If I have to be honest, I really do not look forward to fall at all. I love summer and for me, fall only means that winter is not too far away. However, this coming fall is punctuated with a series of fabulous food focused festivals that will make the transition so much easier. Which ones will you attend?

FESTIVAL YUL EAT

Quai de l’horloge | Old Port of Montreal
September 3, 4 & 5, 2016

Festival YUL EAT is coming back to Old Montreal for a third edition this coming Labour Day weekend!

You can expect a weekend filled with food and wine tastings, a farmer’s market, culinary classes and workshops, dinners and brunches and competitions and challenges. The access to the main site is free and will give food lovers access to many purveyors, food trucks, music and a farmer’s market.

There’s also a slew of other delicious (paid) activities planned, including some ingenious collaborations between chefs who wouldn’t normally have the opportunity to work together. These cooks are combining their talents and creating unique dinners and brunches under specific themes such as English Breakfast, Locavore dinner and Family style Italian dinner. The menus have just been published and they look absolutely delectable!

Festival YUL EAT will also include culinary classes and workshops on all three days. Everything from bread making, beekeeping, the art of wine tasting, cocktail or preserve making, the intricacies of Italian, Spanish or Turkish cuisines and so many more classes are all part of the roster no matter what you’d like to perfect and learn more about. These classes are all given by top experts in their fields and promise to be both entertaining and informative.

Festivalgoers who purchase tickets to the YUL Experience will have access to a private zone where talented chefs and industry experts, winemakers and local artisans will be presiding over workshops and demos, food stands and wine and spirit tastings. Many industry experts such as chef and TV star Martin Juneau, pastry chef extraordinaire Patrice Demers, chefs Marc-André Jetté, Danny St-Pierre, oyster connoisseur Daniel Notkins and many more will be participants in this portion of the festival.

Don’t forget to reserve your spot for all brunches and dinners and culinary classes as well as the YUL EAT Experience on the YUL EAT website.

Entry is free and the site is open from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday and 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Monday.

Twitter: @FestivalYULEAT | Facebook: /lefestivalyuleat | Instagram: @FestivalYULEAT | #festivalyuleat

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OYSTERFEST

Ile Bonsecours | Old Montreal
September 11, 2016

The 8th annual Montreal Oysterfest is coming to Old Montreal’s Ile Bonsecours September 11th and promises to be bigger and better than ever. There will be oysters (of course!) but there will also be a ton of great restaurants participating by offering some of their best food. There will also be amateurs and championship shucking competitions (as always!), but there will also be cocktail competitions and a plating one among sone of the city’s best chefs. There will also be drinks, music, shopping and more! If you’ve ever been to Oysterfest, you know that it’s such a fun event and every year tops the previous one.

Buy your ticket now on the Oysterfest website. Doors open at 12 noon on Sunday September 11, 2016.

Twitter: @MtlOysterfest | Facebook: /mtloysterfest | Instagram: @MtlOysterfest | #mtloysterfest

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OMNIVORE WORLD TOUR FESTIVAL

Society of Arts and Technology [SAT]
September 16-19, 2016

The Omnivore World Tour Festival website takes over the Society of Arts and Technology [SAT] again this year. It’s been one of my favourite food events in Montreal since they started adding us on their tour list 5 years ago. The big difference this year is that the entrance to the demos (or masterclasses) is free! You must, however, register since seats are limited to 1000 spectators a day. I am a big fan of the masterclasses which include demos, conferences and talks by some of the best chefs and food purveyors from Montreal and around the world. They always inspire, amaze and surprise me. Also new this year is a special spotlight on “sources” or men and women who provide us with great produce and exercise a healthy and sustainable agriculture.

Visiting chefs will also partner up with local ones to create fabulous and unique dinners. Reserve early (as in, right away!) as seating is limited. If you’re in the partying mood, then Omnivorious by Badoit is where you’ll need to be. A dozen or so chefs take over the first floor of the SAT and prepare bites paired with live music and a list of natural wines. Get your groove on!

You can buy your tickets and reserve your seats on the Omnivore website.

Twitter: @OmnivoreWorld | Facebook: /omnivorefanpage | Instagram: @OmnivoreWorld

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MTL à TABLE

November 3-13, 2016

MTL à TABLE–essentially the Montreal Restaurant Week–will be back for its 5th edition to the delight of all of us foodies. The details are still under wraps but we do know that there will be 150 participating restaurants who will be offering specially priced table d’hôte menus for $21, $31 or $41. Just like last year, brunches will also be part of this edition of MTL à TABLE, as will a selection of gastronomic activities and contests. The list of participating restaurants will be revealed on October 4th so keep checking the MTL à TABLE website for more info.

Twitter: @mtlatable  | Instagram: @mtlatable | #mtlatable