http://www.sitebits.com/canada/montreal/ Montreal en Copyright &copy; 1999-2009 Gromco, Inc. Mon, 21 Nov 2011 00:32:56 EST Fri, 09 Sep 2011 01:30:00 EDT info@sitebits.com info@sitebits.com Almost 30 years in the making, not even exactly finished, actually, and drawing out not much more than a collective yawn from the local press for its architectural qualities, the new Montreal Symphony Hall (<i>la Maison symphonique de Montréal</i>) nevertheless opened its doors to a select group of invitees and hosted the inaugural concert on Wednesday... Slavito http://www.sitebits.com/2011/montreal-symphony-hall-89156031.html Fri, 09 Sep 2011 01:30:00 EDT Last year we <a href="http://www.sitebits.com/2008/new-plaza-in-2009.html">wrote</a> about the massive reconstruction project in the <a href="http://www.sitebits.com/canada/montreal/districts/montreal-quartier-des-spectacles.html">Quartier des Spectacles</a> - namely, a new plaza for the yearly Jazz Festival and similar events. One year has passed and the project bore its first visible (or, rather, walkable) fruit. <br><br> The $40-million Place des Festivals plaza was unveiled last month with an inaugural show featuring fluttering multi-colored water jets (a rather expensive spectacle, opined some local journalists) and packs of awe-stricken tourists enjoying the last warm days of Montreal's short summer. <br><br> Having snubbed the inauguration festivities, I went by with my camera to take a look a few days later... Slavito http://www.sitebits.com/2009/place-des-festivals-opens-37277202.html Fri, 02 Oct 2009 00:40:00 EDT With only a minimal delay, Le Westin Montréal by Starwood opened this month in the Quartier International, right next to the Palais des Congrès. The hotel appears to be a solid, reasonably stylish choice for business visitors, although some PR claims do seem a bit exaggerated... Slavito http://www.sitebits.com/2009/westin-montreal-opens-53626726.html Tue, 23 Jun 2009 21:45:00 EDT The moment has finally come! After many months in the making, the much-talked-about Montreal public bike rental system, Bixi, has launched. Over the past few weeks the city has installed a number of automated bike rental stations and launched a web site allowing users to see availabilities in real time (both the number of available bikes and available docking slots). <br><br> Although the system is geared mainly towards residents of the city, tourists can take advantage of it as well, with monthly and even daily tariffs available. Gromco http://www.sitebits.com/2009/bixi-launched-84405046.html Wed, 20 May 2009 19:00:00 EDT A bewildered American tourist who vacationed in <a href="http://www.sitebits.com/canada/montreal/">Montreal</a> this summer recently wrote a letter to the Gazette, the local anglophone daily, wondering why announcements on the métro are delivered only in <a href="http://french.gromco.com/" target="_new">French</a>. <br/><br/> The newspaper's response and the quotes it extracted from various officials highlighted an interesting contrast in policies between Montreal and Paris public transportation services. While in <a href="http://www.sitebits.com/france/paris/">Paris</a>, announcements are routinely delivered in three languages (French, English and a rotating third major language), Montreal metro will only play a pre-recorded bilingual tape in an emergency situation ("fire! get out!"). "Routine" messages such as announcements of delays are delivered only in <a href="http://french.gromco.com/" target="_new">French</a> as a matter of policy... Slavito http://www.sitebits.com/2008/metro-passengers-lost-with-no-translation-7914177.html Mon, 13 Oct 2008 14:30:00 EDT The voting process for the name of Montreal's citywide bike rental program is over and the winner is chosen. The system is going to be called "BIXI". <br/><br/> Over the next month, demo bikes will be wheeled around the city and public demonstrations will be held. According to the city's mayor, <a href="http://www.sitebits.com/people/gerald_tremblay.html">Gérald Tremblay</a>, by next spring Montreal will count 2,400 bikes at more than 300 solar-powered stations... Slavito http://www.sitebits.com/2008/bixi-bike-taxi-montreal-7408304.html Mon, 22 Sep 2008 15:30:00 EDT Construction crews are still crawling over the central tower of the new <a href="http://www.sitebits.com/canada/montreal/hotels/mtl-hilton_garden_inn.html">Hilton Garden Inn</a> on Rue Sherbrooke, but the hotel is already open for business, as made evident not only by the banner that says as much, but also by a quasi-permanent line of cabs picking up departing guests... Slavito http://www.sitebits.com/2008/new-hilton-garden-inn-centreville-5610323.html Tue, 16 Sep 2008 14:45:00 EDT Back in July, Apple opened a flagship store in Montreal of which yours truly has already had an opportunity to be a