The Bulletin: Smut! Air Hockey! Tacos! Corgis! Political Theatre! [Issue #144]

The Bulletin is a collection of what's happened, what’s happening, and what’s to come in and around Montreal.

The Main

August 28, 2025- Read time: 8 min

Good times: A scene from the 30th anniversary of the Under Pressure Festival, August 9 & 10, 2025. | Photograph: Eva Blue / @evablue

Seems like this week's theme is choreography.

There's a careful dance you have to do to get through this entire weekend: Corgi pawrades on Saint-Laurent, David Lynch-inspired smut at Cinéma L’Amour, matcha-powered pilates in a parking lot, and one-sided air hockey competitions for reasons no one’s explained.

You can also party in the woods with Patrick Watson, a rooftop day party with onigiri and cocktails, $8-or-less street food, and eating enough tacos to win a trophy.

Meanwhile, the news cycle’s doing its own kind of choreography: posthumous roadwork promises, cultural revival proposals, permanent pedestrian zones, housing projects, light canopies—all magically surfacing right on cue for election season.

Funny how motivation kicks in when there’s a vote on the line—you can watch a recent debate between candidates here, by the way.

Time to tango. 💃 🌹

It's that time of the year again:

Le Burger Week returns from September 1 to 7, 2025, transforming restaurants coast-to-coast into laboratories for everything from never-before-seen creations to elevated classics.

Vote for your favourites, crown Montreal's Top 5, and help raise funds for Food Banks Canada—every burger sold donates $1 to meals across the country.

Brought to you from the minds behind La Poutine Week and La Pizza Week, Parkour, an umbrella brand building a cultural movement around food, flavour, and discovery.

📅 Don't forget: September 1 to 7, 2025
🍔 See the participating restaurants + Vote for your favourites here.

Activities, parties, points of interest, art exhibitions, you name it: These are the weekend events you don't want to miss.

Thursday

💥 JOAT International Street Dance Festival gathers artists from around the globe for a week of battles, cyphers, parties, workshops, exhibitions, and performances celebrating street dance culture in full force.

🎥 Montreal Series Festival launches with a glamorous red carpet opening night of exclusive screenings and a private cocktail for the first wave of festivalgoers.

🌲 At Live at Lost River, Patrick Watson curates an intimate series of family-friendly forest concerts, guiding audiences on a magical walk through the woods with guest musicians each night.

🎱 BERTA-RANG takes over North Star Pinball Bar with cowboy DJs hosting Montreal’s only one-sided air hockey competition for anyone bold enough to prove their skills.

🚨 Dive into Montreal’s past with an expert-led walking tour of the city’s Red Light District tracing a century of vice, underground economies, and cultural transformation.

📸 The World Press Photo Montreal Exhibition returns to Bonsecours Market with award-winning images from 3,778 photographers across 141 countries.

Friday

🎉 Boulevard Saint-Laurent transforms celebrates BLVD Festival with a weekend of free activities, from giant games and skate demos to collective art and grill-outs.

💗 Amour.irl kicks off the season with an all-night PWYC dance party featuring a stacked local DJ lineup and secret warehouse vibes.

🍺 L’Amour et la Mousse turns Station Hochelaga into a summer beergarden with craft brews, street food, comedy, live music, markets, and DJ sets.

🐍 C.R.E.A.M. returns after a year-long hiatus with a David Lynch-themed night of live music, DJs, analog art, and the launch of the New York Review of Smut at Cinéma L’Amour.

🕺 Urcisse Records launches Berlin Connection at Bar Datcha with a high-energy improvised live set by Thor Rixon, joined by Montreal DJ Queenie Jr.

🎬 Canettes de Ruelle kicks off its festivities with an outdoor screening of animated films in the alleyway between between Laurier Ave and St-Joseph Blvd.

Saturday

🐶 The city’s biggest corgi celebration returns with a tail-wagging gathering as part of BLVD Festival—an interstellar-themed Pawrade with over 200 pups on parade.

🍵 Mamatcha Club brings matcha, pilates, and DJ beats together for a sun-soaked morning outside Roze Pilates with lattes, demos, and good vibes.

🪩 Below Breakglass returns with a day-to-night takeover of three floors, mixing live jazz, vinyl-only Voyage Funktastique sets, immersive installations, backyard BBQ, vintage vendors, and flash tattoos.

☕ Together Club’s Slow Sunday at Café Oui Mais Non offers a cozy afternoon of relaxed conversations, new connections, and chill vibes with just 30 spots available.

Sunday

🌞 BLISS Open Air transforms Jardin de la Pépinière into a 10-hour daytime dance sanctuary with Montreal DJs, murals, and community energy.

☁️ Sora 45 hosts Skyline Social, a breezy rooftop day party with cocktails, onigiri, matcha, and DJ sets overlooking the city.

An $8-or-less food festival? Yes please.

Fringale and its $8-or-less specialties are back, baby! | Photograph: Rachel Cheng / @rachelhollycheng

Saint-Léonard becomes Montreal's most delicious secret this weekend. Twenty restaurants along Jean-Talon Est are serving exclusive $8 dishes from a neighbourhood where 70% of families trace roots to Algeria, Haiti, Morocco, Vietnam, and beyond.

