Best of MTL 2016: Goods & Services

Eva B.

Leave it to vintage lovers to rock it old school: Eva B. reclaims the vintage title from younger Mile End shops Citizen Vintage and Annex Vintage, but given how close this race finished, there’s no saying who’ll have bragging rights next year. Speaking of rivalries, Phonopolis and Aux 33 Tours continue to duke it out in the record store categories, and last year’s Best ISP winner Teksavvy has fallen to one of the big boys: Vidéotron, who were #5 last year. Rising from the ether in 2016 are Best of MTL first-timers the Word (Best Used Bookstore #1), Barbarella (Best Beauty Salon #1), Prohibition (Best Drug Paraphernalia Store #2, though they didn’t start from zero, having taken over the old High Times locations) and, last but not least, the maligned car-sharing service Uber (Best App #1), who are doing a good job of drinking the milkshake of both the taxi industry and (people never talk about this) the STM.

Best Clothing Store (New)
1. Simons (977 Ste-Catherine W.)
2. H&M (various locations)
3. Boutique Unicorn (5135 St-Laurent)
4. Frank & Oak (various locations)
5. Winners (various locations)
6. Boutique 1861 (3670 St-Laurent)
7. COS (1310 Ste-Catherine W.)
8. Off the Hook (1021 Ste-Catherine W.)
9. Zara (various locations)
10. Les Étoffes (5253 St-Laurent)

Best Vintage Clothing Store
1. Eva B. (2015 St-Laurent)
2. Citizen Vintage (5330 St-Laurent)
3. Annex Vintage (56 St-Viateur W.)
4. Village des Valeurs (various locations)
5. Fripe-Prix Renaissance (various locations)
6. Empire Exchange (51 Bernard W.)
7. Salvation Army (various locations)
8. Kitsch’n Swell (3972 St-Laurent)
9. La Gaillarde (4019 Notre-Dame W.)
10. Ruse Boutique (5141 St-Laurent)

Best Hair Salon
1. Queen of the World (6908 St-Laurent)
2. Helmet (163 Mont-Royal E.)
3. Two Horses (170 Jean-Talon W., #306)
4. Au Premier (5487 Monkland)
5. Salon Identité (165 des Pins E.)
6. Salon Sweet William (5337 St-Laurent, #210)
7. Coifferie Paradiso (1160 St-Joseph E. #001)
8. Unlistd (3648 St-Laurent)
9. Bizards (4501 St-Laurent)
10. Orbite (221 Laurier W.)

Best Hair Stylist
1. David Devico (Queen of the World)
2. Louise Olsen (Two Horses)
3. Lily Julie Bédard (Au Premier)
4. Sara Isobel (Izzy) Mulder (Two Horses)
5. Éric Charpentier (Orbite)
6. Vanessa Bonato (Queen of the World)
7. Jason Krejberg (Helmet)
8. Marco Di Biasio (Coifferie Paradiso)
9. Alexandra Apple (Unlistd)
10. Julie Matson (Salon Identité)

Best Barber
1. David Devico (Queen of the World)
2. Guillaume Cheny (Helmet)
3. Marco Di Blasio (Coifferie Paradiso)
4. Jérémy Tremblay (Scotch & Scissors)
5. Dave Dumay, aka Dave the Barber (Marchands de Fraîcheur)
6. Dan Marin (Blue Dog)
7. Simon Chercuitte (Frank & Oak)

Best Tattoo Parlour
1. Bodkin Tattoo (55 Bernard W.)
2. DFA Tattoos (1184 Ste-Catherine W.)
3. Two Horses (170 Jean-Talon W., #306)
4. Adrenaline (1541 Sherbrooke W.)
5. Tatouage Royal (4424 St-Denis)
6. Tattoo Box (155 des Pins E.)
7. Imago (4059 St-Laurent)
8. Bait & Schlang (4929 Notre-Dame W.)
9. Studio Artease (4030 Wellington)
10. Studio Mandrika (4060 St-Laurent, #101)

Best Tattoo Artist
1. Melissa Valiquette (DFA Tattoos)
2. Nick Oaks (Bait & Schlang)
3. Jessi Preston (Two Horses)
4. Christian Lanouette (Tatouage Electric Ave)
5. Angus Byers (DFA Tattoos)
6. Graham Crowston (Tattoo Box)
7. Janice Beattie (Tattoo Box)
8. Zema (Tatouage Royal)
9. Rian Desourdie (Studio Artease)
10. Yann Black (yourmeatismine.com)

Best New CD/Vinyl Store
1. Aux 33 Tours (1373 Mont-Royal E.)
2. Phonopolis (207 Bernard W.)
3. HMV (various locations)
4. Cheap Thrills (2044 Metcalfe)
5. Archambault (various locations)
6. L’Oblique (4333 Rivard)
7. Beatnick (3770 St-Denis)
8. Atom Heart (364 Sherbrooke E.)
9. Soundcentral (4486 Coloniale)
10. Death of Vinyl (6307 St-Laurent)

Best Used CD/Vinyl Store
1. Phonopolis (207 Bernard W.)
2. Aux 33 Tours (1373 Mont-Royal E.)
3. Death of Vinyl (6307 St-Laurent)
4. Cheap Thrills (2044 Metcalfe)
5. Beatnick (3770 St-Denis)
6. Soundcentral (4486 Coloniale)
7. L’Échange (713 Mont-Royal E.)
8. Encore Books (5670 Sherbrooke W.)
9. Sonorama (260 Bernard W.)
10. BBAM! Gallery (3255 St-Jacques)

Best Stereo Store
1. Moog Audio (3828 St-Laurent)
2. Best Buy (various locations)
3. Son Idéal (1409 Bishop)
4. Centre Hi-Fi (various locations)
5. Layton Audio (1170 Ste-Catherine W.)
6. Coup de Foudre (6644 Clark)

Best Musical Instrument Store
1. Moog Audio (3828 St-Laurent)
2. Italmélodie (RIP)
3. Steve’s Music (51 St-Antoine W.)
4. Archambault (various locations)
5. Jimi’s Music Store (5776 Sherbrooke W.)
6. Diplomate Musique (311 Beaubien E.)

