Saturday Afternoon at Atwater Market

Returning to Montreal again this spring brought us back to several of our favorite ways to enjoy the city and the greater-Montreal area. In my last post I shared our 3rd annual pub crawl and beer tasting adventures. We had a lot of fun and tried a bunch of beers that were new to us and made to please!

On Saturday afternoon we walked down Rene Levesque and made our lunch stop at Buffet Maharaja (near the Guy crossing) for Indian lunch. We definitely recommend it and were told that Saturday night is even better because of a different chef cooking. The food was hot, well cooked and there were dozens of selections. The Butter Chicken seems to be what they are known for, and it didn’t disappoint. The fresh Naan bread was soft and made for a great fork!

During lunch Margot asked where we should go next. It was one of the most beautiful days we have had yet this spring, so I suggested we keep walking down to the Atwater Market. As we walked we came upon an architecture-laden public park. The reason was a celebration of local architects and artists by a trade organization that acquired the land. We had fun walking around and checking out each of the exhibits.

A few blocks later we met up with Atwater Ave and headed down the hill and right past where Margot’s maternal family is from. The streets were busy as we got closer, it would seem like we had a pretty popular idea. We arrived to the bustle of the market and leisurely walked around. We have stopped in here going back 5 years now and relish finding treats to share with friends while we are in town or to take home for us and others.

I bought some Fee Brother’s bitters and an Elderflower cordial mixer to play around with at the home bar. We also picked up several items for a nice Mother’s day gift, but since Mom reads my blog I can’t tell you what just yet.

I’ll let the photos tell the rest of the story.

Cheers!

Jason

( Fresh Gnocci )

( Can't beat pre-marinated meats of all kinds! )

( My favorite market stop! )

( Sausage anyone? )

( A stop at Premiere Moison is always a good idea! )

( Like a kid in a candy shop I tell ya! )

( We have bought flowers here more than once. )

( The fruit sellers were very busy this day. )

( You can't have a Montreal market without maple! )

‘Tis The Season!

I work only a few blocks from Downtown Crossing in Boston and a walk through the carts and shops available there is always worth the time. Today I wandered up and happened upon a holiday market going through December 24th. It felt like Christmas with wreaths, trees, holiday music and treats.

The market doesn’t have to be about your long term shopping if you handle that online or elsewhere. Several vendors were familiar to me from the Dewey Square Farm Market including the Swiss Baker, Q’s Roasted Nuts and Pigs Can Fly Breads. I have brought food from all three back to office for everyone to try! I tasted three flavors of honey any of which would make a great pairing with some goat cheese and crusty bread for an afternoon snack.

All sorts of gift items including prints from local artists, hand knit winter hats & gloves, jewelry and other selections were represented. If you live or work nearby it works out to a nice way to support local businesses and have some fun.

( We go with a fake tree, and ours is up already! )

( The 411 on the market. )

Happy Holidays!

--Jason