The best North African restaurants in Montréal
Mayssam Samaha
This article was published on March 22, 2024.
Montréal’s diverse culinary scene includes several great North African restaurants that span the continent from east to west and offer a cuisine full of comforting dishes and spices, like a virtual voyage to exotic lands where desert and sea meet.
Menthe et couscous
361 Emery Street | Website
Menthe et Couscous is an inviting North African restaurant located in the heart of Montréal’s Latin Quartier. This bring-your-own-wine eatery features an extensive menu featuring a variety of savoury couscous, grilled meats and vegetables, salads, tajines, sandwiches, desserts and more. The friendly staff guide guests through an adventure in dining as they explore the many flavours of this delicious cuisine. A brunch menu is also available and served on Sundays.
La Khaïma Cuisine Nomade
142 Fairmount Avenue West | Website
At La Khaïma, (“the tent”) you’ll be seated on plush colourful pillows placed on richly intricate carpets inside a space inspired by Mauritania’s nomad tents. The menu here changes often but is always authentic and made with local ingredients while also being rooted in faraway lands. Try the refreshing, housemade hibiscus drink.
Darna Bistroquet
1106 Beaubien Street East | Website
“Darna” means “our house” in Moroccan Arabic and this Petite Patrie welcomes diners into their space as if welcoming them into their home. The menu is influenced by North African cuisines with rich tajines and exotic spices but with a focus on using mostly local ingredients. Their brunches are exceptional, and their wine list is made up of low intervention bottles.
Nili
255 Saint-Viateur West | Website
Nili is a trendy Franco-Moroccan spot in the Mile-End dishing out great food, cocktails and wines. The fusion cuisine includes items such as a couscous to which you can add a protein of your choice, fish balls in a tomato sauce and msemen, a Moroccan desert with honey, pistachios and orange blossom sauce.
Salon Mogador
310 Beaubien Street East | Website
Open since 2006, Salon Mogador is a Moroccan institution in Montréal. With a menu evocative of the sunnier climes of Morocco’s coastal town of Essaouira (Mogador is the ancient name of this city), couscous, pastillas, tajines, compete with the spelling baladi dance show every Saturday night.
La Rose des sables
1815 Beaubien Street East | Website
Travel to Tunisia by merely crossing the threshold of this unassuming establishment on Beaubien Street. With a ceiling draped in ornamental fabrics, colourful light fixtures and traditional plates and platters, La Rose des sables makes you feel like you’ve just entered a dreamy tent. Enjoy Tunisian-style couscous, bricks, ojjas and more specialties.
Le Kahéra
282 Mozart Street East | Website
This little dépanneur located just behind the Jean-Talon Market serves some delicious Egyptian street food. Try the koshary, a staple breakfast item in Egypt made of lentils, pasta, rice, and chickpeas, topped with fried onions and spicy sauce. The foul, a comforting dish of broad beans with baladi salad, tahini, hot sauce and a fried egg that can be served in a bowl or a sandwich is also a great choice.
Kahwa Café
331 Mont-Royal Avenue East & 964 Rachel Street East | Website
Kahwa (which means “coffee” in Arabic) is a casual spot-on Plateau Mont-Royal whipping up extraordinary Tunisian sandwiches made on steaming hot bread baked inhouse to order. Don’t skip out on the chicken panko sandwich with extra sauce.
Les Délices de Sirar
1112 Ontario Street East | Website
Open since 2014, Les Délices de Sirar specializes in North African and Middle Eastern cuisine. The comforting dishes taste homemade because they truly are made by Sirar. The couscous here is one of the best in Montréal.
Other notable North African restaurants to try:
Au Coin Berbère, Les Rites Berbères, Restaurant Au Tarot, Argana, L’Olive Noire.
Mayssam Samaha
Mayssam Samaha is a food and travel writer and blogger and the founder behind the blog Will Travel for Food. She travels the world in search of the next culinary discovery. From Iceland to South Africa, she’s already visited over 36 countries and there’s nothing she enjoys more than wandering around a farmers’ market in a foreign city. She is also the founder of the SAISONS intimate dinner series highlighting Québec products and chefs.