Travel log

Founded with the simple concept of bringing an Italian bistro-style restaurant to Campbellton, Pronto offers dishes such as delicious appetizers, salads, and pasta, not to mention a well-stocked drink menu. It also serves the famous fresh pasta from L'Atelier Gourmand.

  
The owner, Keegan Rose, opened his restaurant in July 2022, and it is already recognized among the city's top-rated by critics and customers. He has been working in the restaurant industry since reaching adulthood. Having had the opportunity to open his own restaurant, he jumped at the chance.

  The owner, Keegan Rose

In fact, he occupies the premises that the restaurant where he previously worked had left vacant when it moved elsewhere. A well-located and very busy place in the heart of the city, surrounded by many local businesses and very close to the Interprovincial Bridge leading to Quebec.

His initial project: to offer only Italian food at affordable and reasonable prices. He certainly believes it is possible to find it elsewhere in the city. But he points out that at his place, it is authentic and different from others. "Campbellton was missing this kind of place," he asserts. He personally trains the cooks who prepare the dishes that are the basis of his inspiration. Apart from the Italian menu, there is an interesting wine list featuring local and renowned products, as well as beers.

Pronto can accommodate about 40 people inside. A terrace outside in good weather allows for an additional fifteen or so. About 10 people find employment there.

While still in his thirties, he never thought he could own his own restaurant before his fifties. Having returned to Campbellton a few years ago, after working for some time in Calgary, for a restaurant chain in Rothesay, and having obtained his "red seal" chef certificate in Moncton, Keegan now felt ready to take the plunge.

 
Pronto is open from Tuesday to Saturday, for lunch and dinner. It is noteworthy that the owner and staff can provide service in both French and English. Taking great care of customers is part of his concept. And it seems to be working. It is advisable to book in advance to secure a table on weekends.

Pronto – Italian Bistro
prontocampbellton.com
99, Roseberry St
Campbellton (NB) E3N 2G6
506.753.5000

Barbara and Phil Thibodeau built from scratch, without a pun intended, this imposing residence assembled piece by piece, serving as a Bed & Breakfast by the sea in Pointe-Verte, New Brunswick. They named it Gîte Toutes Saisons (All Seasons B&B) to express their desire to make it a welcoming place all year round.

Each of the four rooms bears an evocative name: Summer Sunset, Autumn Sunrise, Winter Refuge, Spring Serenade.

Located between Bathurst and Campbelton, the B&B began welcoming travelers in 2000. A few years earlier, this site was just a large two-acre lot without any development. After acquiring it in 1999, they undertook to build a large house and develop the land to reflect their values and passion, with the added bonus of immediate proximity to the sea with its tides, sunrises, and aquatic birdlife.

Phil and Barbara hired local labor to build their B&B. This local cedar wood cottage, entirely designed by the owners, is a place of serenity in the Baie des Chaleurs.

Nature lovers, the hosts have a strong ecological conscience. They practice sound waste and food resource management, sourcing locally as much as possible, and highlighting local artisans. They opted for underfloor heating, which only heats occupied spaces during the day to reduce energy consumption.

With undeniable social commitment, Phil (originally from Bathurst) and Barbara (born in Ontario) are hosts who share their culture with authenticity and generosity. They sit down at the table with travelers and share life anecdotes and diverse knowledge. Phil has long participated in the multicultural committee aimed at fostering exchange between locals and immigrants, in addition to volunteering to accompany the sick. They are passionate about promoting change in their community. Barbara retired a few years ago from a teaching career in Chatham, Ontario.

The only house rules are: arrive when you want, go to bed when you are tired, get up when you are well-rested, and eat when you are hungry! The four rooms are spacious and cozy, inviting peaceful sleep. A fine cook, Phil will surprise you with a delicious local breakfast at the large table in their beautiful rustic dining room. "Phil loves preparing meals for people," explains Barbara. He is in his element in the kitchen. "You should see him go when we have family over during the holidays or when we welcome groups to the B&B," she adds.

