The best vegan dishes on offer at Time Out Market Montréal right now

The work of Jeffrey Finkelstein and Suyin Wong are undoubtedly among the best this city has to offer since Hof Kelsten fired up its ovens in the Mile End. While their new venture at Time Out Market Montréal marks a whole new and sweeter chapter for the OG Hof, that doesn’t mean everything involves milk and butter. The Jello de Truffe, delicate dark chocolate squares topped with salt that are light but filling, simple but complex in flavor, is sure to be just the perfect thing when you’re craving something sweet.

Looking for breakfast? Then this is your best bet: Healthful, filling and energizing, the chia pudding from Olive et Gourmando is a fine ratio of chia seeds and almond milk sweetened with a fruit compote and topped with a crunchy muesli and rounded out with coconut shavings. An order of this gives you that little boost you need before starting the day just as much as it’s a pick-me-up during lunch.

Something as straightforward as a vegetable minestrone isn’t the same at the hands of chefs Cheryl Johnson and Charles-Antoine Crête. It’s just the hot dish you need in the depths of winter, and it’s completely vegan and gluten-free to boot. With this dish, finely brunoised veggies float in a smooth broth that’s topped with fried rice noodles that give the soup a bit of crunch on top while the rest melt and mingle with the rest of the ingredients. A small bowl makes pairs with other options on this list; a large portion is a meal on its own.

Using jasmine rice at its base, this dish features an allspice-rubbed butternut squash that’s roasted with ginger, covered in a rich coconut sauce and topped with puffed rice, plus pickled onions for slight acidic kick. If you’re looking for something full of flavor that’s a big enough meal for two at the market, look no further than this Caribbean creation from Paul Toussaint. If you’re really famished, order up a side of malanga accras with spicy scotch bonnet peppers and pikliz.

There’s nothing quite like a classic Italian meal, especially when it’s done right by the local pasta masters Michele Mercuri and Giovanni Rasile. This potato-based gnocchi is parboiled before being finished off in a rich red tomato sauce, seasoned and topped with freshly picked basil. That makes it both light and fluffy while yielding a ton of flavors, where simple ingredients speak volumes. As much as it might be difficult to get her out of her own kitchen, we dare you to bring your nonna out to try this one for size.

Pizza is one of those menu items that vegans can rarely get their hands on, as though handfuls of cheese are what makes a good pizza. Not so with this one: While you will have to ask Moleskine to hold on the cheese, the fluffy crust of their Neapolitan-style pies makes up for it, especially when it’s topped with a pesto sauce, artichoke, zucchini, red onion and lemon. It’s a crisp and refreshing option for lunch or dinner, or something to line your stomach before a night on the town.

The folks at Foodchain have been known for delivering stellar salads to the city for long time now, and their new spot in Time Out Market Montréal serves all the greatest hits from their original address. Their Eaton Centre digs, however, presents a whole new reason to check out their menu: Vegan hot dogs unlike any other. They’ll tell you they’re made with ‘magic ingredients’, so we won’t spoil the surprise, but what we will tell you is that you shouldn’t skip pairing them with the house chips and a side salad.

The folks at Foxy are ready and willing to twist just about any menu item into a vegan version (the coleslaw without the pulled duck comes to mind), but the one where a substitution or subtraction won’t take anything away is their turmeric-rubbed and roasted cauliflower. You’ll need to ask for it without the yogurt, but the rest of the dish’s elements—‘zoug, roasted almonds, coriander and crispy shallot—come together scrumptiously to run with the best of the market’s best vegan dishes. Who needs dairy to make something delicious, right?

Eating vegan isn’t all about eating salads, but hey, you dig in when it’s a damn good salad. This option from Olive et Gourmando—hold the aged gouda, of course—features a mix of greens and fresh figs that’s topped with mixed nuts and grains (think nutty quinoa), spiced and roasted pumpkins seeds, and a house vinaigrette that adds sugar, salt and acidity. If you really want to make it a meal, add roasted tofu for just a few bucks more.

Michael Dalla Libera and Nick Rosati have been making a lot of waves on the ice cream scene since Dalla Rose opened its doors, but it’s not just about dairy-based frozen treats here. When you visit their eatery at the market, you’ll always find a rotating of ice cream options that use coconut milk instead, each more delicious than the last: Chocolate, honeyberry, lime leaf & lemongrass, matcha, and brownie fudge. If coconut milk isn’t your thing, try any one of the refreshing sorbets available, whether it’s lemon, grapefruit or orange.