Living in Canada: Top Restaurants to Try This Spring

Cross border moving to Canada may leave you pining for the restaurants of your old neighborhood, but rest assured, there are wonderful restaurants waiting for you up north. Whether in Ontario, Victoria, Edmonton, or Montreal, you will be able to find a lovely place to sit and have highly recommended faire.

The Black Cat Cafe in Ottawa, Ontario

This is a small place with seats for only 30. The owner is the sommelier and can pair your meal with the perfect wine. Expect jazz music, and fresh, surprising ingredients. When was the last time you had lobster pudding served with chorizo sausage? Take a date and enjoy the hip atmosphere.

Sotto Sotto in Toronto, Ontario

Meaning “Hush, Hush” in Italian, you can guess the mood of this restaurant: romance. The Italian cuisine is accompanied by the choice of over 5,000 bottles of wine. This menu is comforting and classic, and comes with a feeling of friendship.

Corso 32 in Edmonton

Corso 32 was the address of the chef and owner’s Campania childhood home. As the restaurant’s name harkens to the past, the food forges ahead to the future of Italian. The chef has been said to be a show-off, but who cares when the food is this good.

Ulla in Victoria

Named after the mother of the chef, Ulla is a young, urban hot-spot located in Chinatown. The menu is mostly organic, and ushers in the new generation of connoisseurs. The atmosphere is bright, with quirky decor, and a place for anyone. Try their version of the chickpea snack; pickled, deep fried and salted.

Van Horne in Montreal

Van Horne isn’t shy with its totem pole (nicknamed Bill) in the dining room and Lichtenstein silkscreened paper plates on the walls. The food tends to come by color, with the sense of style similar to the decor. With only four main courses, your decision will be easy, and your trip will have been worth it.

Cross border moving may bring you in close proximity to one of these gems. If so, take time to stop in and see what all the buzz is about.

(Photo attributed to Flickr member @stuart_spivack via the creative common license)

Moving to Canada: Life in Montreal

If you are considering cross border moving to Canada, Montreal is a great city to call home.

Montreal is located on an island on the St. Lawrence Seaway in Eastern Canada in the Province of Quebec. Only Paris has more French-speaking residents than Montreal, with 69% of its three million people speaking French as a first language. Residents are often bilingual.

The city was originally called “City of Mary,” but now is named for the large hill in the center of the city, called Mont-Royal. Called “The Mountain” by the locals, it is surrounded by one of Montreal’s largest green spaces. Montreal is divided into 19 large boroughs, which are further subdivided into smaller neighborhoods.

The Laurentian Mountains are located 45 minutes to the north, and are home to ski resorts, golf courses, lakes and summer and winter cottages. The Eastern Townships also boast these amenities. Montreal has four distinct seasons, with a long winter to enjoy the mountain activities.

Only 40 minutes to the south is the United States, with Boston and New York a six-hour drive away.

Montreal’s economy is the second largest in Canada, and is an important center of commerce, finance, industry, technology, culture, and world affairs – plus, it’s headquarters of the Montreal Exchange.

Montreal has a strong history of producing jazz and rock music, as well as artists, actors, musicians, and dancers.

Downtown is alive with culture and social events, including many festivals. The largest festival in the city is the Just for Laughs comedy festival, which is the largest of its type in the world.

You will certainly meet sports fans in Montreal. Hockey is important to Montreal residents, their team being the Montreal Canadiens. This team was one of the six original National Hockey League teams.

Consider cross border moving to Montreal. You will find it a hospitable and active place to reside.

Photo provided by Flickr user @maha-online under the creative common license.