Here are 25 Montreal restaurants reopening on Friday

Restaurants are back! Well, sort of. Following the Quebec government’s announcement that restrictions would begin to gradually ease across the province over the course of the summer, Montreal restaurants (equipped with a terrasse) are reopening for outdoor dining, at limited capacity, as of this Friday, May 28. 

Here’s where it gets a bit complicated. There are specific and frankly confusing guidelines as to who can dine with whom. These are possible dining configurations according to the newly issued public health guidelines: A maximum of two adults from different households can dine together. Two adults from different households and two “minor” children may dine together. And lastly, all members of the same household may dine together. Reservations will also be a must, both for contact tracing purposes and because there will be very few seats (in some cases less than 10). It’s a bit messy but it’s safe to say that you’ll mostly be dining at tables for two for the time being — so pick your dinner dates accordingly. 

The next thing to consider is where you can actually go to eat. It’s a pretty safe bet that anywhere that had a terrasse before the pandemic probably still has one and you can expect that they will open on Friday or the week following. There are, however, a ton of newly constructed terrasses, which means a ton of new options to consider — which is good because, as I said before, seats are few and reservations may be hard to come by.

Below is a list of Montreal restaurants that have confirmed they will be reopening on Friday, May 28:

1. Nora Gray
2. Elena
3. Marcus
4. Marconi
5. Thammada
6. Pichai
7. La Prunelle
8. Bar Verdun Beach
9. La Buvette Chez Simone
10. Maison Boulud
11. Pigor
12. Darna Cantine
13. Alma
14. Bar George
15. Restaurant Corneli
16. Restaurant Basterd
17. Lord William Pub
18. Burgundy Lion
19. Bishop and Bagg
20. Salle Climatisée
21. Damas
22. La Canting
23. Candide
24. RestoBar Le Pickup
25. Hélicoptère (Table Service as of June 3)

The announcement that restaurants would be allowed to reopen came with little more than two weeks’ notice leaving many restaurants scrambling to hire back staff and prepare their restaurants to accommodate guests. A number of restaurants (including some of the city’s best) will open gradually over the course of the following week. (Indoor dining will only be possible after Montreal shifts from red- to orange-zone status, which, based on the latest government announcement, is projected to happen on June 7.)

Here’s a list of a few other Montreal restaurants that will be reopening on or during the week of May 31:

1. Bouillon Bilk (May 31)
2. Restaurant Mélisse (June 1)
3. Maison Publique (June 1)
4. Joe Beef (June 1)
5. Liverpool House (June 1)
6. Vin Papillon (June 1)
7. Beba (June 1)
8. Manitoba (June 2)
9. Plein Sud (June 2)
10. Tuck Shop (June 2)
11. Arthur’s (June 2)

As a point of precaution, it should be noted that all of these dates are tentative. As the last 14 months have proven time and time again, what is true today may not be tomorrow and who the hell knows what Friday will bring. Assuming all goes well, we will at the very least be well on our way to a summer full of alfresco restaurant dining! ■

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For more on the Montreal restaurant scene, please visit the Food & Drink section.