Côte-des-Neiges

Saint Joseph's Oratory at sunset

Côte-des-Neiges is a multicultural neighbourhood in Montreal. The area is strongly influenced by its proximity to the Universite de Montreal. The crowd is highly composed of students and immigrants. The Saint Joseph Oratory perches above the district.

Get in

Metro

You can reach Côte-des-Neiges from the Côte-des-Neiges and Université de Montreal Metro stations on the Blue Line and Côte Ste-Catherine and Snowdon stations on the Orange Line.

By bus

The 161 Van Horne runs from Rosemont metro, at the far north of the Plateau. From the south-west of the Plateau the 129 Côte-Ste-Catherine follows the edge of Mont Royal through Outremont. 165 Côte-des-Neiges covers the north–south route from Downtown.

See

St. Joseph's Oratory interior

• 1 St. Joseph's Oratory (Oratoire Saint-Joseph), 3800 Chemin Queen Mary (métro Côte-des-Neiges), ☏ +1 514-733-8211. The largest church in Canada, it has a beautiful Art Deco interior. It is a favourite pilgrimage for devotees of Brother André, who was reputed to have healed the sick and handicapped. Includes a remarkable collection of crutches and canes from the healed. During the summer, it is also possible to stroll through the beautiful garden next to the Oratory which features the Stations of the Cross in marble sculptures. The garden is peaceful and beautifully maintained. The views from both the Oratory and the garden are magnificent and well-worth the climb. Watch for the faithful climbing on their knees to the top.  
• Cemeteries. Wander among the more than one million graves covering the north slope of Mont Royal. No bikes or picnicking:
  • 2 Mount-Royal Cemetery, 1297 Chemin de la Forêt, ☏ +1 514-279-7358.  
  • 3 Notre-Dame-des-Neiges Cemetery, 4601 Chemin de la Côte-des-Neiges. One of the largest cemeteries in Canada.  
• 4 Université de Montréal, 2900 boul Édouard-Montpetit (métro Université de Montréal or Édouard-Montpetit). The second largest university in Canada in terms of students, Université de Montréal is a French speaking university whose campus is mostly concentrated on the mount Royal, between the metro stations Edouard-Montpetit and Côte-des-Neiges. The Roger-Gaudry building, with its tall tower and Art Deco architecture, is well worth a look. It is just in front of the metro station Université-de-Montréal. Free. 
• 5 The Montreal Holocaust Memorial Centre, 1 Carré Cummings Square (5151 Chemin de la Côte-Sainte–Catherine), ☏ +1 514-345-2605. Dedicated to Holocaust education and awareness. It was founded in 1979 by a group of Holocaust survivors. The Centre's mandate is to educate people of all ages and backgrounds about the genocidal murder of six million Jews by Nazi Germany and its collaborators between 1933-1945.  

Do

The Segal Centre for Performing Arts

• 1 The Segal Centre for Performing Arts (formerly the Saydie Bronfman Centre), 5170 Chemin de la Côte-Sainte-Catherine, ☏ +1 514 739-2301, fax: +1 514 739-9340. Su-Th 10:00-16:00. 
• Piscine Cote-des-Neiges, 4880 avenue Van Horne, ☏ +1 514-342-9988. Indoor swimming pool. Free. 
• Picnic in the park (square between Gatineau, Swail, Decelle and Jean-Brillant). Relax in the park with your lunch. There are several grocery stores nearby, and many restaurants that offer take out (mostly on Gatineau and Côte-des-Neiges). 

Buy

• 1 Plaza Côte-des-Neiges, 6700 chemin de la Côte-des-Neiges (metro Plamondon and Côte-Des-Neiges). M-W 10:00-18:00, Th F 10:00-21:00, Sa Su 10:00-17:00. Over 100 shops and services plus Cinema Odeon movie theater. 
• Victoria Ave (Plamondon Metro). 
• Queen Mary Road (Snowdon Metro). 
• Côte-des-Neiges road (metro Côte-des-Neiges). 

Eat

The multicultural communities of Côte-des-Neiges are all well represented on the dining scene. This is the place to come for Kosher, Lebanese, Caribbean, Tamil, Vietnamese, Filipino, Russian and even Romanian cuisine. Cheap eats line Queen Mary, Decarie, Victoria and Côte-des-Neiges avenue.

