Best Gluten-Free Spots in Montreal
Jun 12, 2019
As I mentioned in my introductory post, my celiac diagnosis came with major travel anxiety, and feelings of never being able to travel again.
How can you travel, while maintaining a strict gluten free diet? Especially when there is a language barrier?
This past January, Montreal was my first international trip after being diagnosed, and it was a great (English-speaking!) introduction to see how different countries handle gluten-free diets. It became a hunt to find the best gluten-free food, and I found it’s actually enjoyable to do! When you can’t eat everything around you like most people, it’s more satisfying when you stumble upon some unique place with an extensive gluten free menu, separate kitchen space, etc. I’ve found it is often the places you least expect!
Gluten-Free Guide to Montreal
Breakfast
Eggspectations
Our first morning in Montreal, our first stop was Eggspectations. My boyfriend had been there before and spoke highly of it, but I didn’t know what to expect, but this place was huge (two floors!), with a large menu and very filling meals. The menu is marked with “GF”s, denoting that a gluten free option is available (not necessarily already gluten free! So make sure to ask), and a large amount of menu items have this notation!
My waiter was knowledgeable about gluten free options and thoroughly answered any questions I had. I felt comfortable ordering what I wanted, and wasn’t concerned about practices in the kitchen. My huge meal didn’t require many substitutions at all, and I had a huge delicious omelette with potatoes and fresh fruit.
La Crepe 2 Go
Coming from Boston, it’s rare to see crepes around at all. But while crepes are huge in Montreal, unfortunately (like many things!) most aren’t gluten free. I’ve found that many places use buckwheat for their gluten-free crepes, and I’m not a huge fan of the texture.
When someone mentioned they wanted crepes for breakfast, I was on the hunt for a spot that offered both gluten-free and non-gluten-free crepes so we would all be satisfied. We stumbled on La Crepe 2 Go on Find Me Gluten Free - they have all their crepes available in gluten-free, and have a huge selection of savory and sweet crepes, waffles, and more.
The shop is very clean and organized, and I felt comfortable ordering a gluten free crepe here despite it being a mixed facility. The same man who took our orders made all of the crepes, and I watched him clean thoroughly between each one. They’re all made to order, individually! You really get what you asked for.
The texture was really similar to that of the normal crepes, and it tasted great! I chose strawberry and Nutella, and it was a really good combination. Even my non-gluten free boyfriend approved! If you’re ever in Montreal and craving crepes, this is definitely the place to go!
L’Inconnu
Being completely honest, we chose L’Inconnu based on their cute, trendy atmosphere displayed in their photos. However, we weren’t disappointed by their food, either. The menu shows only one option for gluten free, which is also vegan. As I was craving eggs, I asked if they could make substitutions and make their normal menu offerings gluten free and they happily did so.
Each breakfast comes with so much! I got the (ironically named) Glouton, which comes with two eggs, different meats, a crepe, salad, potatoes, fruit… the only substitutions were: no bread, and a buckwheat crepe.
Although there was a decently long wait time for our meals (luckily I had a mimosa to sip on! The coffee wasn’t worth it), when we received our meals it was well worth the wait! Everything was really great, and I even enjoyed the buckwheat crepe.
If you’re looking for a relaxed brunch, you won’t be disappointed by L’Inconnu, as long as you aren’t in a rush!
Dinner
Pub Quartier Latin
We hopped over (literally, it’s only a couple doors down!) from La Distillerie for a snack before dinner at Pub Quartier Latin. I found Pub Quartier Latin on Find Me Gluten Free - the owner is celiac, and they have a dedicated kitchen space with a huge gluten free menu! It’s made up of all the pub-type foods you normally can’t eat with celiac or on a gluten-free diet - nachos, mac and cheese, even poutine, which I had never had, even before being diagnosed.
We ordered chicken nachos and poutine to share between four people, and they were both so good and a success with everyone (including the non-gluten free people!). You can’t even tell that the gravy is gluten-free in the poutine!
The servers were all educated on the topic and able to answer my questions, and I always feel automatically more comfortable at a celiac-owned business!
Oh, and they have gluten-free beer :)
Kyo
After our snack and drink, we headed to dinner at Kyo, a small-plates Japanese restaurant. At first, I was nervous because there were no signs of any gluten-free notation on the menu, and nothing on Find Me GF. Upon asking the waiter, he knew exactly what I could and could not eat. This included specifying that a menu item is gluten free, but cooked in the same fryer as non-gluten free items. I got (delicious) chicken wings (!!) and veggie sushi, and everything was so yum. They even offered me a gluten free dessert!
Note: if you’re traveling with non-gluten free people, the word on the street is that the donuts are incredible.
Bars
Typically bars and alcohol are self-explanatory in terms of what’s gluten-free, but when you’re in a new city it might be hard to navigate where to start. Here are some cool spots in the area, and some of my favorite drinks!
La Distillerie
La Distillerie has a great atmosphere with specialty cocktails (and huge sizes!), rotating every season. There are a few different locations, but they’re always busy!
Milky Way Bar (+ Fugazzi Pizza)
If you’re looking for a hidden, trendy bar, Milky Way is the place to go. The atmosphere is bright and airy, with tons of light. We stopped in just for drinks, but got hungry… turns out they have gluten-free pizza! We got plain pizza with prosciutto. I’m not kidding when I say it’s the best gluten-free crust I’ve ever had (the photo does NOT do this pizza justice)!
The drinks were amazing, and all served so uniquely in different glasses and containers. They even made up a drink for me, to ensure it was gluten free. A must-try bar in Montreal!
Overall, I found Montreal to be extremely celiac friendly, and all restaurants were willing to help out in order to ensure the health and well-being of their customers. I stumbled on tons of unique food options, and was impressed to find even their famous foods (like poutine and crepes) able gluten-free. Montreal is a great starting point if you’re just starting to travel post-diagnosis.
Where should I go next?
Prepping my freezer before baby!
Easy freezer meal prep recipe: chicken fajitas!
Prepping my freezer for baby - week 6.