Best Computer Store
1. Apple (1321 Ste-Catherine W.)
2. Best Buy (various locations)
3. Microbytes (625 René-Lévesque W.)
4. Canada Computers (various locations)
5. Microscott Workshop (5620 Sherbrooke W.)

Best Internet Service Provider
1. Vidéotron
2. Bell
3. Teksavvy
4. Electronic Box
5. Rogers
6. Radioactif
7. Colbanet
8. B2B2C
9. Cooptel
10. Primus

Best App
1. Uber
2. Transit App
3. P$ Mobile Service
4. STM
5. La Presse+
6. Moovit

Best Electronics Store
1. Best Buy (various locations)
2. Addison Électronique (8018 20th Ave)
3. Apple (1321 Ste-Catherine W.)
4. Moog Audio (3828 St-Laurent)
5. The Source (various locations)

Best Movie Theatre
1. Cinéma du Parc (3575 Parc)
2. Cineplex Odeon Forum (2313 Ste-Catherine W.)
3. Scotiabank (977 Ste-Catherine W.)
4. Cinéma Beaubien (2396 Beaubien E.)
5. Dollar Cinema (6900 Décarie)
6. Cinémas Guzzo (various locations)
7. Cinéma Excentris (RIP)
8. Cineplex Odeon Quartier Latin (350 Émery)
9. Cinéma l’Amour (4015 St-Laurent)

Best Auto Mechanic
1. Garage George (3815 St-Jacques)
2. Nelson Garage (1100 Décarie)
3. Canadian Tire (various locations)
4. TMR Auto (4055 Jean-Talon W.)
5. Mister Muffler (various locations)

Best Bicycle Shop
1. Bikurious (1757 Amherst)
2. ABC Cycles & Sports (5584 Parc)
3. C&L Cycle (75 Villeneuve W.)
4. La Bicycletterie JR (201 Rachel E.)
5. Fitz & Follwell (115 Mont-Royal W.)
6. Cycle Néron (various locations)
7. Bicycles McW (6010 Sherbrooke W.)
8. Dumoulin Bicyclettes (173 Jean-Talon E.)
9. Allo Vélo (5165 Notre-Dame W.)

Best Bookstore (New)
1. Drawn & Quarterly (211 Bernard W.)
2. Indigo (1500 McGill College)
3. Paragraphe (2220 McGill College)
4. Librairie Le port de tête (262 Mont-Royal E.)
5. Renaud-Bray (various locations)
6. Argo (1915 Ste-Catherine W.)
7. Librairie Raffin (various locations)
8. Librairie Olivieri (5219 Côte-des-Neiges)
9. Zone Libre (262 Ste-Catherine E.)
10. Archambault (various locations)

Best Bookstore (Used)
1. The Word (469 Milton)
2. S.W. Welch (225 St-Viateur W.)
3. Encore Books (5670 Sherbrooke W.)
4. Cheap Thrills (2044 Metcalfe)
5. Concordia Community Solidarity Co-op Bookstore (2150 Bishop)
6. L’Échange (713 Mont-Royal E.)
7. Argo (1915 Ste-Catherine W.)
8. Fripe-Prix Renaissance (various locations)
9. Librairie Le port de tête (262 Mont-Royal E.)
10. Westcott Books (4065 St-Laurent)

Best Comics Store
1. Drawn & Quarterly (211 Bernard W.)
2. Crossover Comics (3560 Notre-Dame W.)
3. Capitaine Québec (1837 Ste-Catherine W.)
4. 1,000,000 Comix (various locations)
5. Librairie Millenium (451 Marie-Anne E.)
6. Librairie Astro (1844 Ste-Catherine W.)
7. Librairie Planète BD (3883 St-Denis)

Best Beauty Salon
1. Barbarella (3833 St-Jacques)
2. Two Horses (170 Jean-Talon W., #306)
3. Aveda (various locations)
4. Queen of the World (6908 St-Laurent)
5. Colortown (2812 St-Charles)

Best Drug Paraphernalia Store
1. Utopia (159 Duluth E.)
2. Prohibition (various locations)
3. Psychonaut (3624A St-Laurent)
4. High Times (RIP)
5. Le Rock (17 Ste-Catherine E.)

Best Florist
1. Dragon Flowers (159 Bernard W.)
2. Westmount Florist (360 Victoria)
3. Pourquoi pas fleurs (3629 St-Laurent)
4. Zen le pouvoir des fleurs (1039 Mont-Royal E.)
5. Garçon Fleur (337 de Castelnau E.)

See the rest of the Best of MTL here:

* PEOPLE & PLACES
* MEDIA
* NIGHTLIFE
* MUSIC
* FILM & ARTS
* FOOD & DRINK