Shopping Differences between Ontario and Quebec? (transplants, home, neighborhood)

[Vernell111]

PS: I don't mean to offend anyone. Also, I am asking pre-pandemic..etc.


I watched a video of a young woman visiting Quebec, and she said that one of the most difficult parts for her was that everything closes early. I think she lives in Montreal. She said that everything closes at 5 pm and made it seem like the weather was one of the main reasons. It seems to me that Quebec follows the European model much more. I heard that in France and Italy, the stores close early or are not 24/7. By the way, she loved everywhere else. This point was the only minor "pet peeved" she had.

On the other hand, I watched videos of Ontarian YouTubers in Toronto, and most of them are walking around the city at night, and I don't think they had trouble finding places to shop and buy. It seems to me that they could shop anywhere at night. At least from the videos, I've watched, maybe the recorded during the summer, I don't know.

Follow-up Question: How does Amazon or similar services work in Ontario and Quebec. Can you also order food for the whole week like in America? My apologies if this question sounds ignorant. It seems some European countries don't have that type of deal where you can order your food for the whole week on Amazon. Most European countries/cities can order delivery for the night but then usually have to physically go if they want to buy food for more days.

[Urban Peasant]

Yes, you are at least partly right. Ontario's shopping hours are similar to the US's and close late, say 9 or 10pm at night except for Sundays. Quebec's shops and malls close at 5pm on Friday and Saturday to give service workers and storekeepers time to relax and enjoy themselves. I remember the last time I was in a shopping mall in Laval near Montreal, the shops all closed at 5pm on Saturday evening but there were a number of shoppers bewildered that everything was closing so early and on a Saturday of all days! They were likely newly arrived transplants not used to the Quebecois way of life. It's almost the exact opposite of American culture because Friday evenings and Saturdays are prime shopping times for Americans, especially for American youth.

[Vernell111]

Originally Posted by Urban Peasant

Yes, you are at least partly right. Ontario's shopping hours are similar to the US's and close late, say 9 or 10pm at night except for Sundays. Quebec's shops and malls close at 5pm on Friday and Saturday to give service workers and storekeepers time to relax and enjoy themselves. I remember the last time I was in a shopping mall in Laval near Montreal, the shops all closed at 5pm on Saturday evening but there were a number of shoppers bewildered that everything was closing so early and on a Saturday of all days! They were likely newly arrived transplants not used to the Quebecois way of life. It's almost the exact opposite of American culture because Friday evenings and Saturdays are prime shopping times for Americans, especially for American youth.

Great post. To clarify, do the Quebec/Montreal stores(I'm guessing clothing, food, goods, malls) close early, do their workers go home like relax with family and friends, or do they enjoy themselves in the city? For instance, are there afternoon/night restaurants or other recreations(like Dave and Buster's type venues, concerts, nightlife), or does everything pretty much closes, and most nightlife or night venues are exclusively for the weekends?

[Acajack]

It's true that there are differences between Quebec and Ontario and the rest of North America in terms of shopping, but there are some inaccuracies in what's been said.

For starters, there are no differences in terms of restaurants and bars in Quebec. If anything they stay open later here than in much of the rest of North America with the exception of a few outlier places like like NYC, New Orleans and Vegas. Quebecers actually go out for dinner a bit later than other North Americans, though generally not quite as late as Europeans.

When it comes to shopping, generally big box stores are open until 9 pm Monday to Friday, but close at 5 (occasionally 6 on Saturdays and Sundays).

Malls generally close at 5 or 6 from Saturday to Tuesday or Wednesday. They are generally open until 9 on Thursday and Friday nights. Sometimes Wednesday too. Before the pandemic screwed everything up, the biggest mall in my city was open Wednesdays (in addition to Thursday and Friday) until 9, but even then not all stores were open for those later hours.

Grocery stores are generally open until 9 or 10 every night of the week.

But stores like Walmart and Costco, while open late Monday to Friday, still close at 5 or 6 on Saturday and Sunday.

People can go out any night of the week here, but Saturday night is the big night for going out to dinner, out to bars, or having friends over. It's not really a night where people would have shopping on their minds.

Sunday night is more of a family night in Quebec, either the immediate family you live with or perhaps having your parents or siblings over. Any "shopping" on Sunday night involves picking up a few groceries at most.

[Acajack]

So right now in my city it's 6:30 on a Saturday evening and I can't buy a pair of shoes or power tools or furniture.

Though I can buy bananas, Corn Flakes, cat food, Draino, beer, wine and milk until fairly late in the evening.

Now there is a little quirk being right on the border with Ontario here so all of the stuff in my first sentence is still available a bit later this evening due to Ottawa being open across the river.

But for 95% of Quebecers, including those in places like Montreal or Quebec City, this option isn't available of course.

[Urban Peasant]

Originally Posted by Acajack

So right now in my city it's 6:30 on a Saturday evening and I can't buy a pair of shoes or power tools or furniture.