They have many stories to tell, which they share authentically and simply with their guests. They raised a beautiful family of four children, one of whom still resides in Acadia while three are in Ontario. One of their granddaughters, a professional cook, has already shown interest in taking over from her grandparents when they decide to pass the torch. Phil is 83 and Barbara is 78. Even though they are in relatively good health, the day will come when they will have to think about resting and living peaceful days. Owning and managing a B&B for nearly 25 years is no easy feat.

Several services are included in the accommodation rate, including breakfast, Wi-Fi, direct access to the sea and beach, gardens, parking, etc.

What is certain is that a stay with these open-minded and welcoming people guarantees good times and happy memories.

Gîte Toutes saisons B&B
relaxseaside.com
10, rue des Oiseaux
Pointe-Verte (NB)
(506) 783-3122

The Musée de la Mer in Havre-Aubert, located at Cap Gridley on the La Grave site in the Magdalen Islands, stands proudly perched on one of the most beautiful observation points in the area. Since its establishment at this site in 1974, after spending a few years in the former parish hall of Havre between 1969, the year of its founding, and its relocation, it has played a leading role in safeguarding the maritime and cultural heritage of the islands.

This mission is fulfilled through research, collection conservation, promotion, dissemination, and education efforts, particularly regarding the insular imprint that shapes the lives of the Madelinots.

Moreover, for those who appreciate striking elements in this type of museum, upon entering the main hall of the renovated and expanded building in 2011, visitors are immediately drawn to the whale skeleton suspended from the ceiling.

  
Historical note: In May 2008, a sperm whale washed ashore on the North Beach, just before Pointe-aux-Loups. Once its death was confirmed, a group of Madelinots decided to display the skeleton on the Islands. Three men—Claude Bourque, Pierre-Henry Fontaine, and Paul Grégoire—along with twenty other volunteers, worked on the project, taking three days to strip the marine mammal's carcass. This marked the beginning of two crucial phases: cleaning and numbering each bone to reassemble the skeleton. It wasn’t until more than six years later, in December 2014, that the 215 degreased, dried, and cleaned bones were reassembled, and the skeleton was suspended in the Musée de la Mer's hall.

The museum’s new director since the end of 2022, Gabrielle Leblanc, is proud to continue the work of the founder, Father Frédéric Landry, who served as director for over 30 years. Trained in political science, literature, and project management, Ms. Leblanc has worked in the cultural and heritage sector for many years. From 2008 to 2021, she held the position of Supervisor of Cultural Activities and Cultural, Heritage, and Library Manager at the Municipality of the Magdalen Islands.

The Musée des Îles was inaugurated on August 8, 1969, in the presence of Jean-Jacques Bertrand, then Premier of Quebec. In 1972, the museum relocated and was renamed Musée de la Mer. The Quebec government allocated a $200,000 grant to construct a new building dedicated specifically to the institution.

Dynamic Exhibits and Captivating Activities
"The Musée de la Mer offers an immersion into Madelinot culture through exhibitions and activities throughout the year. The warm welcome from the inspiring and passionate staff complements the quality of both permanent and temporary exhibitions, making it an experience for the whole family," says Gabrielle Leblanc.

The permanent exhibition "Living on the Islands, Living the Islands", temporary exhibitions on various themes showcasing works by local artists, and offering detailed documentation for genealogy enthusiasts, artifacts from maritime life, ancestral fishing activities, shipwrecks, and lectures on relevant topics, all await both local visitors and the many tourists who visit each year.

Since May 2023, until October, visitors can view Annie Morin’s multidisciplinary exhibition, “Promenade at the Ocean’s Depths”. It presents a blend of sculptural and pictorial works inspired by the organic forms of the deep sea, emphasizing the contrast between its fragility and strength.

Worth noting, in February 1971, the exhibition "The Moon Lands on the Islands" showcased lunar rocks brought back to Earth in 1969 by the Apollo 11 crew.

 
Additionally, in July 1987, the Aquarium des Îles was inaugurated in the former heritage building of the Salines, at the La Grave site. It featured fauna and flora from the continental shelf of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence. Initially, this project was driven by the museum as part of the heritage site classification and revitalization of La Grave.

