The Bulletin: Local heat for low-temp nights 🫕 [Issue #52]

The Bulletin is a collection of what's happened, what’s happening, and what’s to come in and around Montreal.

The Main

November 23, 2023- Read time: 10 min

For some, it's still too early to think about the holidays, but sure ain't too early to think about pots of melted cheese. | Photograph: L'Auberge Saint-Gabriel / Facebook

Strikes, protests, a provincial government down in the polls and lashing out with archaic laws and proclamations, good and honest venues being threatened with noise fines again...

And now? The sloche has arrived. Local news couldn't even make that better, saying "SNOW'S COMING FML" like we all wanted to collectively groan more than we already are.

It's harsh vibes all around right now, plus chill and fog that drills the city down. If you're like us, and can normally see the mountain or the heights of downtown from your 9 to 5's view, it's now all buried in chilly, cloud-filled vespers. It's like our normal, everyday horizon's been taken from us, and if we retreat down into the Underground City?

All we got is Mariah Carey to keep us company.

But now, even if we're all waking up in the dark and ending our day in the dark, we're deciding to just do our best regardless. So this issue, we say: Check in on your friends. Go eat fondue or try the new Korean BBQ spot that just opened. Laugh at the Cybertruck that showed up in town. Maybe go see the Santa Claus parade or go ice skating.

Read on for more.

Activities, parties, points of interest, art exhibitions, you name it: These are the weekend events you don't want to miss.

Thursday

Local artist PONY is celebrating their Plaza store's 3rd birthday by giving it the makeover it deserves with the launch of a new Existential Crisis Club skate collection.
Meet all kinds of awesome authors at the Palais des congrès de Montréal with the Salon du livre de Montréal.
Revel in the November blues and check out the second edition of Festival Triste, a three-day event devoted to the dissemination of music and works of sad expression.
Tune out the everyday noise and lose yourself in Montréal’s new immersive listening room: Phi Centre's Habitat Sonore.

Friday

Get a little tipsy and a little ahead on your holiday shopping at Bar Wills as they host artist byLeBicar; it's perfect for anyone who likes to gift art.
Over at the MMFA's Salle Bourgie, take a journey through the 19th century with music by three of its most illustrious representatives: Chopin, Cécile Chaminade, and Brahms.
It's the last weekend to check out the Montreal International Documentary Festival and more than one hundred films made by filmmakers from all over the world, as well as Virtual Reality installations.

Saturday

The annual Santa Claus Parade kicks off at 11 AM on René-Lévesque Boulevard, right across from Esplanade Ville Marie, with a choir and makeup artists an hour beforehand at Square Dorchester—here's the map.
Bar Le Ritz PDB is hosting a disco jam called Beam Me Up to celebrate underrated/obscure house, funk, jazz, soul, boogie, rare groove, & gospel.
Get out of the house with the Mainline Theatre's Montreal Autumn Slowdance, where you can enjoy a relaxing night with a partner plus a lending library of designated dancers available for wallflowers.
The 3rd edition of the Grand Marché de Noël is returning to downtown Montreal.

Sunday

image+nation, Canada’s pioneering LGBT2SQ+ film festival and a dynamic platform for telling Queer stories of all types and all stripes, is coming to a close.
Don't forget: Provided the weather's good, the Quartier des Spectacles' holiday festivities has begun, starting with the reopened Esplanade Tranquille skating rink.

A new Korean BBQ joint, Pony, just hit the streets with a soft opening. | Photograph: @pony.bbq / Instagram

WHAT TO EAT & DRINK IN AND AROUND MONTREAL

Scope the latest restaurant openings, recommendations on where to eat, plus new menus, old classics, and everything in between.

