By day you may have passed it several times while going food shopping, coffee drinking or just wandering in the street of Notre-Dame Ouest in St-Henri, and you wouldn’t have noticed it. For sure it’s open by day but I’m pretty sure you will pay attention to this place mostly at night. Second thing for sure: the neon light AA in strong red glowing in the dark will attract your eyes as those of the rabbit or the squirrel crossing the road seeing a car. Third thing: you will feel the need to enter or at least walk in the direction of the red light.

This diner type of restaurant is – wait for it – an institution in this area of Montreal. For more than four decades the owner is running it and it’s always reassuring to see him when you open the door. Once you order, you adapt the size of your hunger with the combo in the menu: classics are served, pogo, hot-dog, burger and other poutine are there for you. After 02:00 I’m often up to two hot-dogs all dressed and a small poutine, the right amount of energy to walk home.