Quartier Mode is a fresh new face on St. Laurent recommended our way by the ladies of Citizen Vintage. Owner Tiffany Elton is a passionate indie designer working hard to feature others in her storefront and online, so I was delighted to find out her answers to a few of my favorite questions. Turns out we hit a goldmine this week: the lady and her gent are some savvy fashionable foodies with delicious tips!

"My name is Tiffany Elton, I am a local Montreal fashion designer and owner of Quartier Mode Boutique at 4276 Boulevard St-Laurent. I moved here 11 years ago, all by my lonesome, a scared young thing from Newfoundland chasing a dream. I have been carving it out ever since. September 2011 it all came together with the opening of Quartier Mode Boutique and the web store's launch.

I think of Quartier Mode more as a fashion community than a store. We sell local Montreal designers made in Montreal and independent designers from across Canada. The idea is a "fashion neighborhood" - a place to unleash emerging designers and to celebrate local talent. I am inspired everyday by the designers we carry here, their stories, their work and that pushes me. I love it!"

Les Rendez-vous du cinéma québecois began this week. It's a chance to catch all the features, docs and shorts by local filmmakers made and distributed within the last year. You'll get everything from hits starring Louise-Josée Houde to unknown jazz fable musicals. And there's always plenty to love about Québécois film: this year's notables include Monsieur Lazhar and Starbuck. Some pretty hot docs being screened include porn star biography, Inside Lara Roxx, and The Corporation follow-up, Surviving Progress. RCVQ never misses out on special screenings of cult favourites like Robert Morin's Petit Pow! Pow! Noel, and even has gone so far as to celebrate a French (as in, from France) auteur director: Claire Denis (known for films Beau travail and 35 rhums). (+)

Post-Valentine's Day, either because of or in spite of the holiday, is when people in northern climates are the most depressed. So we've heard, right? I mean, I haven't seen any scientific evidence to back that up and am just as likely to chalk it up to an urban myth. Anyone feel like Googling that? Irregardless of the facts, February is a pretty dreary month, which is why this 13th annual Montréal en lumière festival is very welcome indeed. This year is sure to be extra special, as it's the first time the completed Quartier des spectacles (see the plan below) will be fully utilized to host the festival downtown Montréal. In previous years, it was spread out a bit (and focused more on the Old Port), but its more central location is sure to draw out the crowds. Lucky for us, this means there is a slew of free outdoor activities and concerts. There's the Loblaws spheres, the Milk Urban Slide, the Rickard's Bar, and more blatantly co-sponsored attractions. Did I mention this starts tonight?

In addition to Black History Month (with shows put on by Nuits D'Afrique and Fade to Black), and another round of Les Francouvertes, this week also marks the start of the sprawling Montréal en lumière festival. In other words, there's no shortage of things to do this week here in the city, so get out there and take it all in.



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The First Date Series takes a look at restaurants in Montreal where you might want to go -- or might not want to go -- on a first date. Upon a recommendation some time ago (thanks Greg!), I finally dragged a date to BU, and decided it's a top first date destination.

There's nothing worse than being stranded on an excruciating first date with no escape plan on the horizon. Mile End wine bar BU solves this problem -- You can take a date to BU and order a glass of wine, share one Italian tapas-style dish, and call it quits right then and there. Or, if you haven't been fully turned off in the first 25 minutes, carry on, and see if they can hold your enthusiasm for the duration of another glass and a few more bites to eat.

Interviewing chefs is definitely one of my favourite things to do. Here's the interview I did (transcribed in English, streamable in French) with all you need to know about guest chef for Montreal's Festival en Lumière 2012, Nicolas Darnauguilhem, who's helming La Fabrique Restaurant from Feb. 20-22. We talk about how to share an open kitchen, the economics of organics, blind faith in unknown menus, and, most importantly, good manners.