The minds behind Bar Otto and Otto Yakitori have opened up a new spot for Korean BBQ: Pony.
Montreal's plant-based chef extraordinaire Christian Ventura has developed a new concept for vegan poké, Nofish.
Get in the winter mood by dining under the domes of Bivouac and Terrasse William Gray, both now open for group reservations.
November 24: Chefs Mike et Solomon of Kwizinn are cooking up a one-night menu featuring tapas and unique Niger-Caribbean fusion dishes.
On Sunday, November 26, the original pizza artist behind Gentile Pizza Parlour's recipes is doing a pop-up at Bagel St Henri.
From November 21 to December 2, Denise is welcoming the globe-trotting chef Mike Chanthamynavong for a two-week culinary residency; reservations are now open.
Local caviste Réserve Naturelle is celebrating being two years old by letting the team at Bar Mamie take over their kitchen for a kebab party—oh, and lots of wine and cider.
On November 28, Chinatown's Tiramisu is offering a free Margherita pizza with the purchase of a drink all day long for its 2nd birthday. 👀
Looks like Juliette & Chocolat isn't closed after all: One new branch opened at 1980 rue Sauvé Ouest and the Jean-Talon Market location reopened—all thanks to new franchisees.

Meanwhile, in Toronto

Toronto has one of the most diverse food scenes in the country: Nearly two-thirds of the city’s top 20 restaurants were made up of different international cuisines in 2022. So how do restaurateurs hold on to their actual heritage and memories while promoting their cuisine on such a large stage? (The Main)

Here, you'll find a weekly round-up of the latest local news, from entertainment to current affairs and more.

"The English community has become the enemy"

Demonstrators against Quebec's language law reform, commonly known as Bill 96, took to the streets of Montreal's Côte-des-Neiges—Notre-Dame-de-Grâce borough Sunday as part of a 10-kilometre "rolling procession" to make their voices heard. (CBC Montreal)

Preservation, or decemation?

La Banquise, Montreal's Plateau poutine destination that's rarely without a queue, has been sold to Chez Ashton owners Emily Adam and Jean-Christophe Lirette. Many are hoping the new owners, who say they won't change a thing, will stay true to their word. (The Logic)

From Cairo, with love

Here's how Zamalek and its founders have turned an organic and fair trade recipe for cold infusion Egyptian karkadé tea made simply with hibiscus, turbinado sugar, and spearmint into something that’s gone from 2,000 to as much as 120,000 cans in three years. (The Main)

Montreal: A bilingual city-state?

Robert Libman recently raised the notion of a bilingual raised the notion of a city-state—now he’s back to revisit the topic from a different angle. (Montreal Gazette)

Kicks coming when you're down

The worst of the pandemic may be over but its negative impact on businesses lingers. And as the deadline to repay federal loans taken out during the pandemic approaches, a coalition of business owners and associations is coming together to ask for an extension. (Global News)

Autobots, roll out

Tesla’s odd but undeniably unique-looking Cybertruck has been spotted in the wild in the United States several times over the past few weeks, but this might be the first time the vehicle has made an appearance in Canada. (Mobile Syrup)

Montreal, New York, and maybe an entire continent?

More North American cities are contemplating imitating Montreal by banning drivers from turning right on red lights, but traffic safety advocates who favour the ban say there’s a lack of reliable data proving the measure improves safety. (Global News)

Playing with history

A small Montreal video game company is developing a new game set during the 1970 October Crisis, receiving a boost of support through a Kickstarter campaign with the aim of becoming the first local gaming company to focus entirely on storylines from Quebec. (CTV News)

This venue's putting up a fight

Turbo Haüs has caught a lot of attention this week after getting a warning from the city asking it to lower the volume or be fined up to $12,000. Owner Sergio Da Silva accuses the administration of being two-faced, wanting to both encourage culture while handing out frankly stupid and wasteful tickets. (Le Devoir)

A grim search continues

Kwetiio, a member of the Mohawk Mothers, speaks about about the court ruling that has reinstated the archeologist panel helping to search for possible unmarked graves at the former Royal Victoria Hospital in Montreal. (City News)

A most brutal and rare Montreal murder

An infamous death and haunting from the city's Irish working-class past and once-chaotic streets buried below today's condos: Since 1879, legend says that a ghost returns every seven years to a street corner in Griffintown to reclaim the head of a murdered woman—Mary Gallagher. (The Main)

An old school journo dishes

From rum bars to where to find the best sandwich, trans author, speaker and media mogul Chris Bergeron shares her hometown bucket list and why we're lucky to live in Montreal. (Time Out Montreal)