In my last post I talked about spending a week in Cincinnati to start my new job. Since I’m a remote employee and also had to do orientation, they actually flew me to Cincy and put me up for the week to get me settled. I had originally planned on being in LA for the full month of August and so was going to fly back…. but with the major hiccup that was LA, I decided to make another plan instead.

How to know you’re in Canada part 1: You find poutine in the frozen dinner aisle

How to know you’re in Canada part 2: All the KFC’s are changed to PFK

When I was still up near the northeast earlier this year, I had crossed my fingers that the US-Canada border would open so I could visit one of my best friends. Sadly my trip got under way before that could happen, and so I had to skip over any Canada plans for what I thought would be a long time. However, when the universe ruins your plans, make lemonade (or something like that). Since I was already being flown to Cincinnati, and the border finally opened about a week before that, and my parents were already watching my dog, I modified my flight back to New Mexico to include a week stop over in Montréal first! Getting to spend the week with my bestie and see a few other friends who I either hadn’t seen in ages or who I had only met via zoom during the pandemic was an absolute dream. I still worked remotely during the day, but I had two full weekends and most evenings to hang out and enjoy summer in the city.

Most of my trip revolved around food, hugs, and time spent catching up with friends. During my first weekend we did some shopping, had a backyard bbq at a friend’s house in the Plateau, and took a motorcycle drive outside of the city to enjoy the scenery. We also did one of my favorite (non-food-related) things of the whole trip by spending a few hours at a spa located right in the Old Port of Montréal called Bota Bota. We mainly spent our time out in the garden, switching up time in the various temperature pools, the steam room, and the sauna, all while getting to have a lovely afternoon chat (without phones to distract from solid human connection). If you are in need of a few hours of relaxation during your next Montréal trip, I definitely recommend checking out this gem tucked away just south of Old Port.

Some pools / saunas are in the main area, along with massages / treatments. Head out to the garden for an relaxing pool day vibe.

During the week I worked from home while my friend went to work, but in the evenings we cooked dinner or tried some local bars & restaurants in the NDG (Notre-Dame-de-Grâce) area and just enjoyed spending time with friends that I’ve only gotten to speak to on the phone or zoom for almost 2 years. But mostly we ate. A lot.

Just an FYI, the rest of this post will now be dedicated to the various delicious food I ate during the week because what is travel other than a glorious excuse to try local dishes. One morning I grabbed pastries from the mouthwatering Croissant Monkland. Another evening I tried the local vegan fare at Hello123 and enjoyed myself so much that I got take out for lunch the next day.

One night we met up with friends for dinner on Rue St. Dennis at one of my favorite restaurants, ChuChai. I had been here once before a few years ago and going again just made me love it all the more. The things they do with fake duck are just… wow.

Other than being a circus rigger, the bestie I stayed with is also a fantastic ramen chef (check him out over on Instagram & YouTube). On my last full day there I helped to cook up some ramen greatness and we had a few more friends over to celebrate the amazing food. After spending most of the week not getting out my camera or phone much to try and be present with friends, I dove back in to document this absolute treat of a dinner party!

Left to Right: #2 & 3 are my babies, and they fit right in with the special engraved Horny Ramen official knives (#4 & 5)!

Tools of the trade. You can never have enough ladles.

Vegan broth in the back for me, non-vegan for the rest of the guests

Always make time for laughter while cooking!

When coming back from Canada, always make sure to stop at duty free for the maple cookies…. they’re always worth it!

I hope you enjoyed this look at what I got up to and what I ate in Montreal. I wish I could have stayed longer, but I’m sure my little doggo missed me so I hopped on a plane back to New Mexico. Next up I’ll have another week in NM before heading off to Austin, Texas for a while to get weird, as the kids say. That’s the current plan at least… or will the universe tell me otherwise again? Wait and see!

All photos taken on a first-gen iPhone SE or Nikon D5300 with Nikon 35mm f/1.8 lens