Kosher

• Chez Benny, 5071 ch Queen Mary (between ave de Westbury and rue Lemieux; metro Snowdon, bus 17, 51 or 166), ☏ +1 514-735-1836. Winter: Su-Th 11:00-23:00, F 11AM-Shabbat time, Sa after Shabbat-03:00; Summer: Su-Th 11AM-00:00, F 11AM-Shabbat time; Sa after Shabbat-01:00. Kosher restaurant with Mediterranean (shawarma, falafel, merguez and the likes) and Chinese dishes. Really busy on weekend evenings. 
• Ernie's and Ellie's Place, 6900 boul Décarie (in the mall), ☏ +1 514-344-4444. Kosher meat restaurant. Everything goes: Russian, Chinese, Moroccan, you name it. Regular "Canadian" kitchen isn't bad either. Food served very quickly. Decor is trying to be nice but misses some edge. It doesn't matter though, because this place gets customers no matter what happens. 
• Expresti gourmet, 5335A chemin Queen Mary (Cornrer Coolbrook), ☏ +1 514-482-6688. Italian, dairy and Parve. 
• Pizza Pita, 6415 boul Décarie (between ave Plamondon and ave Van Horne; metro Plamondon, bus 17, 160, or 161), ☏ +1 514-731-7482. Su-Th 07:30-23:00, F 07:30-1 hr before Shabbat, Sa 1 hr after Shabbat-04:00. Kosher (and Cholov Yisroel) pizzas, pita sandwiches, burgers. Falafels are generously stuffed and fried eggplants give a tasty twist. Very popular with high schoolers and the frum set, especially on Saturday nights. One of the best veggie pizzas in Montreal. 
• Pizzeria Tatty, 6540 ave de Darlington (at ave Barclay; bus 160 or 161), ☏ +1 514-734-8289. Kosher pizzeria. 
• The Reserve, 5395 ch Queen Mary (between ave Earnscliffe and ave Coolbrook; metro Snowdon, bus 17, 51, 63, 129, or 166), ☏ +1 514-481-3111. Su-Th 17:00-22:00. Kosher steakhouse and tavern. 

Halal

• Halal 786 Restaurant, 768 Jean Talon Ouest, ☏ +1 514-270-0786. (updated Jun 2017)

Budget

• Exception 2, 5047, chemin Queen-Mary, ☏ +1 514-344-0508. Kosher dairy restaurant featuring thin crust pizzas. 
• Chez Jolee, 5495, ave. Victoria, ☏ +1 514-733-6362. Delicious Sri Lankan and South Indian meals and snacks, including dosa, kottu roti, string hoppers, idli, vada and more. 
• Al Amine, 3549 ave. Lacombe, ☏ +1 514-739-1817. Typical Montreal-style "shish taouk" (chicken shawarma) Lebanese restaurant. Delicious and rather healthy fast food. They have great vegetarian/vegan options (falafel, vegetarian platter), pizza by the slice and Lebanese baklava. $2-10. 

Mid-range

• Le Camélia des tropiques, 5024 chemin de la Côte-des-Neiges (Corner of Queen Mary). Unusually good (for Montreal) Vietnamese food. Phõ, meats, seafood, and veggie curries. Ask for the "by-request" extra hot hot sauce. Three-course table d'hôte, $15. 
• Restaurant Mavi, 5192, ave Gatineau, ☏ +1 514-340-9664. Authentic Portuguese restaurant, famous for its charcoal grilled chicken. The fries are killer too! Eat your lunch at the restaurant or take it to go and picnic in the park on the other side of the street. 
• La Saigonnaise, 5711 chemin de la Côte-des-Neiges, ☏ +1 514-344-4952. Fantastic Thai and Vietnamese restaurant. Share a "volcanic island" with friends or enjoy your own table d'hôte. $12-22. 

Splurge

• 1 Il Galateo, 5315 avenue Gatineau (metro Côte-des-Neiges). Open M-F 11:30-23:00, Sa 17:30-23:30. You could easily walk by without noticing this subterranean Italian restaurant, but you'd be missing out on a secret gem. Standard pasta, meat, and seafood plus a few surprises like dandelion salad. $15-20. 

Drink

• 1 Tabasco Bar, 5414 avenue Gatineau (near Côte-des-Neiges metro, corner of Lacombe), ☏ +1 514-731-3666. Restaurant and club. Also has a pool table. The food is pretty average. 
• 2 La Maisonnée, 5385 avenue Gatineau (near Côte-des-Neiges metro, corner of avenue Lacombe), ☏ +1 514-733-0412. Also serves food, very popular amongst university students. Karaoke on certain nights. 
• 3 McCarold's, 5400 chemin de la Côte-des-Neiges (corner of avenue Lacombe, near Côte-des-Neiges metro), ☏ +1 514-344-9009. Great Irish pub, also serves very good food, try the burgers (they have an exquisite vegetarian burger too). This pub has the best selection of beers in the neighborhood, with the usual pub beers (Guinness, Kilkenny), good local beers on tap (from Unibroue and Boréale) and an impressive selection of international (UK, Belgium) and local microbrew bottled beer. They also have hard cider, whisky and cocktails. 

Sleep

Accommodations are limited in this area. The closest concentration of hotels and Bed and Breakfasts are located in the Plateau or Downtown.

Budget

• 1 Studio Hotel, 2450 boulevard Édouard-Montpetit (Édouard-Montpetit metro), ☏ +1 514-343-8006. Open May to 29 Aug, Studio Hotel offers 800 budget rooms next to University of Montreal. Modern, clean, shared kitchen, common rooms, and gym. starting at $40/night for single studio up to $100 for suite. 

Go next

Routes through Côte-des-Neiges

END ← Saint-Laurent ←	N  S	→ Notre-Dame-de-Grâce → Downtown
END ←	W  E	→ Outremont → François-Perrault
Deux-Montagnes ← North Island ←	W  E	→ Downtown → END
Mascouche ← North Island ←	N  S	→ Downtown → END