Montreal’s Most Notable Turkish Restaurant Will Close By the End of June

VERDUN — Sad news for Montreal’s Turkish food scene, as Restaurant Su is set to close before the end of the month. Chef-owner Fisun Ercan announced the news on social media on Monday, noting that Friday June 26 will be the restaurant’s final day of service after 14 years on Wellington Street. It doesn’t appear that the restaurant will reopen for dine-in service before its final day (Montreal restaurants are permitted to reopen dining rooms starting next Monday, June 22). Rather, Su will continue offering its to-go menu up until closing at the end of next week.

Despite the timing, Su’s closure is not due to the coronavirus pandemic — the closure had reportedly been planned in advance, according to a source familiar with the restaurant. Ercan, an ambassador of sorts for Turkish cuisine in Montreal, will continue on in the culinary world. After Su, Ercan will focus her attention on her farm, Bika, in Saint-Blaise-sur-Richelieu, in between Montreal and the U.S. border, where she has plans to open a farm-to-table restaurant in some form (with a good chance it’ll become a culinary destination).

ST-HENRI — Smooth French BYOB Le Smoking Vallée has closed its doors permanently after eight years, writes Silo 57. The restaurant on Notre-Dame W made the announcement that it would not return to business on social media in late May — no word was given on whether the closure was related to COVID-19.

CENTRE-SUD — Also via Silo 57, Sainte-Catherine E co-op café Touski has closed permanently. The co-op had already been put in a difficult position in 2018 when it was pushed out of its former location on Ontario Street, and the collective members write that they consider the challenge of reopening after the coronavirus lockdown to be “insurmountable”. In a detailed Facebook post, the collective behind Touski explained the situation — with the help of crowdfunding, they managed to purchase their own property, and in the face of COVID-19, the collective is opting to close now, rather than push through and face potential bankruptcy (and therefore, the loss of the building). The current plan is to sell the building to a community organization, to ensure that the crowd-sourced funds don’t go to waste.

VILLERAY — St-Hubert Street brunch spot Le Lendemain de Veille has shuttered, citing the ongoing COVID-19 lockdown as a reason. On Facebook, its owners noted that they may still operate some kind of catering or prepared food service.

PLATEAU — Hybrid yoga studio and café Belém will close by the end of June. The hub for healthy foods and yoga classes will close June 28, and the café is open from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily (except Mondays) until then.

WESTMOUNT — Photogenic, allergy-friendly patisserie Petit Lapin has closed one of its two locations — baker and owner Viviane Nguyen wrote that the Victoria Avenue location of her business “didn’t survive the pandemic” and has closed permanently. Fortunately, the Outremont location, on Bernard, is back open for business, although with limited hours.

• Verdun Chef Scores Big Points on Iron Chef Canada With a Turkish Feast [EMTL]
• Coronavirus : voici les établissements qui ont fermé définitivement leurs portes depuis le début de la crise [Silo 57]