Where to eat in Montreal: local dishes, markets and neighborhoods

Match the meal to the dish rather than the neighbourhood. Smoked meat is a lunch dish, bagels are a morning errand, poutine is late-night food, and the long French dinners are for evenings when you have booked ahead.

Smoked meat is the city's defining plate: brisket cured, smoked and steamed, piled on rye with mustard. Order it fatty, medium or lean; medium is the usual middle ground. The classic delis sit on and around Saint-Laurent and in the Plateau, and they are busiest at lunch, which is also when the meat is freshest. Expect a queue at peak weekend hours.

Montreal bagels are smaller, denser and sweeter than the New York kind: honey-water boiled, then baked in a wood-fired oven. They are best within an hour of coming out, so buy a few and eat them warm rather than carrying them around all day. Two long-standing bakeries in Mile End and on the Plateau are the reference points; both sell 24 hours.

Poutine is fries, cheese curds and gravy. The curds should squeak and the gravy should be hot enough to soften them slightly. It is everywhere, from diners to dedicated shops, and it is at its best after a late night. Vegetarian versions exist but the standard gravy is meat-based, so ask.

Beyond those three, look for tourtière (spiced meat pie, more common in winter), poutine's cousins in casse-croûte menus, and maple taffy in spring. Montreal's French roots show in bistro cooking, and the city's immigrant kitchens — Portuguese, Italian, Haitian, Vietnamese, North African — are as much a part of eating here as the Quebec classics.

For a market day, Jean-Talon in Little Italy and Atwater in Saint-Henri both have produce, cheese, bakeries and casual counters. Go hungry, buy bread and cheese, and eat standing up. Chinatown near downtown is compact and good for a quick, cheap lunch.

Montreal is cheaper than Toronto or Vancouver for eating out, and the gap is widest at the casual end. Taxes are added at the till and a tip is expected on the pre-tax total in sit-down places. Counter service and markets usually have a tip prompt on the card machine, but a few dollars is enough.

Alcohol in restaurants is where bills climb. Quebec allows bring-your-own-wine at many licensed restaurants, with a modest corkage fee, which can cut a dinner bill sharply. Check the sign in the window or ask when booking.

Greet staff with 'bonjour' before switching to English. It is a small courtesy that changes the tone of the interaction, and most staff will answer in English without hesitation.

Book dinner for Friday and Saturday a few days ahead, especially in the Plateau and Mile End. Lunch at the smoked meat delis needs no booking but does need patience at weekends.

The metro is the fastest way between food neighbourhoods; most of the places above are within a few minutes' walk of a station. Check the last train time if you are eating late.