McCord Stewart Museum serving up Montreal food history at temporary exhibit

Lesley Chesterman has memories in almost every display case at the McCord Stewart Museum’s exhibit On the Menu- Montreal: A Restaurant Story.

“I love this display because it’s Ruby Foo’s, a restaurant I never went to and heard my parents talk about ad nauseam,” she said.

Whether it’s from her parents, her own life, or the 20 years she spent critiquing restaurants for The Montreal Gazette, the exhibit is filled with nostalgia for Chesterman.

“I was thrilled to see a lot of places I’d eaten at and I had great memories, places like La Crêpe Bretonne that we went with my family, even something like Murray’s that a lot of Montrealers will know about,” she said about the temporary exhibit.

Chesterman approached the museum with the idea 10 years ago.

The self-proclaimed proud Montrealer says she wanted to highlight the city’s dining scene and real golden era of Montreal restaurants, spanning from the 1960s to now.

“I think it’s really important to look back at that first golden era, which was spectacular. And, you know, we look at a place like the Kon-Tiki and you look inside what the Kon-Tiki looked like. There’s nothing like that today,” she said.

There are matchbooks, signed plates from Leonardo DiCaprio and Celine Dion off the now-closed Buonanotte’s wall and over 170 menus to look at.

Chesterman even donated some menus from her personal collection, including one from her 30th birthday dinner in 1997.

“We can’t have the food here, for sure, but we can certainly learn a lot from the style of food that was around back then, the prices that were around back then, and how we got to where we are today by looking back,” she explained.

The exhibit explores the changing face of Montreal’s gastronomic scene from deli counters to fine dining. It reveals how part of the city’s identity has been shaped by Montrealer’s going out to eat.

“Everybody has been touched by restaurants, and you can be touched as much by Café Martin, or Les Caprices de Nicolas, as Bens, people went to Bens are very nostalgic, Schwartz’s. These are all things that we love about our city,” said Chesterman.

In addition to more than 100 restaurants profiled, the exhibit also highlights chefs like Normand Laprise that have left their mark on culinary history.

“This is a long-standing thing for us as Montrealers to be very proud of, and it’s important for young chefs to realize that they are where they are today thanks to the people who are here before,” Chesterman said.

The exhibit runs until October 18, 2026, no reservations required. Tickets are available at the door.