The Bulletin: Getting Tattoos Over Coffee, Painting Windows, Quebec City Poutine, and Fifteen Festivals at Once [Issue #195]

Morning, Montreal.

These are exciting times indeed, and I am not talking about the weekend (though that’s exciting, too).

At The Main, we’re ramping up production on many fronts. Far from a floodgate suddenly opening, of course, but you may notice a daily trickle of new stories turn to a steady river in the coming weeks. As we look ahead and plot our course, we’re bringing new names aboard to bring their expertise and voices to our pages.

Montreal deserves to have itself represented fully and completely in its city magazine: More opinions, deeper explorations, and greater ambitions. This isn’t always easy to do when you’re a tight-knit, independent magazine, but it’s all being built out as I write this, and with a sense of purpose, too. We’re happy to have you along for the ride.

Which brings us to the part where we ask. Free subscribers get a few stories a month, which is enough to figure out whether we're any good. Paid subscribers get all of it, and more to the point, paid subscribers are the reason there's anything to read in the first place.

No advertiser decides which restaurant we like, no algorithm decides what's worth covering. It’s simply readers paying writers to cover the city they live in.

If you've been meaning to upgrade, it’s never been better to do so, now more than ever. Become a paid subscriber, one of our Insiders, today.

— JP Karwacki, Managing Editor

MUTEK Is Coming to Rewire Your Brain

IN PARTNERSHIP WITH MUTEK

MUTEK returns with six days of audiovisual spectacles as sound, art, and technology merge.

From August 25 to 30, MUTEK hosts immersive electronic music events, free outdoor installations, talks, and masterclasses, lighting up the city, pushing boundaries, and looking toward the future.

The Editors' Picks

The places our editors keep coming back to. Every one has earned an editorial badge.

If you think somewhere in Montreal deserves a closer look, we want to hear from you! Send an email to hello@themain.com. We read everything you send.

One Story to Read This Week

In 1954, Dominic “Dick” Potenza and Ann Collecchia opened their small food trailer, selling a mere dozen burgers a day. That was the start of Dic Ann’s, a fast food restaurant that continues to flip ultra-thin patties and toast flattened buns for its one-of-a-kind hamburger over seventy years later. Now, Potenza’s grandchildren, Delbina and Anthony, oversee multiple Dic Ann’s franchises across the island.

This week’s read is at once a retrospective and a glimpse into the family business at present, from the perspective of Delbina and Anthony. A love story told in special sauce, community culture, and a home-grown institution that persists to this day.

Plaza St-Hubert is as vibrant as ever

IN PARTNERSHIP WITH Plaza St-Hubert

Plaza St-Hubert has been feeding and entertaining Montrealers for decades, bringing together vendors from every corner of the world. As the Société de développement commercial turns 45 this year, it’s worth celebrating the richness and diversity those storefronts have brought to the city over the years.

From August 20 to 23, St-Hubert Street goes pedestrian with a Latin theme for Back-to-School at the Plaza. Between stops at outdoor shops and food stalls, you're invited to dance lessons, workshops, shows, and concerts all weekend long.

Thursday

🎉 Imagine Monkland runs today through Sunday, turning Monkland Avenue into a pedestrian street with vendors, music, and live shows.

👗 M.A.D. Festival, a celebration of fashion, art, and entertainment, kicks off today and runs for four days in Quartier des spectacles.

🎨 Repentigny turns into a festival ground for digital and visual arts with Rose Gazon.

🏐 Watch some of the best volleyball teams compete at the Montréal Beach Pro Tour at Parc Jean-Drapeau.

✨ Enjoy electronic music shows, circus performances, dancers, and more at Illusion Festival at Jardins Gamelin.

🎵 Festival Artefact, an intimate 3-day music show in Vaudreuil, will be holding its last edition this year with performances by Gab Bouchard, Marie-Annick Lépine, and more.

🏈 The Montreal Alouettes play the Ottawa Redblacks at Molson Stadium.

Friday

🎶 The Faubourg neighbourhood will be home to Festival des Faubourgs: live music performances, visual arts, readings, and more.

🛹 Montréal Cup, an inline and quad skating competition on Ontario Street East, starts today and runs all weekend.

🚲 Vans Warped Tour is back again and is making its Montreal stop at Parc Jean-Drapeau. Enjoy two days of music plus a playground for skateboarding and BMX bikes.

🎭 The 15th edition of Festival Marionnettes Plein la rue takes place this weekend on Wellington Street, with free shows and workshops on puppeteering.

💿 douceliigne x kentsuji pop-up with tattoos and vinyl at Café 180g. Get a new piece while listening to hip-hop and enjoying a coffee, beer, or snack.

Saturday

🖼️ DEBUT, an exhibit by Montreal-based quilter and textile artist Jordan St. James, will be showcased at Point de Repère until September 15.

🏞️ Marché des Possibles is happening at Mario Park for a weekend of music, drinks, workshops, dancing, art, and more.

