Saint-Denis restaurant owners struggle as pedestrian Mont-Royal Avenue diverts summer crowds

For many restaurant owners on Saint-Denis Street, summer is usually the busiest and most profitable season of the year. But as nearby Mont Royal Avenue transforms into a pedestrian-only zone, foot traffic takes a sharp detour, leaving Saint-Denis eateries with empty tables and dwindling sales.

Restaurateurs say the lack of parking and worsening vehicle congestion only make matters worse, discouraging both locals and tourists from venturing into the area.

“I totally support Mont-Royal [pedestrianization], I love Mont-Royal too, but I believe Saint-Denis represents Mont-Royal Plateau very well,” said Elena Emilia Ascencio, chef and owner of Casa Azul. “We are an iconic street, and we don’t have festivals. We have one festival; this is the book festival. This year it was raining; we didn’t have customers. It’s sad, but they receive a lot of more tourists than the local people.”

For Luis Walter Corcuera, a seasoned restaurant owner with years of experience on Saint-Denis Street, this summer has been particularly challenging.

“It’s very difficult to get around on the Mont-Royal Plateau and in the summer, Mont-Royal Avenue—I have nothing against it, it’s just my personal opinion—I find it really disrupts traffic,” said Luis Walter Corcuera, restaurant owner of Miraflores. “Also, on Saint-Denis Street, the way it’s set up, with the bike lane and no parking, it really hurts our businesses.”

“We’ve had incredible years in the past—37 years of running Pizzeli restaurants on Saint-Denis Street, and business was booming but these days, I find it much tougher,” added Corcuera.

Unlike Saint-Laurent boulevard, which benefits from festivals and events, Saint-Denis sees little support, according to owners, support they need to help local businesses stay afloat.

In a written statement sent to CityNews after the broadcast, the Plateau-Mont-Royal borough office said: “We work closely with the Saint-Denis Street SDC and its businesses to bring life to the street, which has seen its lowest vacancy rate since the development of the REV. The SDC is a partner of the Montreal Comic Arts Festival, which continues to gain recognition each year, and it initiated a short winter pedestrianization of a small section of Duluth Street in hopes of animating the intersection during spring break as part of the second edition of the Conte(mporain) Festival.”

Some locals are urging the City of Montreal to take action and are asking for real initiatives that would give Saint-Denis, and restaurants like Casa Azul, a fair chance to thrive again.

“Make a festival or something, they can bring people and we can show how Saint-Denis is full of life,” said Emilia.