Plaza Côte-des-Neiges has never really been just a mall. Since opening in the 1970s, it's functioned as the living room of one of Montreal's most culturally dense neighbourhoods — a place where teenagers kill time after school, elders claim corners without needing an occasion, and errands blur into socializing. The burgundy swivel chairs are still there. Chin Chow's neon sign still glows. Through more than a decade of half-finished renovations, the Plaza's character has held. Maison Bagel anchors one end, its red sign and school-trip photos unchanged since owner Babak Assadollahi took over in 1994 — training for months with the previous owners before they handed over the keys. His bagels, he'll tell you, have traveled more than he has.

For first- and second-generation kids who grew up in Côte-des-Neiges, the Plaza holds the first memories: the wishing fountain, the cinema, the first taste of poutine.