💄 Salon and beauty brand Pinklablonde is celebrating 5 years with a pop-up at Café BRUT: complimentary drink with any purchase of merchandise from their collection.

📷 Bring your cameras and head to métro LaSalle for a Verdun Photowalk, followed by a swim and beer in the sun. Tickets are available here.

⚽ CF Montreal play their next home match against LA Galaxy at Stade Saputo.

Sunday

🍷 La Dérive, SUKO Magazine, and Community Service Magazine are collaborating for the first Salon d’Été, an evening centred around discussing Montreal’s creative community.

🌳 Ferias is hosting a block party at Mario Park with live music, drinks from Wills and Zamalek, merch, and a vinyl sale.

💡 Check out Festilumi at Marché Central, a light show with 13 uniquely themed worlds to discover.

🪩 La Rama and Système weekly Sunday Session features sets by GrandHuit and Aquamarina. Entry is free until 10 p.m.

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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.

Nevski is your new spot for jazz and orange wine, every Thursday from 5 to 9 p.m.

Cafe Cu Lắc has a new offer: buy five Bánh Mìs and get the sixth one free.

Thé Jinjin is in soft opening, serving specialty teas and snacks from Restaurant L’Honnête Kid.

Ashton, Quebec’s iconic poutine chain, has opened its first location in Montreal in the Complexe Desjardins food court.

Sans Recette, a new restaurant in Rosemont, is currently in soft opening.

Bobby McGee, a new country, blues, and rock-themed resto bar in the Old Port, will be in soft opening starting on August 20 at 6 p.m.

The Asian Night Market will be at Royalmount from August 20 to 23, highlighting Asian culture and cuisine through over 120 dishes.

First Fridays is back with a Fiesta Latina edition, a celebration of Latin American food with over 40 vendors.

Pierogi Lili is turning 2 and celebrating with an event on August 22, serving new special flavours.

The St-Anne Garlic Festival is happening on August 22 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., an opportunity to discover a variety of products made from different types of garlic.

Café Kuya hosts another Kamayan night on August 22. Two dinner service times are available at $65 per person. Reservations are open.

Artist Lucas Beaufort pops up to paint windows live at six restaurants over six days, August 18-23, from 6 to 8 p.m. A complimentary drink is provided at each spot.

Annette bar à vin is shucking corn on August 23 at 3 p.m. Get 2 corn cobs and one drink for $15.

Celebrate the launch of WALDO, a new app built for hospitality, at Wills. Food by Menu Extra and cocktails by Bar Cloakroom on August 23 from 3 to 8 p.m.

Discover a three-course meal inspired by the flavours of the Côte d’Azur at Restaurant Ile de France. Service starts at $55 per person until September 8.

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

Long before it was a metro sign relic at Berri-UQAM, “Man and His World” started as a city planner’s wish to put person before invention, and somehow it lived on for 17 summers after the fair itself closed. Read more.

A former Mile-Ex textile factory holds 100 vintage Expo 67 streetlamp globes, each one sun-bleached into a different patina. This is one designer’s plan to make trash functional. Read more.

Montreal’s second airport finally opened, and it works exactly as it should. So why does it feel like it could be anywhere? Read more.

Summertime chaos slows to a steady hum as a new month appears on the horizon. In September, Montreal is concentrated with festivals, literary events, block parties, street food, and more country culture than you’d expect. Read more.

Boots, dust, and five editions in, we take a look back at two days of the country-loving crowd that stomped the grounds of Parc Jean-Drapeau last weekend. See the photos.

So many of Montreal’s public squares sit empty—what can we do about it? From Bryant Park to the Jardin du Luxembourg, to Montreal’s Phillips Square, there’s a clear recipe for success. Read more.

At Montreal’s Notre-Dame Basilica, conservators work to revive a century-old mural. Repairs, specialized expertise, and $100 million. This is what it takes to preserve a famous church and vital historical landmark. Watch here.

Sixty years since Jean Drapeau cut the ribbon, the STM is throwing a two-month party, with a Piknic Électronik set inside a train car among the highlights. Read more.

After the spread of COVID turned everyday life upside down, a Polytechnique Montréal lab is growing protein in a bubbling orange solution, examining antibodies, and preparing the country to fight future pandemics. Read more.

The SVPM is using AI license plate-reading cameras, raising concerns about privacy rights, surveillance, and the ethics of this technology. What information can the police glean from these cameras? Read more.

Montreal’s mayor wants Quebec to resurrect the $94 million East End transit project it buried in 2022, and put CDPQ Infra back in the driver’s seat. What are the limitations and what is the solution? Read more.

Pétanque, movie nights, negotiating “park time” with your kids—La Presse spent the summer visiting the ruelles vertes that turned Montreal’s alleys into some of its most beloved public spaces. 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 / Whitney Domingo, Community Manager / Anahi Pellathy, Producer / AnnaClare Sung, Junior Staff Writer / Saskia Wodarczak, Editorial Operations Coordinator / Kristina Stamkopoulos, Editorial Intern