located inside the Holt Renfrew department store, this chic spot inspired by 1940s Hollywood glamour serves a tidy menu of bistro classics, from tartare and salads to burgers. The interior design and décor alone merit a trip, but a bite or two from the menu ought to seal the deal.
1300 Sainte-Catherine Street West
Chez Dévi
This downtown Indian restaurant serves Northern specialties like channa bhatura as well as interesting twists like tandoori-grilled salmon. Its table d’hôte keeps things easy for ordering and pricing as well.
1450 Crescent Street
Ferreira Café
One of Montréal’s premier destinations for Portuguese fine dining, their lunch menu is full of fresh fish and seafood to dine on over a glass (or two) of Portuguese wines. Got a big group to entertain? Ferreira Café has private rooms for groups ranging from 12 to 25 people.
1446 Peel Street
Fiorellino Snack Bar - Ristorante
This restaurant’s Neapolitan pizzas make for a great light lunch, but they’re serving pasta and light antipasti if a bigger hunger strikes. Don’t skip the Nutella bites, though, and end that business lunch on a sweet note.
470 De La Gauchetière Street West
Ibérica
Specializing in Spanish tapas with Barcelona focus, it’s good for both grabbing either table d’hôte of fish, meat, or paella as well as loading a table with different bites. If the focus of a visit is to talk, the restaurant’s charcuterie selection should do the trick.
1450 Peel Street
Osteria MKT
A modern Italian restaurant where diners can enjoy the downtown scenery from its dining room or the sizeable terrasse in the summer. The lunch menu is particular is good for sharing with its plates of fritto misto and charcuterie plates.
1333 Robert-Bourassa Blvd.
La Medusa Restaurant
Talk up you client while twirling strands of fettucine on a fork with this classic Italian restaurant that’s been serving the city for over a quarter of a century. If pasta doesn’t sound like enough, their pizza is worth an order as well.
1218 Drummond Street
Restaurant Sho-Dan
Sushi and sashimi are front and centre at this modern Japanese restaurant, served either à la carte or in sampler platters that can make for an interesting business lunch of sharing and discussing the food between getting down to details.
2020 Metcalfe Street
Restaurant Toqué!
Served in a table d’hôte format that includes an appetizer, a main course and coffee or tea for one sum, business lunches can be equal parts focused on business at hand as they are on the enjoyment of accomplished gastronomy from chef Normand Laprise and his team. With wine pairing options for each dish and luxe dessert add-ons, this option Is great for impressing a guest.
900 place Jean-Paul-Riopelle
Moishes
Moishes, a true Montréal institution, is one of the only restaurants in town to offer USDA Prime beef, the most prestigious distinction on the market. It also offers an "Exquisite Lunch" menu, allowing customers to sample two entrees from the menu Monday to Friday, from 11:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. With its bar area, two unique dining rooms, enclosed dining room and pewter ceiling tiles, this is one place you won't want to miss in Montréal.
1001 du Square-Victoria Street
MARCUS
Visionary chef Marcus Samuelsson takes the traditional brasserie to a new level. With an expansive third floor terrace, MARCUS is one of Montréal's hottest destination for eating, drinking and connecting - from energetic breakfasts to late night cocktails, they offer a variety of choices throughout the day. Their table d'hôte is specifically designed for lunch. For the price of 55 CAD, indulge in a choice of appetizer, a choice of main course and a dessert.
1440 de la Montagne Street
OLD MONTRÉAL
Dandy
Dandy’s well known for its combination of casual elegance with a relaxed vibe. The bright, open space fosters a comfortable atmosphere perfect for conversations, while the Italian-inspired menu features fresh, high-quality ingredients. With creative dishes and a carefully curated drink selection, Dandy makes work lunches feel almost like they have nothing to do with work at all.
244 Rue Saint-Jacques
La Boqueria
A convenient option for midday meetings, Boqueria’s laid-back Mediterranean vibe with a menu full of Spanish tapas that are ideal for sharing makes it a prime spot. It’s easy to connect over fresh seafood, grilled meats, and classic dishes like croquetas and paella, all designed by Executive Chef David Melo Rubio, whose impressive background includes working at Michelin-starred restaurants like Mugaritz in Spain and Brooklyn Fare in New York.