After a change in purpose in 2017, the building now hosts a second-floor exhibition on the history of La Grave and cultural activities on the ground floor during the summer. Experts are working to secure the 1895 building to stabilize its foundations, allowing it to continue its role in historical animation and education during the summer.

The Musée de la Mer is a non-profit organization managed by a board of directors chaired by Normand Thellab. The museum employs a team of people from various disciplines and welcomes researchers in archaeology and forensic anthropology during the summer.

Musée de la Mer
museedelamer-im.com
1023, chemin De La Grave
Havre-Aubert, (Qc) G4T 9C8
418 937-5711

Walking in the streets of Vieux-Québec is like following in the steps of the pioneers who gave birth to this nation. Founded by Samuel de Champlain as a trading post in 1608, the colony first developed around l’Habitation de Québec before expanding into the first streets traced around the Place Royale in the heart of the Vieux-Port. Restored in the early 1970s, this historical district brings us back in time to the capital of Nouvelle-France (New France) at the end of the 17th century. This was the era of Louis XIV, a bust of whom adorns the area. As I myself am a descendant of Mathurin Gagnon, who was one of the first merchants of Québec and whose home and retail store were located at the current site of the Sault-au-Matelot park (or Parc de l’Unesco), walking on the cobblestones of these historic sites is like reconnecting with the history of our roots in this country. A few steps away, Place Royale is the main site of the annual Fêtes de la Nouvelle-France, recreating the French colonial era of its original inhabitants.

In the Vieux-Port, one must absolutely visit the Musée de la Civilisation. The neighborhood is home to many gay-friendly establishments, among them the restaurant Marie-Clarisse, which was opened at the foot of the Casse-Cou staircase by nenowned chef Serge Bruyère.

Heading up to Haute-ville, one can admire the elements of fortification which have made Québec unique, for it is the only still-fortified city in North America. It is the neighborhood commonly reffered to as Vieux-Québec. Built at the end of the 19th century near the Citadelle fort, the hotel Château Frontenac rises above Place Royal on one side of the Terrasse Dufferin. The latter is a splendid walkway offering a spectacular view of the area and is perfect for romantic strolls. One can easily understand why the founders of Québec chose this strategic spot to establish the colony, which would become the capital of New France, then Lower Canada and finally, Québec.

The gay lifestyle took root fairly early in Vieux-Québec. The Sauna-hôtel Hippocampe on Mac Mahon Street, the oldest gay establishment still operating in the province (where some might recognize the interiors used for Robert Lepage’s film Le Confessionnal), has been open for over four decades. The owner, Yvon Pépin, had previously tended bar in many Vieux-Québec clubs, in a time when homosexual life was still mostly underground.

André Gagnon

Old Québec is the most popular tourist destination in Québec and features many of the greatest restaurants in the city. In the tradition of Serge Bruyère, many fine chefs in Québec are found in Québec city. Let us mention Jean-Luc Boulay (Le Saint-Amour and Chez Boulay), Arnaud Marchand (Chez Boulay), Daniel Vézina (Laurie Raphaël) and Louis Pacquelin (Panache) among others. Jean-Luc Boulay and Arnaud Marchand from Chez Boulay offer the experience of northern French cuisine while highlighting typical local products. It is located on the ground floor of the elegant Manoir Victoria, on Saint-Jean Street. Close by, Mr. Boulay also presides over the kitchen activities at Saint-Amour, a prominent figure of Québec’s gastronomic scene. Moreover, Saint Amour appears in Trip Advisors’ top 10 fine dining restaurants and it is not unusual to spot a celebrity seated there.

Situated in an old 18^th century warehouse in Vieux-Québec and part of the Auberge Saint-Antoine, the restaurant Panache offers the refined menu of chef Louis Pacquelin. While there, you can discover the artefacts showcased on the walls of the building, recalling the rich history of the French colony.