customer. <br/><br/> The store is ninth in the list of Apple's flagship stores world-wide (the others are in San Francisco, Chicago, Boston, London, Tokyo, Osaka and New York) and the first of the kind in Canada... Slavito http://www.sitebits.com/2008/apple_opens_montreal_flagship_store.html Wed, 03 Sep 2008 12:45:00 EDT Montreal will soon get its own city-wide bike-rental system clearly modeled after Paris' Vélib. It will work almost exactly the same way as Vélib: you pick up your bike from any of the stations, pay at the station or simply swipe a card, use your bike and return it to any station you deem convenient. </p><p> The only (minor) problem is, the system is still to be named. So, the city is asking everyone's opinion. Here are the options: BIXI, Bycik, MontVélo, VélO2 and VillaVélo... Slavito http://www.sitebits.com/2008/montreal_bike_system_looking_for_name.html Wed, 13 Aug 2008 23:13:00 EDT The Montreal Jazz Festival 2008 has just finished and the city is already fevereshly preparing for the 2009 edition. You might think this is an overstatement - after all, there's almost a year left! But in fact, in this short year, one of the most important concert spaces, the plaza between Place des Arts and Rue de Bleury will have to be completely redone. The models and renderings for the new Place des Festivals were made public a few days ago and the city's mayor took the opportunity to assure everybody the project is "on schedule, on budget"... Slavito http://www.sitebits.com/2008/new-plaza-in-2009.html Thu, 17 Jul 2008 09:30:00 EDT Many tourists (not to mention the residents) find the lack of direct transport links between <a href="http://www.sitebits.com/canada/montreal/districts/downtown-montreal.html">Downtown</a> and <a href="http://www.sitebits.com/canada/montreal/districts/old-montreal.html">Old Montreal</a> inconvenient. Sure, the métro is there, but because of the U-shaped configuration of its lines, a traveler who wants to go from centrally located Peel Street to no less central <a href="http://www.sitebits.com/canada/montreal/districts/old-montreal.html">Old Montreal</a> would have to travel a few stops west (or east) on the green line, switch to the orange line, then essentially come back to the geographic center of the city albeit 10-15 blocks south. Annoying. <br/><br/> Fortunately, the city is aware of that - in fact, many recent proposals for building a tramway line cited this very inconvenience as the major reason for building it. Well, the tramway, if it's ever built, is still years away, but something much more feasible is already coming, the Gazette reported: <a href="http://www.sitebits.com/canada/montreal/districts/old-montreal.html">Old Montreal</a> and <a href="http://www.sitebits.com/canada/montreal/districts/downtown-montreal.html">Downtown Montreal</a> are to be linked by a new bus route... Gromco http://www.sitebits.com/2008/new_bus_route_downtown_old_port.html Wed, 04 Jun 2008 13:06:00 EDT With few exceptions, I never order anything that I can cook well myself. Thai is one cuisine that I would love to wow guests with. Its distinguishing feature is the use of coconut milk, lemon grass, peanuts and chilli peppers in harmonious constellations for consumption. But sadly, I've never actually done anything about studying it, maybe because I am a regular at Restaurant Thaïlande. Let's face it, we're a lazy species, and if others can do it better, why not go to them? Andrea http://www.sitebits.com/2008/high-on-thai-restaurant-thailande.html Mon, 03 Mar 2008 17:40:00 EST There are many restaurants in this town proving their worth by hiring the right chef, PR agency or interior designer, attracting the "in" crowd or serving the most "creative" (sometimes absurdly creative) <i>nouvelle cuisine</i> dishes. <br><br> And then there are restaurants that don't need to prove anything: as long as they stay true to their mission and character, they will be deservedly popular. <br><br> L'Express at 3927 rue St-Denis belongs to the second category. In the 20-odd years that the place has existed, it slowly transformed its status from that of a "cool new thing" to that of a Montreal institution... Slavito http://www.sitebits.com/2008/l-express-way.html Sat, 09 Feb 2008 18:25:00 EST I am not exactly a frequent visitor at tea salons - a fact pretty much ensured by the very presence of the Y chromosome in my DNA. </p><p> Yet, since about a year ago, I regularly find myself at a place that ranks suspiciously well on the tea connoisseurs' list of Montreal cafés and restaurants. And what do I order there? Tea. And cookies... Slavito http://www.sitebits.com/2008/tea-at-nocochi.html Tue, 08 Jan 2008 00:15:00 EST I am here to clear up the confusion and defend the merits of Habitat 67... Slavito http://www.sitebits.com/2007/habitat-67-2007.html Fri, 09 Nov 2007 02:20:00 