The Bulletin: 🕺 Montrealers fighting for their right to party [Issue #61]

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

The Main

January 25, 2024- Read time: 8 min

MTL 24/24 - NON STOP | Photograph: © NON STOP 2022 - Vivien Gaumand

There have been a couple times—OK, maybe a lot of times—we've woken up after a night out on the town and our brains are feeling like poutine gravy.

Thing is, it's worth it. Nightlife is such an essential part of our identity, be it historical or this weekend.

So, for this issue of the Bulletin, we're looking a little more closely at last week's announcement of a 24h Latin Quarter, why the city's cutting funding to its (successful!) MTL 24/24 project, cutting down on the students who patronize the scene and feed its need for warm bodies to be servers/cooks/dancers/shot boys 'n' girls/managers/DJs via the tuition hike, and the bar owners who've had enough of noise complaints.

This whole quagmire surrounding the state of the scene is tough stuff right now, and it ain't getting that glass of water and vitamins it needs—here's hoping something coming soon, though.

We've got fun stuff, too, so read on and see what's what.

Warby Corgi on X: "I don't know why, but I like this image. I should get my sona drawn like this! https://t.co/2YvRWPF78W" / X

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

Thursday

@vinodiscobar has launched Beats Per Melody, a new monthly DJ residency where they dive deep into the worlds of Hip-Hop and RnB.
Founded in 1835, the St. Andrew’s Society of Montreal is hosting a Robert Burns supper for the 27-year-old poet whose lifestyle of wine, women and song made him famous all over Scotland.
The outdoor electronic dance party Igloofest continues, running until February 10th— big acts this weekend include Diplo, Laurence Matte, and Nymra & Sofisticated.

Friday

Got kids? Check out the Geordie Theatre Fest, an annual celebration of kids theatre that'll be presenting shows Perfect Storm and Instant at Maison Théâtre.
If you enjoy dance, MAI (Montréal, arts interculturels) and La Chapelle Scènes Contemporaines are co-presenting Plasticity/Desires, the most extensive production to date from the Other Animals duo.

Saturday

Chez Maison Halwa will be hosting its first pop-up with @_xtend__ this weekend with coffee, mimosas, special treats, & gorgeous designer pieces from a special, hand-picked collection.
Freedom Festival, a chanting festival for Palestine with a selection of beloved Arab and international singers from all over the world, is taking place.

Sunday

Foufounes Electriques is hosting BATTLEWAR, an evening of heart-racing, gut-punching, face-melting professional wrestling action.
Like reggae? Crepes? The two are being served together over at Café La Place Commune.
Marchés Talents Locaux is hosting an artisanal market to support Palestine with more than 35 vendors on offer.

Read on to see the latest on Ohayo Café. | Photograph: Scott Usheroff / @cravingcurator

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.

Sad news: Hochelaga's Le Flamant has announced that it's closing, but there's a new project in its place—OCTO, a restaurant serving dishes inspired by Asian street food.
Reserve quick: Barroco is celebrating its 15th anniversary on January 31st with Antonin Mousseau-Rivard as a special guest chef.
If you love a good pub like McLean's downtown, they just opened a second-ish location with the cleverly named McLean's Public House—grand opening's this Friday.
Another reservation to make: Ramen 9000 is back up and running, starting with a pop-up over at Kitano Shokudo on Valentine's Day weekend.
New Korean street food spot Toki is open near Concordia University with traditional street food dishes including tteokbokki, yubu and kimchi fries.
Jean-Sébastien Giguère opened Climats, a brasserie, at Time Out Market Montréal with a lot of food interpreted through Quebecois ingredients and culinary ideas.
Go join Bar Wills this Friday for a mic-dropping, bottle popping evening of KARAOKE and natural wine.
Details are scant, but a new spot Bar Vivar has opened in a prime spot across from Au Pied du Cochon, and it's got all the right connections.
If you like mochi donuts, Ocha has started to serve them, with flavours like Vietnamese coffee and Ube.

Good morning to you too, Ohayo

Chef Hiroshi Kitano's now the co-owner of the brand-new Ohayo Café, an ode to yoshoku or Japanese dishes based on Western food, which has become a genre emblematic of a certain type of Japanese cuisine—and it's right next door to his award-winning restaurant Kitano Shokudo. (The Main)

That's right: We're doing restaurant reviews now

Restaurant criticism is in the pits right now in Montreal. There just isn't that much right now. That's why we here at The Main have enlisted an anonymous critic to start eating up what the city's latest openings have to offer: Say hello to Bottomless Pete Reviews. (The Main)

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

Know your coffee history

Known as stalwarts of a more old school roasting style—pushing the beans to a dark color, imparting rich caramel and smoky notes—Café Union's identity lies in being a roastery doing it the way it always has since 19-frickin'-10 (plus some new projects). (The Main)

This ain't it

McGill and Concordia have already projected losses of students, talent, money and excellence from a move that no one asked for while the business community, French universities and student groups have denounced it—here's why it's forced one person to leave the province entirely. (Maclean's)

Pricing out potential artists

Pop Montreal music festival founder Dan Seligman moved to Montreal from Toronto in 1996 to study at McGill University as an out-of-province student. Now he worries that others won't be able to have the same life-changing experience he did. (CTV News)

But it.. was.. already working?

Interesting fallout from the city's plan to open parts of the Latin Quarter for 24h: The head of MTL 24/24 says that Montreal cutting the group's funding oddly enough, and that's after they've had multiple successful nights in 2023. (Montreal Gazette)

"plz send settlers"

An extremely rare letter written by the hand of Jeanne Mance, the French nurse who co-founded Montreal, has been rediscovered in the Quebec City seminary's archives to give us a unique look into the desperation of the times. (Le Devoir)

Literal and literary breaks

De Stiil Booksellers is encouraging breaks from screens and technology with a concept borrowed from a store called the Book Hive in Norwich, U.K.: Bring a book, read for an hour, they close the doors and put on real cool jazz. It's simple, effective, and crazy society's gotten to this point. (CTV News)

We gotta talk

Between MTL 24/24 getting their funding cut and the Latin Quarter getting city hall love, above Turbo Haüs, the bar and music venue he co-founded, a slightly exasperated Sergio Da Silva vents about the state of the cultural scene in Montreal. (The Rover)

The equivalent of 13 Place Ville Maries

Since 2020, office buildings in Greater Montreal have continued to empty. At the end of 2023, they had a vacancy rate of 19.4%, according to one commercial real estate company. More than 21 million square feet is available. Insane. (24 Heures)

Image principale de l'article On fait quoi avec les 13 Place Ville Marie vides? — Photograph: Joël Lemay / Agence QMI

Viva Italia

One Sunday in Canada visits an Italian community in the northwest sector of Montreal, where about half of the city's 150,000 Italians live. This is a Sunday on which special observances are held at the Italian church of Madonna della Difesa, and it is also the Sunday when Montreal's Cantalia soccer team challenges Toronto's Italia. (NFB)