Food halls are impending
Downtown will soon be the site of three wannabe-upscale food halls, according to Eater. La Presse had written about the Quartier des spectacles one almost a year ago and earlier this year.
I remember seeing items about a fancy food hall at the Queen Elizabeth Hotel a year or two back, but I haven’t seen any mention of it lately, and it isn’t the kind of spot I tend to end up at by chance.
thomas 12:54 on 2019-08-14 Permalink
You are probably thinking of Marché Artisans, which is just a store that sells fancy groceries along with offering casual dining. Akin to a higher end version of the Movenpick which used to be in PVM. The new food halls are collections of different independant food purveyors.
Blork 13:30 on 2019-08-14 Permalink
I walked through the Marché Artisans (QE) a couple of times over a year ago, and it seemed very slick and swishy. Basically a bunch of kitchens and counters all under one roof and mixed in with shops and whatnot. It seemed very much like something you’d see in upscale America where everyone makes $300,000 a year and dropping $40 on a snack is basically a daily occurrence.
It all looked very nice and tasty. And Pricey. Long tall counters dotted with people guaranteed to all be young lawyers nibbling on little steaks or salad compositions and sipping from small by-the-glass glasses of wine. Big sides of beef behind glass; artisinal ovens here and there issuing round loaves of bread that were then split and loaded with artisinal charcuterie, etc. Everyone slim and white.
I made a mental note to return in two years time to see how different it will be. While there does seem to be no shortage of money in this town, there’s not such a strong sense of conspicuous consumption as we tend to see in Toronto and elsewhere. (We have it, just not in critical mass, methinks.) As a result, shortcuts will start to be taken and within two years half the kitchens will be closed and the others will be selling regular stuff at only slightly elevated prices.
Or not. Maybe they’ll surprise me.
Max 13:37 on 2019-08-14 Permalink
Artisans is generally out of my price league too, but I stop in there pretty much weekly. The homemade soups (at the back counter, right end) are phenomenal, and at <$5 for a small bowl (tax in) make for a nice small meal. Check 'em out.
Bill Binns 14:00 on 2019-08-14 Permalink
I have been to a bunch of these places in and around San Francisco and my observations pretty much mirror Blork’s above. I went to the one in the basement of Twitter headquarters and had a tiny sandwich served on a hotdog bun, a cookie and a glass of lemonade and thought they made a mistake when I was charged $38.00.
It’s hard to say if this will work here. The concept isn’t all that different from the food operations at the Atwater and Jean Talon Markets and they seem to be thriving. The whole thing feels a little like a fad though and Montreal is very late to the game. We’ll see.
CE 14:45 on 2019-08-14 Permalink
Other than high prices and pretentiousness, can anyone tell me what the difference between a “food hall” and any other food court is?
YUL514 15:20 on 2019-08-14 Permalink
CE, I bet you complain about how bad the food is at regular food courts where ones choices are limited to terrible kiosks all operated by MTY Group. Stop complaining, if one is stuck at one of these areas I’m sure it will be much better than Tiki Ming or Thai Express. Yes, I know we have an abundance of great independent restos but give me this over MTY junk. Food costs have risen drastically the last few years so you get what you pay for and we are far from San Francisco cost of living.
YUL514 15:27 on 2019-08-14 Permalink
Speaking of food halls is this project on pause, seems to be due to the REM. Anyone know anything else?
Story from 2015.
https://montreal.eater.com/2015/7/8/8911629/impasto-stefano-faita-michele-forgione-denis-coderre
CE 15:43 on 2019-08-14 Permalink
Calling these places “food halls” just feels like buying into an industry marketing plan to remove negative connotations. Like calling fast food restaurants “quick service” restaurants or the push to rebrand Alberta bitumen as “ethical oil”. I’ve been to these places in other cities. They’re food courts. No amount of tiny organic salads or Thai-inspired tacos or liquid nitrogen ice cream is going to make them anything else.
Blork 15:56 on 2019-08-14 Permalink
@CE: “Food halls” are more expensive, but the main difference is that there is more of an emphasis on “made to order” cooking and plating. (And plating is important because AFAIK they use washable plates and cutlery, not disposable). Also, the menu options per kiosk generally aren’t locked in to some fast food franchise formulaic menu; as with a regular restaurant, there’s a lot more room to be flexible to market prices, chef’s whimsy, etc.
It’s basically a hybrid between a food court and a restaurant. The dining areas are generally shared/communal, like in a food court, but the food planning and preparation is more like a regular restaurant (i.e., not a franchise fast food “restaurant”).
Kate 18:49 on 2019-08-14 Permalink
According to Wikipedia, the expression is a British one, which tallies with my memory of Harrods’ food hall in the 1990s on a visit to London. It was not a term I’d heard previously.
And YUL514, please don’t order other commenters around. CE is not a complainer. He was asking a perfectly cromulent question.
DeWolf 12:39 on 2019-08-15 Permalink
I think Blork hit on the main difference between food courts and food halls – it’s the quality of food. Another major difference is that food halls are designed as places to linger, which is why they serve alcohol. You can have a quick meal or you can stay for hours sharing a bottle of wine with friends.
As Bill said, food halls are a global trend and as usual Montreal is late to the game. I’ve been to food halls where every vendor seems to be selling something gimmicky and overpriced. But I’ve also been to food halls (like the original Time Out Market in Lisbon) that offer some truly exceptional dishes. And regardless of the food itself, food halls usually offer an environment that is conducive to hanging out with a drink. I expect all of these places to become very popular with the 5 à 7 crowd.