Having just got back from a 4+ day trip to Montreal, I can say that there are definite pros and cons to traveling to a new city during the 9 Days… especially a city with numerous kosher restaurants. While I wouldn't have a chance to try the meat delicacies their restaurants had to offer during my stay (Montreal "smoked meat" is a famous local delicacy), I'd be able to experience how their non-meat restaurants were able to handle their increased traffic (added staff and menu options) and how their meat restaurants would transition with alternative menus (assuming they did). [Since Montreal has a large Sephardic Morrocan community, many meat restaurants did remain open as that community does eat meat during the 9 Days].
Arriving at the start of the 9 Days in Montreal in Thursday evening, we headed to Yakimono, a fully pareve sushi restaurant that came highly recommended by friends and Montreal natives. Not only was the sushi amazing, their fish main courses were delicious as well. No meat or dairy was missed while enjoying our meal. [Full review to come soon]
Other places we tried on our visit included: Exceptions for brunch (which was exceptional), Pizza Pita for their poutine (added a pasta station specially for the 9 Days), and even Mount Royal Bagels known for their Montreal style bagels, very different from New York style bagels.
Overall, whilst traveling one needs to make sure that they are balancing their meals, trying new dairy and pareve dishes, and finding way to incorporate more fish (or other protein) meals into your day to replace the lack of meat. Oh, and don't forget to stock up on the fleishigs over Shabbat!
