The Bulletin: A Holiday Heist, Full Plates, and a Surprisingly Busy Weekend [Issue #161]

Now, as per usual, there's way more happening this weekend than you probably expect (plus some NYE party ideas for next weekend), so let's get into it.

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

Thursday

🎭 Spend Christmas night laughing at Mile End Improv—a hilarious escape for anyone bored, celebrating differently, or just ready to trade ham and Elf for live comedy.

🧶 La Maison Tricotée invites you to come knit, crochet, or embroider in good company while enjoying waffles and hot chocolate.

Friday

👑 The acclaimed family spectacle The Little Prince finally arrives in Quebec, bringing Saint-Exupéry’s timeless tale to life through a magical and immersive universe.

🌊 Josèfa Ntjam: swell of spæc(i)es invites visitors into an immersive, cosmic-aquatic world where mythology, technology, and speculative futures collide, blending film, sound, sculpture, and AI-generated narratives into a new creation myth.

✨ Step into a glittering Greek fantasy at Espace St-Denis, where an immersive dinner-theatre celebration reimagines the music of ABBA through mythology, disco energy, and a sky-blue, disco-ball-soaked spectacle.

🖤 Slip into all-black and lose yourself to Berlin-style techno at Cabaret Berlin, where DJs Davidé, Mushin, and EX030 channel late-night Berghain energy for a no-photos, bodies-only Boxing Day dancefloor.

Saturday

🔥 Close out the year at a Detty December–style dancefloor takeover by Afrotonik at Société des arts technologiques, bringing the heat of Lagos, Accra, and Joburg to Montreal with a high-energy celebration of Afro-centric sound, culture, and community.

🚀 Experience the full Star Wars saga on the big screen this holiday season, as Episodes I–VI begin playing daily at Cinéma du Musée.

🪩 Dance through decades at VV Taverna, where feel-good hits from the ’80s, ’90s, and 2000s keep the disco ball spinning and the dancefloor packed well into the night.

🎸 Catch Montréal blues-rock outfit The Blues Syndrome live at the legendary The Wheel Club, delivering a high-energy mix of blues, rock, and R&B in one of the city’s most storied live-music rooms.

🤘 Turn it up at a Motörhead tribute night at Piranha Bar to mark 50 years of rock ’n’ roll with a loud, fast, and unapologetic homage to Motörhead and its late frontman Lemmy Kilmister.

🏒 Cheer on the hometown Montréal Victoire as they face Toronto at the iconic Bell Centre, promising a high-energy showdown and an electric crowd atmosphere.

Sunday 

🍿 Enjoy movie night at Sans-Taverne—bring your favourite board game, family, and friends.

🍲📚 Ring out the year at a cozy, communal potluck at Phoenix Books, where literature-inspired bites, shared stories, and good company come together to celebrate community—and launch a new Foodie Book Club.

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.

Restaurants open on December 25: Christmas Day in Montreal - The Main

Skip the kitchen this year. A short list of Montreal restaurants open on December 25, from Indian and Chinese spots to elegant hotel dining.

The MainThe Main

New’s Years Eve in Montreal 2025: Parties, dinners, and more

Parties and dinners for New Year’s Eve in Montreal, perfect for bidding 2025 adieu and welcoming 2026 with fireworks, bubbles, dancing, and more.

The MainThe Main

Messorem Bracitorium clears out the cellar with Le Grand Ménage 2025 from Dec 26 to 28—a rare chance to snag limited bottles from previous releases for on-site drinking or takeaway.

It’s the final weekend to toast the season at Miracle Montréal, the Christmas-themed pop-up known for its festive décor and playful, holiday-inspired cocktails. Runs until Dec 27.

The same goes for Secrets, another festive cocktail bar (also in Old Montreal) which will only be closed on Dec 25 and Jan 1.

There's also La Taverne de Noël, which will be serving up its own festivities from its Christmas-themed bar until Jan 11.

Celebrate the season with an Italian tradition at Gia's from Dec 27-30, opening exceptionally to bring the Feast of the Seven Fishes to life with a special à la carte menu featuring the finest seafood from Quebec and the Maritimes.

Oorja welcomes 2026 with a New Year’s Eve celebration that pairs a buffet dinner and welcome cocktail with late-night energy and a live DJ. Running from 8 p.m. onward.

Bruce marks New Year’s Eve with a Hogmanay-style celebration on Dec. 31, inviting guests to gather around a special tasting menu served family-style.

Marion Tavern welcomes 2026 on Dec. 31 with a late-night New Year’s Eve party built for the dancefloor.