Though I can buy bananas, Corn Flakes, cat food, Draino, beer, wine and milk until fairly late in the evening.

Now there is a little quirk being right on the border with Ontario here so all of the stuff in my first sentence is still available a bit later this evening due to Ottawa being open across the river.

But for 95% of Quebecers, including those in places like Montreal or Quebec City, this option isn't available of course.

Well to be fair, other than the beer and wine, the rest of the items in your first sentence could be considered essential items and so supermarkets, depanneurs, and other grocery stores will likely have different and longer hours. Even with alcohol, the bars and restaurants open during late hours might occasionally need to run a quick errand to pick up something after all. It's similar here in the US. Establishments that sell food tend to open later and do not always enjoy the same times off as clothing establishments, which is also why those food establishments tend to have more workers to cover the shifts.

But I stand corrected on the times. The hours you listed are more accurate than mine.

[Acajack]

Who says beer and wine aren't essential items?

[BruSan]

My observations from years of time spent months at a time doing business in the center of Montreal;

Yes, the majority of normal retail stores close at the 5/6pm deadline Monday to Friday.

Food-centric restaurants close later than Ontario restaurants Monday to Friday

Bars close much later than Ontario.

The fun in Montreal starts Thursday night with many showing up at the bars to party hearty into the wee hours knowing that for most of them Friday is a 4 hr work day they can stumble through regardless of hang-over.

Being able to visit a neighborhood depanier to pick a decent wine from their shelves to then cross the street to a nice Greek restaurant, be given a table in a subdued lit courtyard and have that bottle served to you with the same flourish of a 5 star restaurant seemed so much more evolved and mature than staid old Ontario with it's ancient monopolistic liquor laws.

Asking me how I came to these conclusions would involve divulging more about my entertainment proclivities while making full use of a generous expense account than I should probably divulge from practices all through the eighties and on into the early 2000's. My liver has yet to forgive me but aaaah, the evening meals are still a high point of my memories of Mon'real.

The nature of the beast is young Montrealer's value their recreation time and place it high among their priorities of their working life. I always admired them for that characteristic of measuring their work versus enjoyment ratio to the extent they seemed to do.

That was my experience and observation - it may be different now.

[Urban Peasant]

Originally Posted by BruSan

My observations from years of time spent months at a time doing business in the center of Montreal;

Yes, the majority of normal retail stores close at the 5/6pm deadline Monday to Friday.

Food-centric restaurants close later than Ontario restaurants Monday to Friday

Bars close much later than Ontario.

The fun in Montreal starts Thursday night with many showing up at the bars to party hearty into the wee hours knowing that for most of them Friday is a 4 hr work day they can stumble through regardless of hang-over.

Being able to visit a neighborhood depanier to pick a decent wine from their shelves to then cross the street to a nice Greek restaurant, be given a table in a subdued lit courtyard and have that bottle served to you with the same flourish of a 5 star restaurant seemed so much more evolved and mature than staid old Ontario with it's ancient monopolistic liquor laws.

Asking me how I came to these conclusions would involve divulging more about my entertainment proclivities while making full use of a generous expense account than I should probably divulge from practices all through the eighties and on into the early 2000's. My liver has yet to forgive me but aaaah, the evening meals are still a high point of my memories of Mon'real.

The nature of the beast is young Montrealer's value their recreation time and place it high among their priorities of their working life. I always admired them for that characteristic of measuring their work versus enjoyment ratio to the extent they seemed to do.

That was my experience and observation - it may be different now.

Yes, I was trying to earlier explain exactly what you wrote in detailed here in just a few words. Quebec dining and partying culture is unlike anywhere else in North America. I witnessed it firsthand when I visited Sherbrooke in 2017. It was a Saturday evening, the Carrefour L'Estrie was closed already so no clothes shopping (too bad for my sister who loves shopping), but Downtown Sherbrooke was packed and jiving! There was a hard time finding parking and the bars, restaurants, and bistros were packed with well dressed people sipping wine and conversing gaily. This was Sherbrooke of all cities, not Montreal, not Gatineau, not even Quebec City but tiny Sherbrooke, the size of Lowell, MA but with 5 times the energy on an ordinary Saturday evening in the autumn. It seemed that everyone, rich or poor, devoted their time and energy to an evening of socializing with nothing held back. We ended up trying out this ritzy looking restaurant but dressed in sneakers and jeans and looking like we had all walked a days hike and were the only ones that did not order alcohol at the restaurant (we are not drinkers) - truly "urban peasants". We had looked so slovenly and out of place that I am now embarrassed that episode ever took place and promise to do better to blend in with the Quebecois the next time I am up there.

[Vernell111]

@Brusan, Urban Peasant

Excellent post guys. A follow up question.The party culture sounds great. Do you think Quebec get this elegant party culture from France or somewhere else? I remember that a friend said Quebec remained him more of Eastern European cultures where there are more party orientated.