Best of MTL 2015: Goods & Services

Tamey Lau, Dragon Flowers. Photo by Lisa Sproull

Montrealers are pretty loyal consumers, so it’s not often that there are serious upsets in Goods & Services. That, and the fact that the poll had more participants than ever, makes Teksavvy’s win in Best Internet Service Provider particularly surprising. Have our nerves and patience finally been worn away by poor service and sneaky fees from the big boys? Perhaps. Best Auto Mechanic is a new category this year, suggested by one of our readers, and although the majority of votes were all over the damn place (everyone seems to have their guy, and most of their surnames are a mystery), there was some consensus: George Garage on St-Jacques and TMR Auto got the lion’s share of the love from Montreal drivers. And while we generally save our salutations for small businesses, our readers have moved us to say thanks for the reads, Chapters, and for the discounted floor models and cheap-ass fridges, Future Shop. RIP.

Best Clothing Store (New)
1 Simons (977 Ste-Catherine W.)
2 H&M (various locations)
3 Boutique Unicorn (5135 St-Laurent)
4 Frank & Oak (160 St-Viateur E., #105)
5 Les Étoffes (5253 St-Laurent)
6 Jeans Jeans Jeans (5575 Casgrain)
7 Ibiki (4357 St-Laurent)
8 Général 54 (5145 St-Laurent)
9 Off the Hook (1021 Ste-Catherine W.)
10 Urban Outfitters (various locations)

Best Clothing Store (Used)
1 Citizen Vintage (5330 St-Laurent)
2 Annex Vintage (56 St-Viateur W.)
3 Eva B (2015 St-Laurent)
4 Fripe-Prix Renaissance (various locations)
5 Village des Valeurs (various locations)
6 Empire Exchange (51 Bernard W.)
7 Local 23 (23 Bernard W.)
8 La Gaillarde (4019 Notre-Dame W.)
9 Salvation Army (various locations)
10 Lost & Found Shop (5319 Parc)

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 Coifferie Paradiso (5283 Parc)
5 Identité (165 des Pins E.)
6 Sweet William (5337 St-Laurent, #210)
7 Aveda (various locations)
8 Au Premier (5487 Monkland)
9 Oblic (various locations)
10 Coupe Bizzarre (3770 St-Laurent)

Best Hair Stylist
1 David Devico (Queen of the World)
2 Marco Di Biasio (Coifferie Paradiso)
3 Vanessa Bonato (Queen of the World)
4 Louise Olsen (louiseolsenhair.blogspot.ca)
5 Sara Isobel (Izzy) Mulder (Two Horses)
6 Jason Krejberg (Helmet)
7 Julie Matson (Identité)
8 Samantha Diamond (Sweet William)
9 David Landry (Identité)
10 Terry Scissorhands (Tchop)

Best Barber
1 Marco Di Biasio (Coifferie Paradiso)
2 Guillaume Cheny (Helmet)
3 Dave Dumay (Dave the Barber) (Marchands de Fraîcheur)
4 JJ Levine (Haircuts for Anyone)
5 Vaughn Robert Squire (Squire Barbering @ Brakeless BKLS)
6 Steve Marcotte (Coifferie Paradiso)
7 Jean-Marc Cardinal (Mohawk Barbier)
8 Oliver Kult (Frank & Oak)
9 “$15 cuts” Doug (Copain Coiffure)
10 Mike Chacko (Helmet)

Best Tattoo Parlour
1 Bodkin Tattoo (55 Bernard W.)
2 Two Horses (170 Jean-Talon, #306)
3 Adrenaline (1541 Sherbrooke W.)
4 DFA Tattoos (1186 Ste-Catherine W.)
5 Imago (4059 St-Laurent)
6 Tattoo Box (155 des Pins E.)
7 Tattoo Lounge (3672 St-Laurent)
8 MTL Tattoo (3933 + 4525 St-Denis)
9 Bait & Schlang (4929 Notre-Dame W.)
10 Saving Grace (5629 Notre-Dame W.)

Best Tattoo Artist
1 Jessi Preston (Two Horses)
2 Melissa Valiquette (DFA Tattoos)
3 Vincent Brun (Bodkin Tattoo)
4 Nick Oaks (Bait & Schlang)
5 Arno Schulz (PSC Tattoo)
6 David Choquette (Bodkin Tattoo)
7 Yann Black (Your Meat Is Mine)
8 Graham Crowston (Tattoo Box)
9 Muriel de Mai (Tatouage Royal)
10 Clarence Tout Court (Tattoo Lounge)

Best New CD/Vinyl Store
1 Aux 33 Tours (1373 Mont-Royal E.)
2 Phonopolis (207 Bernard W.)
3 Cheap Thrills (2044 Metcalfe)
4 HMV (various locations)
5 Beatnick (3770 St-Denis)
6 L’Oblique (4333 Rivard)
7 Atom Heart (364 Sherbrooke E.)
8 Soundcentral (4486 Coloniale)
9 Sonorama (260 Bernard W.)
10 Archambault (various locations)

Best Used CD/Vinyl Store
1 Phonopolis (207 Bernard W.)
2 Cheap Thrills (2044 Metcalfe)
3 Death of Vinyl (6307 St-Laurent)
4 Aux 33 Tours (1373 Mont-Royal E.)
5 Beatnick (3770 St-Denis)
6 BBAM! Gallery (3255 St-Jacques)
7 Soundcentral (4486 Coloniale)
8 Encore Books & Records (5670 Sherbrooke W.)
9 Sonorama (260 Bernard W.)
10 Paul’s Boutique (112 Mont-Royal E.)