Pistachio sfogliatella meets Vietnamese bánh bột chiên. Turkish wraps sit next to Haitian griot plates. This isn't fusion—it's how Saint-Léonard actually eats.

Grab a stamp card, fill six spots, win a Nintendo Switch 2. But the real prize? Corner spots where owners know everyone's name.

📅 August 28-30 | Everything $8 or less | Read the full story.

Cu Lắc dishes out Viet and Filipino street food alongside karaoke at Buboy Chinatown on August 30 and 31—see more below. | Photograph by Marie Rousseau / @marieourse

WHAT TO EAT & DRINK IN AND AROUND MONTREAL

Scope the latest restaurant openings, recommendations on where to eat, plus new menus, old classics, and everything in between.

Fringale Festival returns to Jean-Talon Est from August 28-30, with twenty restaurants serving $8-or-less specialties and surprises across its second edition.

The inaugural Royalmount Asian Night Market on August 28-31 brings four days of street food, local creators, live performances, and immersive art in a new cultural space, plus a 300-lb bluefin tackled by Chef Antonio Park.

Avenue Mont-Royal hosts free veggie and plant giveaways on August 28 and 29, sourced from the Jardin Nourricier.

Ramen Ramen de Rue launches its first edition from August 28-31 at Hangar 1825, celebrating Japanese street food with ramen, karaage, gyoza, desserts, and more.

The Together Club hosts its first Food Friends dinner on August 29 at Pavillon Buvette, gathering strangers over three courses and guided conversations on human connection.

Taco Fest lights up Quai de l’Horloge from August 30-September 1 with 125+ tacos, 30+ tequilas, live mariachi, salsa dancing, and a trophy for the city’s best taco.

Herman Brasserie throws a corn roast and International Poches Tournament on August 30, pairing buttery cobs and steamé hot dogs with friendly competition and beer.

A limited edition Hellmans x Chef Vision Gourmande burger is now available at Patati Patata as part of Hellmann’s #BehindEveryBurger campaign.

Mauve Vin & Fleurs hosts Petals & Pours on August 30, blending a creative floral workshop with natural wine tasting from 2 to 4 pm.

Cu Lắc dishes out Viet and Filipino street food alongside karaoke at Buboy Chinatown on August 30 and 31, serving Lechon sisig bánh mì, herby tamarind-y lumpia, and pandan iced tea all for $20.

CastelFranco hosts a summer tomato sandwich celebration in Parc du Portugal on August 31—bring your favourite snack for the communal party mix and taste the sun-ripe tomatoes in full force.

Edicola Bar, a day to night café/wine bar, opens in Ville-Marie, serving Italian coffee and breakfast classics in the morning and wine, cocktails, and bites in the evening.

Here, you'll find a weekly round-up of the latest local news, from entertainment to current affairs and more.

Viral stoner-chef Laurent Dagenais' debut restaurant channels French classics, team spirit, and South Shore swagger into a space that’s chic, chill, and already packed. Read more.

Maximalist, bilingual, and built on joy—this Mile End newcomer serves glittery cocktails, romance novels, and a whole lot of heart. Read more.

Montreal’s flirtation with postwar Tiki culture peaked with Kon Tiki—a volcano cocktail palace inside a Peel Street hotel that doubled as a kitsch-laden escape to Hollywood’s idea of the South Pacific. Read more.

A Mile End grocer closes after 26 years, unable to compete with two new Maxi stores opening nearby. Another local staple gone. Read more.

Montreal’s STM is again forcing unhoused people out of metro stations, citing safety. Advocates say it’s punitive—and leaves them nowhere to go. Read more.

The expansion of the Port of Montreal may be among Canada’s first fast-tracked megaprojects under new legislation aimed at boosting trade with Europe. Read more.

Montreal is turning a stretch of Ste-Catherine East into a permanent pedestrian zone—complete with trees, seating, and a year-round light canopy. Construction starts 2026. Read more.

At 85, Montreal-North barber Giacomo Della Donne is still going strong after 65 years behind the chair—serving three generations with speed, warmth, and a steady blade. Read more.

Surprise surprise? Over a quarter of Montreal’s roads are in poor shape, with some boroughs underspending on basic pothole fixes, says the auditor general. Read more.

Projet Montréal now says it won’t close Camillien-Houde to cars if re-elected, citing accessibility and public concerns—drawing both praise and political heat. Read more.

After 35 years, Les Simpsons is off the air in Quebec as rights weren’t renewed. Fans call it a cultural loss—and over 22,000 want it back. Read more.

Montreal will build 376 affordable units in Pointe-Saint-Charles starting 2026, with rents below market rate and ground-floor community space. Read more.

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And that wraps yet another weekly bulletin. We’ll be back with more curiosities, local stories, and events to discover next week.

If ever you catch something we should know, don't hesitate to reach out to us on Instagram.

👋 Masthead: Philip Tabah, Founder & Head of Creative / Daniel Bromberg, Co-Founder & Head of Operations / Jean-Philippe Lauzon, Co-Founder & Head of Tech / JP Karwacki, Managing Editor / Amber Spector, Social Media Manager / Anahi Pellathy, Editorial Intern