121 Commune Street West
Olive et Gourmando
Olive et Gourmando’s perfect for those looking to balance work and good food. Its rustic chic décor and menu brimming with fresh classics—everything from creative salads to artisanal sandwiches—is easy to enjoy, but the laid-back energy of its approach make it a winner for business lunches. Just take note that this recommendation is popular, so plan for a backup spot if a lineup is running out the door.
351 Saint-Paul Street West
Chez Delmo
Chez Delmo, a historic Old Montréal seafood restaurant since 1934, is known for its timeless dishes and elegant art-deco setting. Seafood lovers flock here for classics like Dover sole meunière, deboned tableside, and the famous tomato cream soup, a recipe unchanged since its opening day.
275 Notre-Dame Street West
Graziella
From its bright interior to the careful attention paid to its modern Italian menu, this time-honored restaurant is designed to impress those that walk through its doors, making it a solid option for business lunches.
116 McGill Street
Helena
Treat clients to the riches of seafood and wine at this Old Montréal standard: Chef Helena Loureiro’s eponymous restaurant excels at serving the light yet no less flavourful side of Portuguese fine dining.
438 McGill Street
Le Muscadin
Combining warm Italian hospitality with the comforts of a menu full of antipasti platters and plates of pasta—they swear by their burrata-topped spaghetti with basil-pistacchio pesto—Le Muscadin is for those looking to both tuck in and get down to business.
443 Saint-Vincent Street
LOV McGill
Bright, airy, and serving each and every one of chef Stéphanie Audet’s greatest vegan hits, the something-for-everyone menu here is great for clients both health-conscious and looking to fill up at lunch. Pastas, curries, tacos, burgers—you name it, just vegan instead.
464 McGill Street
Modavie
Got jazz lovers to entertain? This bistro serves a lot of classic French and Italian dishes in an environment decorated with instruments and photos of jazz masters past and present. Consider suggesting returning at night to your client to see a live show, too.
1 Saint-Paul Street West
Monarque
This svelte French brasserie from Richard and Jérémie Bastien couples an elegant dining room with just as elegant food. It’s one of the more high-end options for a business lunch, but the quality is undeniable.
406 Saint-Jacques Street
Pincette - Lobster Bar
It may be billed as a lobster bar, but the décor and offerings at lunch time keep Pincette away from being too kitschy. Enjoy a menu full of fish and seafood, and yes, there’s lobster poutine for those craving something sinful.
94 Saint-Paul Street East
Restaurant Gandhi
A standard-bearer among Indian restaurants in the city, Gandhi is a good choice for business lunches with its à la carte menu of easily shareable dishes. Extensive attention has been paid to its wine lists as well—fun for exploring pairings.
230 Saint-Paul Street West
Restaurant Holder
Get chummy with clientele along its long bar or enjoy a bit more intimacy at a table alongside its dining room’s towering windows; however you experience this European brasserie, the food will be rich and satisfying.
407 McGill Street
Restaurant Mélisse
Looking for something simple and refined to impress your dining companion? This hospitable spot is a young and refreshing presence in its neighbourhood, and its menu is kept tidy with healthful, vegetable-forward options.
719 William Street
Ristorante Quattro
Simple yet stylish, this modern Italian restaurant covers the full spectrum of delicacies, but their selection of contorni is particularly worth noting with lamb, bison, rabbit, and more. Just be sure to save room for cannoli and granita.
17 Notre-Dame Street West
Vallier Bistro
With its discreet location, give your dining companions the impression you know the city like the back of your hand by taking them here. Once you do, enjoy a handful of bistro classics from the menu, each carried out with precision.
425 McGill Street
Vieux-Port Steakhouse
Carrying the torch for amiable and affordable steakhouses in Old Montréal, this longstanding restaurant excels in the surf and turf category. That said, keep things quick and easy with their inexpensive table d’hôte menu if you don’t want to cut into a 16-ounce rib steak.
39 Saint-Paul Street East
JP Karwacki
JP Karwacki is a Montréal-based writer and journalist whose work has appeared in Time Magazine, the Montreal Gazette, National Post, Time Out, NUVO Magazine, and more. Having called the city home for over a decade and a half, he regularly focuses on spreading the good word about the amazing things to eat, drink and do in Montréal. One half raconteur and the other flâneur (with just a dash of boulevardier), when he wasn’t working on the frontlines of the city's restaurants and bars, he spent his time thinking about, reading about and writing about restaurants and bars.