Tourists will also appreciate Les Anciens Canadiens, a restaurant established in a heritage building, where you can discover or rediscover some of the classics of traditional Québec cuisine. Near Château Frontenac, the Continental is renowned for its flambés. Close by, Le Parmesan offers delicious classics of Italian cuisine

The governments of Canada and Quebec are taking an important step by announcing their joint intention to begin working to expand the boundaries of the Saguenay–St. Lawrence Marine Park. This project aims to better protect the biodiversity and ecosystems of the St. Lawrence Estuary, which is home to nearly 2,200 species, some of which, like the beluga, are in a precarious situation.

The announcement was made today by Steven Guilbeault, Minister of Environment and Climate Change and Minister responsible for Parks Canada, and the Québec Minister of Environment, Climate Change, Benoit Charette.

Protection of the St. Lawrence beluga

The expansion project's main objective is to protect the critical habitat of the St. Lawrence beluga, of which more than 60 percent currently lies outside the boundaries of the marine park. It also aims to preserve a high-quality feeding ground for several species of whales, some of which are in a precarious situation. In 2020, as a first act of protection by the Government of Québec, and while waiting for a legal status of protection, territorial reserves were set aside with the end goal of eventually creating protected areas. This project would help to consolidate the protection of a significant part of these territories. As currently planned, the project could quadruple the Saguenay–St. Lawrence Marine Park's area.

Today's announcement is a first step toward expansion of the marine park. In the coming months, the governments of Canada and Québec will jointly meet with regional and municipal organizations, as well as all stakeholders involved in the project, including First nations, research groups and local businesses to exchange perspectives and obtain feedback. Finally, a public consultation phase will be held, during which the proposed limits and the proposed protection measures will be discussed.

Recognized expertise

Backed with more than 25 years of Canada-Québec co-management and participatory governance in the region, the marine park is a unique model for collaboration and partnerships for the conservation of the marine environment. The expertise of its coordination committee and its teams in the fields of marine activity regulation, education, awareness, visitor experience and scientific research makes it a privileged protection tool, mainly for marine mammals, adapted to the context of the St. Lawrence estuary and the Saguenay Fjord.

The governments of Canada and Quèbec recognize that the protection of an environment as extensively used as the St. Lawrence Estuary requires strong joint cooperation, close collaboration with all members of the Saguenay–St. Lawrence Marine Park Coordination Committee and consultation with a multitude of regional stakeholders.Quotes:

''As a joint Québec-Canada marine protected area, the Saguenay-St. Lawrence Marine Park has a 25-year history of collaborative conservation and public education successes. Its expansion will allow our governments to work together on several shared priorities, including the protection of marine biodiversity and the recovery of species at risk such as the St. Lawrence beluga. This collaboration between our governments is a clear sign that protecting biodiversity and endangered species is a shared priority. At COP15, we made ambitious commitments, a"nd today we are taking an important step towards achieving these goals."  Declares S teven Guilbeault, Minister responsible for Parks Canada

"The Saguenay–St. Lawrence Marine Park is a source of national pride and a true natural jewel of Quebec. The Government of Québec is proud of this unique partnership with the federal government, which will improve the protection of marine mammals living in the Saint Lawrence Estuary, such as the beluga, which is an emblematic species of the fragility of this habitat. The knowledge gained in recent years sends a clear signal of what we must do to protect it. With extensive experience in co-management and participatory governance, the Saguenay–St. Lawrence Marine Park is a model for protecting marine environments that promote sustainable tourism and benefit local communities. I am convinced that the leadership, experience and trusting relationships that have been at the heart of the park's management since its inception will be catalysts for the next steps toward this promising expansion project for our nation!"

