La Banquise, originally a small ice-cream shop, first opened its doors in May 1968. In fall of the same year, its founder, local fireman Pierre Barsalou, decided to transform the enterprise into a 24-hour snack bar. At the time it specialized in exceptionally good hot-dogs and great fries. Poutine first appeared on the menu at the start of the 80s and originally just two varieties were offered, classic and Italian. However, in response to repeated requests from very satisfied customers, the restaurant’s poutine varieties quickly multiplied. Today we offer no less than 25 different types of poutine. Today, La Banquise remains a family business. Mr. Barsalou’s youngest daughter Annie took over in the 1990s along with her partner Marc Latendresse. Together, they maintain both the tradition of quality and the excellent reputation of the La Banquise Restaurant. In summer 2006, La Banquise underwent major renovations and a much larger dining area was made available. 40 years on, La Banquise is now much more than a simple snack bar or poutine joint. Today it is also a warm, friendly venue where customers can enjoy micro-brewery beers, a complete menu du jour and excellent breakfasts. So here’s to you, our loyal customers, the night owls, the groups of friends, the workers, students, families and more, because all of you have contributed to shaping and enriching the success story that is La Banquise today. Many, many thanks.
La Banquise is a legendary Montreal poutine spot known for enormous bowls piled high with crispy fries, squeaky cheese curds, and rich gravy, with a wide variety of toppings from classic to bold. The atmosphere is lively and friendly, service is fast, and staff work hard to accommodate guests even when the place is busy, with vegetarian, vegan, and meat options widely praised. Although crowds and noise are common and the space can feel tight, the generous portions and flavorful poutines make the wait worthwhile, and takeout or enjoying a meal in the park add to the appeal, solidifying La Banquise as a go to for poutine lovers.
I ordered the same meal at both locations. The primary one on Rachel & the ghost kitchen one on Saint-Denis & the difference is that if you go & order in person at the location on Rachel (the famous one) it's less expensive but you get less, if you order via app for take-out it's more expensive but you get slightly more, the differences are in the photo. I ordered the Fred Caillou & came to $21 at restaurant tax-incl & around $25 at ghost kitchen (only pickup). The ghost kitchen is almost invisible if you're driving but it's a small entryway that snakes down into a kitchen but it's there. When I went I thought it was a mistake & another drive also thought same so we both drove to Rachel & told the guy but turns out it's there just very hard to find since signs are barely visible if you're driving. Both taste the same, but guess they don't want too many people waiting around so they setup a ghost kitchen to deter people from going to Rachel. Too busy is a good problem! Great food the quality of the meat, cheese & sauce is great much better than average even at late night which is rare. Bon appetite! (ps the staff working the graveyard shift was very cool, perfectly bilingual & patiently heard our issue with ghost kitchen. all good).
Beaucoup de monde donc il faut prévoir l'attente (pour nous 20 min avant d'avoir une table & encore 30 min avant d'être servi) !
Un lieu très réputé mais la qualité des ingrédients n'était pas à la hauteur de mes attentes.. nous avons pris une poutine régulière & une poutine végane.
La poutine régulière avec poivrons verts était correct mais pas exceptionnelle pour le prix. Quant à la poutine végane, dommage d'avoir un fromage râpé qui fond & ne respecte pas l'authenticité de la texture du fromage en grains ! Les frites étaient correctes mais vites molles avec le trop plein de sauce…J'aurais au moins aimé du fromage vegan en dés qui aurait moins fondu.. dommage que la seule option végane ne comporte pas de légumes ou autre supplément pour améliorer le plat.. sans parler du prix qui était plus élevé que des poutines comportant de la viande
L'ambiance est correcte & sympathique notamment en terrasse quand il fait beau !
Mar 7, 2026
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Go in person. The take out is shit since they transferred it to a central kitchen expediting orders. Barely any cheese curds & a pool of sauce at the bottom. Absolutely terrible.
Cher touriste & locaux, en tant que locale, je vous promets (malheureusement) que la file vaut la peine. Il y a plein de bonne poutine à Montréal mais La Banquise reste un incontournable. Les frites sont bien frites, le fromage est parfaitement mou & squick squick, la sauce est authentique & la variété de condiments additionnels aux noms farfelus est apprécié. Si la température le permets, je recommande de prendre pour emporter & manger dans le parc la fontaine. Faites la liste, ca vaut le coup, la bouffe est vrai & les portions sont généreuses. Vive La Banquise.
C'est vraiment à la Banquise que se trouve ma poutine préférée. La ratio frite-sauce-fromage est parfaitement à mon goût, les frites sont croustillantes. J'adore.
Best poutine ever! Comes packed with toppings. Forget what the one with guac, spicy chipotle sauce, & an onion ring is called but it is my favourite. Amazing!
