Crescent Street (Rue Crescent), Montreal

Pretty much every visitor to Montréal has been to Rue Crescent, whether during the day for shopping or lunch or at night for the nightlife and bar scene. While the street's first block is stocked with jewelers and elegant boutiques in Victorian brownstones, the next two blocks offer a good selection of terraced bars, culinary delights and clubs of all styles, spilling over onto neighboring streets. One of the more striking atmospheric elements is a larger-than-life mural of Canadian singer/songwriter Leonard Cohen (think "Hallelujah") on the side of a tall building; otherwise, the party atmosphere that pervades after dark never quite fades, and it builds to crescendos as weekends approach, especially in warm weather. It has been like this for many many years, so just stroll along and see what you fall into.

The overall architecture seems more European than Montréal-ian and has a few notes of Old Italy mixed in with the Lebanese flavored foods, vintage sports cars (during the Grand Prix Festival) and other characters. It's hard to imagine that this was once a run-down slum slated for demolition.

Tip:
Boustan is the perfect place for a late night snack; alternatively, you could try Le Warehouse for a nice place with a creative selection of drinks that are also quite inexpensive.