Added Benoit Charette, Québec Minister of the Environment, the Fight against Climate Change, Wildlife and Parks

Highlights

Concerns about the decline of the beluga and its habitat were a determining factor in the creation of the Saguenay–St. Lawrence Marine Park (SSMP) in 1998. The SSMP is a unique Québec/Canada joint marine protected area created by Québec and federal legislation, the Saguenay–St. Lawrence Marine Park Act.
With a current surface area of 1,245 square kilometres (km2), the SSMP is located on Quèbec public lands at the confluence of the Saguenay River and the St. Lawrence Estuary. Its mandate is to enhance the level of protection of the ecosystems of a representative part of the Saguenay Fjord and the St. Lawrence Estuary for the purposes of conservation and environmental protection of the exceptional flora and fauna and natural resources found there, in addition to promoting sustainable educational, recreational and scientific activities.
The management of SSMP, under the joint responsibility of the Ministère de l'Environnement, de la Lutte contre les changements climatiques, de la Faune et des Parcs, of the Société des établissements de plein air du Québec (Sépaq) and Parks Canada, is based on a participatory governance approach that is unique in Canada and relies on stakeholders working together at the local, regional and national levels to achieve its objectives. Its coordination committee is composed of representatives of the Essipit Innu First Nation, the Wolastoqiyik Wahsipekuk First Nation, the Charlevoix-Est regional county municipalities (RCM), the Saguenay Fjord, la Haute-Côte-Nord, and representatives of the three southern shore RCMs (des Basques, Rivière-du-Loup and Kamouraska), the scientific community, and the interpretation and education community.
Since the creation of SSMP in 1998, significant efforts have been made by the involved parties to preserve marine mammals, including beluga. However, its population has continued to decline since then, at a rate of about 1% per year. It now has fewer than 900 individuals. Since the 2000s, there has been a critical and unexplained increase in mortality among newborns and females of reproductive age, which suggests an acceleration of the beluga's decline in the coming years.

The Gaspésie and Maritimes regions, covered in this guide, have been inhabited by the Mi'gmaq people for thousands of years. Today, visitors can still encounter many of these First Nation communities across the area.

In Gaspé, a city with a rich history of French explorer Jacques Cartier's interactions with the Mi'gmaq nation, the Gespeg Micmac Interpretation Site showcases the culture of the local Mi'gmaq community. Through interactive exhibits and guided tours, the site offers a fascinating insight into the history and traditions of the Mi'gmaq people. The on-site shop features a range of authentic, high-quality Mi'gmaq crafts and other Indigenous products from Quebec.

Further along the Baie des Chaleurs, Gesgapegiag is a popular spot for tourists eager to experience the unique attractions of Mi'gmaq territory. Visitors can enjoy a picnic in the community park or marvel at the impressive tipi erected by the sea in 2018.

For those seeking a more immersive experience, the community of Gesgapegiag offers cozy chalets and traditional tipis in Anse Sainte-Hélène. Alternatively, guests can stay aboard a replica of Jacques Cartier's La Grande Hermine, an iconic vessel from the age of exploration. Nearby, hikers and snowmobilers can take advantage of Le Relais de la Cache, located close to the Chic-Chocs mountain range.

One of the most exciting annual events in the region is the Pow-Wow, a traditional festival held every July. This vibrant celebration sees Mi'gmaq people from across the region coming together to share their culture and traditions through song, dance, and storytelling. Everyone is welcome to join in the festivities and experience the warm hospitality of the Mi'gmaq people.

Multiple award-winning Montréal-based artist from Mauritius, Kama La Mackerel, is delighted to present their debut exhibition, Who Sings the Queer Island Body? at the Visual Art Centre's McClure Gallery from March 3 to 25, 2023.

La Mackerel’s work, for the past few years, has sought to question and counter-narrativize dominant colonial island tropes through a queer/trans lens. Their photography series Breaking the Promise of Tropical Emptiness (2017-19), for example, calls into question the colonial legacy of the visual representation of “tropical islands” by questioning the aesthetics of the postcard. In this work, La Mackerel reframes clichés of Mauritian postcards, by foregrounding their transgender body at the centre of the frame. In their most recent work in moving image, poetry, textiles and performance ritual, Queering the Is/land Body (2021), presented at 17th edition of MOMENTA, Biennale de l’image, they explore the spiritual relationship that is sustained between the transgender, racialized body and that of the “island body” in order to bring forth ancestral forms of Indo-African spirituality. In their award-winning debut poetry collection, ZOM-FAM (Metonymy Press, 2020), they invoke ancestral voices of slaves and indentured labour who worked amidst colonial silences on plantation islands.