EST Nota Bene sells an amazing array of imported designer stationery items – mostly of European and Japanese origin. If you're the type who prefers to think with a pen or a pencil in their hands, chances are you're going to love this store... Slavito http://www.sitebits.com/2007/nota_bene_2007.html Mon, 13 Aug 2007 00:02:00 EDT One of my favorites (not only for its nice building, which I really like) is the Atwater Market, situated very close to the Lachine Canal path, making it the perfect stop after a walk or a bike ride. Alban http://www.sitebits.com/2007/marche_atwater.html Mon, 06 Aug 2007 17:00:00 EDT Located right in the middle of Plateau Mont Royal, L'Inspecteur Épingle is a bar where a variety of characters congregate to drink affordably priced pints of beer. Fernanda http://www.sitebits.com/2007/l_inspecteur_epingle_raise_your_pint.html Fri, 11 May 2007 21:30:00 EDT Pi Café (Café π) is basically a mixture of coffee shop, workplace, gallery, chess venue and a place for tranquility. Fernanda http://www.sitebits.com/2007/pi_cafe_coffee_tranquility.html Sun, 22 Apr 2007 02:25:00 EDT Somebody on the site mentioned that Le Grand Comptoir is one of the few restaurants in Montreal with friendly, non-pretentious “single person" table service and I would agree with them. What I mean by that is that going there by yourself doesn't necessarily present you with the typical dining-alone nuisances, like having to sit at the counter and thus forgo being able to relax in a chair, or being subjected to attitude from the host(ess) and the server. (After all, you're taking up a whole table and you'll only leave one person's tip!) <br><br> Like I said, Le Grand Comptoir is a fortunate exception to those experiences. You can go there alone at almost any time of day (except the lunch hour: too busy) and find more than a handful of individual tables to choose from... Slavito http://www.sitebits.com/2007/alone_at_le_grand_comptoir.html Thu, 15 Feb 2007 23:20:00 EST How many more blockbusters would you be willing to drop 13 bucks for? Personally, I'm done with it. <br><br> However, I love cinema and will be the first one to admit that renting movies is not the same as going to a movie theater. A movie theater gives you the atmosphere, the sound and the focus. In the coziness of your seat, you are "inside" the story unveiling on the screen. For good movies (and I mean <i>guaranteed</i> good movies), you have to go to one of Montreal's <i>répertoire</i> (or repertory) cinemas, the best of which is Cinema du Parc. <br><br> I assumed Cinema du Parc had closed its doors a while ago, which I thought was unfortunate because it had left fewer available alternatives to watch good cinema. However, it recently reopened with a vengeance... Fernanda http://www.sitebits.com/2007/cinema_du_park_winter_07.html Mon, 22 Jan 2007 01:00:00 EST A staggering number of chain cafes and coffee shops in Montreal haven't yet cornered the market on favoured hangouts. We Montrealers enjoy our home-grown locales. Café Utopik is such a place that seems to thrive on its independent situation... Steve http://www.sitebits.com/2007/cafe_utopik_2007.html Sat, 20 Jan 2007 13:00:00 EST “MMMMMM!" was the exclamation of pleasure from a life-long New Yorker when first sampling Montreal bagels. This was high praise indeed. This Long-Islander went on to concede that these bagels even rivaled New York's otherwise unrivaled bagels. Montrealers have known for some time that their bagels were world class. In fact, beyond smoked meat and poutine, perhaps no food characterizes Montreal more than its bagels. Like their smoked meat brethren, Montreal bagels are originally a contribution of the city's sizeable Jewish community. And just as debate might wage between smoked meat at Shwartz's or The Main, a similar competition exists between Montreal's top bagel bakeries, Fairmount and St Viateur... Steve http://www.sitebits.com/2007/fairmount_vs_st_viateur.html Wed, 10 Jan 2007 12:10:00 EST I awoke one morning after a night on the town with a desperate craving for a fast, filling, delicious breakfast to indulge my palate and soothe my aching stomach. Fortunately, the decision of where to go was easy: Dusty's, on the corner of du Parc and Mont Royal... Steve http://www.sitebits.com/2006/breakfast_at_dustys.html Wed, 06 Dec 2006 00:45:00 EST I've met quite a few people in Montreal, and all of them surprised me with the same statement: "I've never been to La Grande Bibliothèque". Worse, that would happen immediately after I'd answer the most common question, which is: "What have you liked the most in Montreal so far?" La Grande Bibliothèque is definitely one of the top things on my list and when I mention it many people seem surprised... Fernanda http://www.sitebits.com/2006/bibliotheque_not_only_for_geeks.html Fri, 01 Dec 2006 00:35:00 EST