For one night only on Dec. 31, an intimate omakase-style dinner takes over Motto, built around a refined multi-course menu thoughtfully paired with sake.

Nora Gray rings in New Year’s Eve with a tasting menu by chef Dmetro Sinclair, paired with wines selected by James McDonough.

At Tuck Shop, New Year’s Eve leans rustic and resolute with a “no resolutions” réveillon built around a five-course table d’hôte on Dec 31.

The final day of 2025 gets a warm send-off at Mitch Deli, where the team is marking New Year’s Eve with generous plates, good bottles, and a relaxed, convivial mood. Split across two evening services.

A late-night reset takes shape at Baby Far West on Dec. 31, where DJs Jojo Flores and Soulswork Studio soundtrack the countdown from 8 p.m. onward. Champagne-forward specials and a club-ready energy frame the night as a clean break—and a fresh start—into the new year.

Bar Minou opens exceptionally on Dec 31 to ring in the New Year with special bottle pours, an original menu, and a celebratory atmosphere.

Velvet curtains, burlesque flair, and late-night revelry set the tone at L’idéal on New Year’s Eve, as the venue leans fully into a Moulin Rouge–inspired blowout.

Sae Low kicks off 2026 with a special walk-in brunch takeover by Minh Phat from Jan. 1–3 and Jan. 6–10, offering a rare chance to taste his cooking in a casual daytime setting.

Here, you'll find a weekly round-up of our stories from the past week, plus the latest local news.

Hana reframes Korean barbecue as white-tablecloth steakhouse dining, with Hanhak Kim and David McMillan pairing dry-aged prime beef, tableside Japanese grills, and a nine-course omakase in a meticulously designed Old Montreal room. Read more.

After running for city council, Sergio Da Silva reflects on campaigning for Montreal’s nightlife community—and colliding head-on with landlords, Airbnb politics, and NIMBYism—arguing that real harm comes not from anger, but from policies that hollow out culture, housing, and public space. Read more.

A year-end roundup argues that 2025’s so-called “gaffes” felt less like innocent slip-ups and more like open displays of cruelty, from political scandals and media implosions to reality TV misfires. Read more.

A group dressed as Santa and elves staged a Robin Hood–style grocery store raid in Montreal, making off with $3,000 worth of food later redistributed to community fridges. Read more.

Toula Drimonis argues Quebec’s streaming rules misread digital reality, insisting young Quebecers don’t need bureaucrats to help them find French content—and that legislating platforms like Netflix risks resentment more than cultural renewal. Read more.

Four Montreal chefs reflect on how cooking carries memory, kindness, and care—from century-old family recipes to leftover congee—revealing food as a deeply emotional language that connects people across cultures and generations. Read more.

Montreal narrowly avoided an expressway through Old Montreal, a 300-metre tower on Mount Royal, and the erasure of Milton-Parc thanks to early urban-heritage battles. Read more.

Crave’s breakout hockey romance Heated Rivalry has triggered massive Spotify streaming spikes for Canadian artists like Wolf Parade and Feist, with Francophone acts from Quebec seeing especially dramatic global gains after key song placements. Read more.

Quebec dishes like poutine, tourtière, and ragoût only became “traditional” in recent decades, according to research tracing how everyday foods were gradually reframed through restaurants, tourism, and cultural discourse into symbols of Québécois identity. Read more.

Montreal’s mid-century transformation from a permissive nightlife capital to a tightly regulated city shows how policing the night fueled massive police budget growth. Read more.

Arguing that a dull municipal election reflects a deeper civic drift, Taylor C. Noakes warns Montreal risks becoming a city without purpose—one that manages problems instead of imagining futures, and trades vision for banality. Read more.

Air Canada launched its first-ever nonstop Montreal–Santiago route this winter, creating a twice-weekly direct link that connects one of Canada’s largest Chilean communities. Hint: That's Montreal. Read more.

A tongue-in-cheek inventory skewers the long list of things millennials have supposedly “killed”—from diamonds and mayonnaise to Jean Charest—mixing cultural critique, generational self-mockery, and deliberate bad faith into a satire of media panic. Read more.

Twenty years into their career, the Jonas Brothers marked their anniversary at Montreal’s Bell Centre with a hit-stacked, nostalgia-heavy arena show that doubled as a mid-2000s pop time capsule. 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 / Samuel Vadnais, Head of Partnerships / Anahi Pellathy, Editorial & Production Coordinator / Kaitlyn DiBartolo, Editorial Intern / Jeremy Cox, Editorial Intern / AnnaClare Sung, Editorial Intern