In Who Sings the Queer Island Body?, La Mackerel expands on their previous body of work to contend with the question of island sovereignty and ocean mapping. In this new work, they further question ocean and island cartographies as these have been documented, archived and communicated through modernity: The sea as aqua nullius, a masculine space that men traverse in order to to go to islands which were regarded as terra nullius, empty feminine spaces to be colonized. Through hybrid creative forms, La Mackerel explores the unruly interstices between photography, video, sound composition, poetry, textiles and performance to offer a decolonial mapping of “the island body” and its relationship to the ocean. Who Sings the Queer Island Body? opens up new aesthetic spaces where trans and decolonial personal, ancestral, geopolitical, geological and ecological narratives make themselves heard.

This new work body of work is also heavily influenced by the tragedy of the MV Wakashio. In July 2020, the MV Wakashio – a Japanese-owned cargo ship sailing under a Panamanian flag of convenience with a team of Indian sailors and on its way to Brazil – ran aground the coral reefs of La Mackerel’s native-island, Mauritius. More than 1,000 tonnes of heavy oil were spilled, impacting the entire south-eastern coastline including ecosystems of wetlands, mangrove forests and a marine reserve. More than 50 melon-head whales and dolphins washed up dead on the island’s coast. For the inhabitants of the south-eastern coast of Mauritius (“the people of the sea,” as they are called), this signaled the end of their traditional way of life.

The tragedy of the MV Wakashio – the biggest ecological disaster in the history of Mauritius – is in many ways embedded in this exhibition. On the one hand, watching this oil spill from afar demanded that the artist work through a deep process of grief for the ecologies, the people, the “island body” in relation to their own queer Mauritian body. On the other hand, the lack of international geopolitical accountability and the failure of any country to take responsibility and take action for this oceanic environmental disaster reinforced the dominant trope of disposability with which islands have been historically construed.

Who Sings the Queer Island Body? then, is an exhibition that is a call for reframing our relationality to island territories, to bodies of water, and to the ecologies of which we are part. At the core of this work, La Mackerel grounds us in an imperative to heal our hearts, to repair our relationship to the island body, to soothe the spirit of the ocean. Through the retellings expressed in the different pieces of this exhibition, Kama La Mackerel reactivates the work of the imagination, so that we can reinvent ourselves, with purpose; so that we can reclaim the very integrity of our human life; so that we can leave a roadmap of beauty, joy, of being in relationship differently, for generations yet to come.

ABOUT KAMA LA MACKEREL

Kama La Mackerel is a Mauritian-Canadian multilingual writer, visual artist, performer, educator and literary translator who believes in love, justice and self and collective empowerment. Their practice blurs the lines between traditional artistic disciplines to create hybrid aesthetic spaces from which decolonial and queer/trans vocabularies can emerge. At once narratological and theoretical, personal and political, their interdisciplinary method, developed over the past decade, is grounded in ritual, meditation, ancestral healing modalities, auto-ethnography, oral history, archival research and community-arts facilitation.

La Mackerel is a firm believer that artistic and cultural practices have the power to build resilience, to heal and to act as forms of resistance to the status quo. With wholehearted engagement in ocean narratives, island sovereignty, transgender poetics and queer/trans spiritual histories, their body of work challenges colonial notions of time and space as these relate to history, power, language, subject formation and the body.

La Mackerel has lectured, performed and exhibited their work internationally in museums, galleries, theatres and universities. In 2021, they were awarded the Canada Council for the Arts' Joseph S. Stauffer Prize for emerging and mid-career artists in Visual Arts. Their award-winning book ZOM-FAM (Metonymy Press) was named a CBC Best Poetry Book and a Globe and Mail Best Debut. Kama La Mackerel lives and loves in Tio’tia:ke, also known as Montréal.