Best Stereo Store
1 Moog Audio (3828 St-Laurent)
2 Best Buy (various locations)
3 Layton Audio (1170 Ste-Catherine W.)
4 Coup de Foudre (1110 de Bleury)
5 Son Idéal (1409 Bishop)

Best Musical Instrument Store
1 Moog Audio (3828 St-Laurent)
2 Steve’s Music (51 St-Antoine W.)
3 Archambault (500 Ste-Catherine W. & Place des Arts)
4 Italmélodie (250 Jean-Talon E.)
5 Twigg Musique (1230 St-Hubert)

Best Computer Store
1 Apple (1321 Ste-Catherine W.)
2 Best Buy (various locations)
3 Microbytes (625 René-Lévesque W.)
4 Future Shop (RIP)
5 GabyTech (5443 Parc)

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

Best App
1 Transit App
2 STM
3 Breather
4 Bixi
5 SAQ
6 P$ Mobile Service

Best Electronics Shop
1 Best Buy (various locations)
2 Future Shop (RIP)
3 Moog Audio (3828 St-Laurent)
4 The Source (various locations)
5 Addison Électronique (8018 20th Ave)

Best Movie Theatre
1 Cinéma du Parc (3575 Parc)
2 Scotiabank (977 Ste-Catherine W.)
3 Cineplex Odeon Forum (2313 Ste-Catherine W.)
4 Dollar Cinema (6900 Décarie)
5 Cinéma Beaubien (2396 Beaubien E.)
6 Guzzo (various locations)
7 Excentris (3536 St-Laurent)

Best Auto Mechanic
1 Garage George (3815 St-Jacques)
2 TMR Auto (4055 Jean-Talon W.)
3 Garage Lazar (2177 Melrose)
4 Centre du Pneu Papineau (4400 Papineau)
5 Canadian Tire (various locations)

Best Bicycle Shop
1 Bikurious (1757 Amherst)
2 La Bicycletterie JR (201 Rachel E.)
3 ABC Cycles & Sports (5584 Parc)
4 Fitz & Follwell (115 Mont-Royal W.)
5 C&L Cycle (75 Villeneuve W.)
6 Allo Vélo (5165 Notre-Dame W.)
7 McWhinnies (6010 Sherbrooke W.)
8 Brakeless/BLKS (5390 Parc)
9 SantroVélo (111 Roy E.)
10 Cycle Néron (930 de Courcelle)

Best Bookstore (New)
1 Drawn & Quarterly (211 Bernard W.)
2 Indigo (1500 McGill College)
3 Chapters (RIP)
4 Argo (1915 Ste-Catherine W.)
5 Paragraphe (2220 McGill College)
6 Librairie Port de tête (262 Mont-Royal E.)
7 Concordia Co-op Bookstore (2150 Bishop)
8 Renaud-Bray (various locations)
9 Librairie Verdun (4455 Wellington)

Best Bookstore (Used)
1 S.W. Welch (225 St-Viateur W.)
2 Cheap Thrills (2044 Metcalfe)
3 Concordia Community Solidarity Co-op Bookstore (2150 Bishop)
4 L’Échange (713 Mont-Royal E.)
5 Librairie Astro (1844 Ste-Catherine W.)
6 Westcott Books (4060 St-Laurent)
7 Librairie Port de Tête (262 Mont-Royal E.)
8 Odyssey Bookstore (1439 Stanley) Note: Closing May 31.
9 Fripe-Prix Renaissance (various locations)

Best Comics Store
1 Drawn & Quarterly (211 Bernard W.)
2 Crossover Comics (3568 Notre-Dame W.)
3 Millenium Comics (451 Marie-Anne E.)
4 Capitaine Québec (1837 Ste-Catherine W.)
5 Studio 9 (5835 St-Hubert)
6 Comic Hunter (9675 Papineau)
7 Astro (1844 Ste-Catherine W.)
8 Expert Comics (Carrefour Angrignon & 8760 Lasalle, #200)

Best Beauty Salon
1 Two Horses (170 Jean-Talon W., #306)
2 Aveda (various locations)
3 Helmet (163 Mont-Royal E.)
4 Queen of the World (6908 St-Laurent)
5 Au Premier (5487 Monkland)

Best Drug Paraphernalia
1 High Times (various locations)
2 Utopia (159 Duluth E.)
3 Le Rock (17 Ste-Catherine E.)
4 Psychonaut (158 Prince Arthur E.)