Classic, great diner atmosphere. Fun to go with friends, delicious poutine & fries. The peppercorn sauce is surprisingly amazing! Portions are huge. Parking was a pain. They only seat your group if everyone is present, but the turnover is steady so we didn't have to wait too long while we waited for one friend parking the car.
Dec 26, 2025
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Poutine. You either love it or you don't .
Regardless, you should have one at La Banquise. The best poutine I ate in Montreal. There are about 30 different combinations. Each has thoughtfully selected ingredients that blend in a gourmand way. The French fries are delicious, good size & well prepared. Extra ingredients & different sauces allow you to personalize the chosen poutine to your full satisfaction. Feel free to take inspiration from the main menu. The sizes, small & large, are very generous. Large poutine might be a challenge to finish. So if you are not sure take two small instead. You will enjoy it even more. The place is not too big but warm & cozy. Uniquely decorated, it gives you an impression of being outside in a nice sunny backyard under a tree around a beautiful table. It can get pretty busy in there but it's definitely worth the wait.
If you get the restaurant & there is no queue, you're lucky! I was in this case. Super friendly & efficient service, no complaints whatsoever... Regarding the large Classique Poutine? Decent portion but it was served slightly warm & not enough sauce. Also the flavour wasn't anything to brag about as I've had hundreds of poutines btw so I know what a good poutine is.
Worth it, sure, but not worth a trip across town.
Honestly disappointed. First trip back to Montreal in a decade, & I may as well have eaten at Smokes in Toronto. Fries - mid. Sauce - good. Cheese - ZERO SQUEAK.
I found myself so disappointed that I went to Belle Province later & (sadly) had a better poutine.
I was not surprised to hear that ownership changed. Someone is missing the core of what made La Banquise special. An exceptional core poutine with fun toppings after that. Now it might as well have been shredded cheese.
Portions are good. Service is fast. Quality is FINE, but not worth putting effort into seeking out.
Side note: 4.75 for a small glass of chocolate milk is criminal.
Une poutine, ça reste une poutine. Mais s'il faut en choisir une, ce sera définitivement celle-là. Évidemment il y a un peu de queue, donc faites attention. Mais la carte est si grande, & si détaillée, que nous trouvons forcément ce que nous voulons.
Concernant la poutine, frites, très qualitatives, super sauce & fromage, parfait, une Trinité.
Sûrement une des meilleures de la ville, pas trop cher, ouvert 24 heures sur 24.
Oct 28, 2025
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Assez decu. C est supposé être une institution de la poutine & c est l une des pire que nous avons eux. Manque de poulet de fromage & de sauce. Je sais pas si c est depuis le changement de propio mais tres decu (nous etions 6 a tables à étre déçu )
Un incontournable de Montréal. La poutine est une des meilleures, tout est bien balancé (ratio sauce, fromage, frites). Le service est rapide & efficace.
We had the shoot out poutine & spicy sausage hot dog. The fries weren't anything special, the sauce was oddly thick & extremely salty & it didn't have a lot of cheese curds. There was a lot of meat on the poutine, all of it extremely salty. The spicy sausage hot dog was supposed to have a creamy coleslaw & you can see from the photo that there was hardly anything there. Would not recommend.
May 19, 2025
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2 mois que je suis en Ontario, 2 mois que j'attends mon voyage à Montréal pour goûter la fameuse poutine.. tous les réseaux sociaux & bouches à oreilles me disent de foncer à la banquise, & je les remercie. Quel restaurant incroyable, la poutine est délicieuse & je pèse mes mots !! De plus, la sauce est végétarienne donc accessible pour tous !! Le staff est super sympathique & l'endroit chaleureux, même la file d'attente a été agréable grâce au chauffage ! Merci à vous
Went here for lunch, it was fairly packed but I didn't have to wait. I got the large southwest poutine which came with guacamole, onion rings, bbq sauce, & everything else you'd find in a normal poutine. La Banquise has a big reputation & thankfully I'd say it lives up to it. Definitely not the cheapest poutine you can get in the city, but due to the massive amounts of customizable toppings you can defintiely find something that fits your taste. 24h operations is also a plus
I went to La Banquise for several years & always had a very good experience. But I went yesterday & they changed for a smaller portion, lack of sauce & changed the fries. I was so desappointed. It seems like they changed the owner.
La meilleure poutine de Montréal !! Vraiment c'est excellent, les frites sont faites maison, la sauce n'est pas écoeurante & le fromage est parfaitement fondu. Le restaurant est victime de son succès & il y a toujours sun peu d'attente, mais cela en vaut vriament la peine ! Les serveurs sont super sympa, l'acceuil est chaleureux