KAMA LA MACKEREL & THE MCCLURE GALLERY

The McClure Gallery at the Visual Arts Centre in Montréal is an independent not-for-profit gallery operating for over twenty years. The gallery has a history of hosting high-quality, professional exhibitions by early, mid and late career artists working in a variety of disciplines. The programming is chosen by a jury made up of professional artists (one from the previous season, two from the teaching staff, one from the community) and board members (many of whom are also artists). The jury was particularly taken by La Mackerel’s exhibition proposal and their interdisciplinary work. The McClure Gallery is committed to supporting this work, particularly given the ongoing systemic barriers that the artist has faced as a racialized, transgender immigrant who is also self-taught.

Photography, video, textile installations, multilingual poetry and audio compositions combine for a debut multimedia exhibition

March 3 to 25, 2023
McClure Gallery

What happens when you’re caught between bittersweet memories of youth and the realities of middle age, with only a couple of opinionated old gay friends to lend you an ear. From the writer of the hit play Mambo Italiano, another sharp-witted look at what it means to be an Italian/Canadian gay man in an ever-changing world.

https://youtu.be/ZIMZTgcIkF4

Three old friends gather and reminisce about the past — the good, the bad, and the outrageous. They talk about everything from boyfriends to Sunday night dinners, backed by a soundtrack of Blondie, the B-52s, and the Village People. Everything bubbles to the surface while memory and loss stir up questions about healing and moving on.

With an open heart, Galluccio has penned a story about his own loves and losses in an unabashed love letter to Montreal. How do you remember your past? At the beginning of time… when everything is fresh and new. Galluccio’s newest play reminds us that memories are like a good shot of espresso: best shared among friends.

“​​At the Beginning of Time is my most personal play since Mambo Italiano. It seems only fitting that 20-some-odd years later I am back at Centaur to share this new chapter. In 2018 my life exploded, and I was forced to re-imagine my existence. I was a gay man in my late 50s who thought his life was settled. Overnight I found myself at the beginning of time, in a new chapter, in a new world, and a new reality. New beginnings are frightening and overwhelming, but if you surrender to the journey, the destination will ultimately be… spectacular. Thank you Centaur Theatre for taking my broken heart and turning it into art. Theatre, much like time, heals all wounds.”

– Steve Galluccio

Centaur Theatre

February 21 - March 12, 2023

Built along the port, the formerly walled off old city has a gastronomic tradition that goes back to the colony’s beginnings. A time when hostels welcomed visitors from all over the continent and across the Atlantic. The Maison Pierre-du-Calvet, which was constructed in 1771, today still attests to this tradition, as it is the oldest building in Montréal still welcoming visitors and offering them its copious cuisine in the style of 18th century inns. Since that time, the gastronomic propositions have of course evolded and become more diversified – there are many great restaurants to be discovered in historic Old Montréal.

Near Notre-Dame Cathedral, you can begin or end your evening at L’Assommoir, with its trendy atmosphere and emphasis is on products of the terroir. On De la Commune street, just next to the Old Port, Da Emma is à Montréal Classic. From the decor to the plate, everything here transports us to Italy. More specifically, to one of those dining cellars that you only come across in Rome, which seems almost frozen in time. Located in a basement, the intimate space seats 140, plus another 70 on the terrace in front of the restaurant, weather permitting.

At the entrance, the celebrity wall confirms the reputation of the establishment with a numerous photos of stars from all over the world photographed with Emma. White tablecloths, period paintings, stone walls and wooden ceilings… the Italian charm is immediately felt, and most welcome.
With the urban re-development of the Faubourg aux Récollets west of Old Montréal, McGill Street has become a sought-after stretch of great restaurants and bistros from the Old Port to Victoria square. With its warm décor and friendly, laid-back ambiance, Ikanos invites you to rediscover some of the classics of Greek and Mediterranean cuisine, reinvented by the chef and owner Constant Mentzas. The seafood and fish is carefully selected and grilled in wood fire ovens. Located on the site of the old Soeurs Grises nunnery near the Old Port, the Bistro Brasserie Les Soeurs Grises offers a selection of home-brewed beers and a menu composed of local products.