Best Florist
1 Dragon Flowers (159 Bernard W.)
2 Westmount Florist (360 Victoria)
3 Zen (1039 Mont-Royal E.)
4 Florateria (90 des Pins W.)
5 Camille (14375 Pierrefonds Blvd.)
6 Edgewood (9063 Milton)

Best Health Club / Gym
1 YMCA (various locations)
2 Nautilus Plus (various locations)
3 Energie Cardio (various locations)
4 Fit 4 Life (7503 St-Laurent)
5 Gold’s Gym (various locations)
6 Le Gym (Concordia) (1515 Ste-Catherine W.)
7 Econofitness (various locations)
8 Studio Breathe (1744 William)

Best Health Food Store
1 Rachelle-Béry (various locations)
2 BioTerre (201 St-Viateur W.)
3 Marché Tau (4238 St-Denis)
4 Frigo Vert (2130 Mackay)
5 PA Nature (5029 Parc)
6 Frenco (3985 St-Laurent)
7 Segal’s (4001 St-Laurent)
8 Branche d’Olivier (various locations)
9 Healthtree (3827 Saint-Jean, Dollard-des-Ormeaux)
10 Aliments Merci (various locations)

Best Home Decor Store
1 Zone Maison (various locations)
2 IKEA (9191 Cavendish)
3 VdeV (5042 St-Laurent)
4 Winners / HomeSense (6900 Décarie & Fairview)
5 Home Depot (various locations)
6 Rona (various locations)

Best Kitsch / Antique Store
1 Kitsch and Swell (3972 St-Laurent)
2 Monastiraki (5478 St-Laurent)
3 Esprit Vintage (4835 Wellington)
4 Eva B (2015 St-Laurent)
5 Marché aux puces St-Michel (3250 Crémazie)
6 Mixx (4005 Notre-Dame W.)
7 Village des Valeurs (various locations)

Best Massage Therapist
1 Amber Huntley (Studio Bliss)
2 Eric Digras (Mile End Massage)
3 [name removed by request] (Aliyah Massage Therapy Centre)
4 Gustav (Studio Bliss)
5 Miho Taniguchi (HappyTree)

Best Sex Shop
1 Romance (various locations)
2 Priape (1311 Ste-Catherine E.)
3 Sexe Cité (6325 St-Hubert)
4 Boutique Erotika (11 Ste-Catherine W.)
5 La Capoterie (2061 St-Denis)

Best Skate / Snowboard Shop
1 Empire Skate Shop (251 Ste-Catherine E.)
2 Boutique Rollin (3119 Hochelaga)
3 LeDep. (1201 St-Dominique)
4 La Poubelle du Ski (8278 St-Laurent)
5 Spin Skatepark + Shop (9520 Leduc, Brossard)

Best Spa
1 Bota Bota (358 de la Commune W.)
2 Spa Scandinave (71 de la Commune W.)
3 Strøm Spa Nordique (1001 de la Forêt)
4 Spa Diva (Les Cours Mont-Royal, 1455 Peel)
5 Espace Nomad (4650 St-Laurent)
6 Ovarium (400 Beaubien E.)
7 Spa Finlandais (124-125 boul. Labelle, Rosemère)
8 Studio Bliss (3841 St-Laurent)
9 Spa Vert (2360 Notre-Dame W., #300)
10 Aveda Salon Spa (3613 St-Laurent)

Best Sports Store
1 Sports Experts (various locations)
2 Play It Again Sports (2100 Decarie)
3 Mountain Equipment Co-op (various locations)
4 Evangelista Sports (6821 St-Laurent)
5 Studio Bliss Boutique (3841 St-Laurent)

Best Yoga Instructor
1 Elizabeth Emberly (Naada)
2 Melanie Richards (Happy Tree)
3 Jennifer Kruidbos (Studio Bliss)
4 Brian Tuck (Happy Tree)
5 Thea Metcalfe (Moksha, Naada)
6 Mara Chercover (4848 St-Laurent)
7 Tanya Dawe (Yoga Vieux Montréal)
8 Jo Willers (Moksha)
9 Melanie (Happy Tree)
10 James Dylan (Akasha Yoga)
10 Sylvie Anne Williams (Studio Bliss, YMCA du Parc, ARMP)

Best Yoga Studio
1 Moksha Yoga (various locations)
2 Naada Yoga (5540 Casgrain)
3 Happy Tree Yoga (4010 Ste-Catherine W., #200)
4 Enso Yoga (1470 Peel, #100)
5 Studio Breathe (1744 William)
6 Studio Bliss (3841 St-Laurent)
7 Element Yoga (2325 Centre, #301)
8 Bikram Yoga (various locations)
9 Ashtanga (372 Ste-Catherine W., #118)
10 Wanderlust (7 Laurier E.)

 

See the rest of the Best of MTL here:

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