A number of restaurants and cafés in Montreal’s Plateau have been the target of thefts and burglaries in recent weeks.
On Duluth Avenue, at least three establishments have been hit, including Coco Disco Club, Au Pieds de Cochon, and Capitaine Sandwich.
“About a month ago, I had somebody come in and break in and steal cash, safe and all that. And he knew what he was doing. And I think for the past year also, it’s been, there’s been a lot happening around in Duluth. More, I would say, I’ve been here almost 10 years, and it’s the first time this year that we see it as bad as it is right now,” said Samir Benzeguir, the owner of Capitaine Sandwich.
François Melançon, the co-owner of La Taverne Popina and Buvette Beaubien, said, “Obviously it was pretty recent that we’ve seen some restaurants got break-in, so we are aware that there’s maybe an increase of burglary. Graffiti is also really getting a problem around here. So yes, as much as possible, having more presence from the police would probably help stop those break-ins.”
In a written response to CityNews, the SPVM confirms that four restaurants on Duluth have been affected by thefts and break-ins since the beginning of 2026 and that charges have been filed in three cases. They add that their investigation is ongoing.
“Obviously it’s on the rise, but I think, like I said, I think it’s not mass, it’s not a lot of people, it’s like probably one guy or two that are doing this and are really comfortable doing it, and the police are doing their job. I can’t complain about that,” said Benzeguir.
Break-ins have also occurred in other parts of the Plateau, including at Oh My Deer Café and Patisserie on Pine.
“The first time was last year in July, so they struck by the one of the windows, and they stole like 15 days of work because it was the first time,” said Claudia Gamboa, the owner of Oh My Deer Café and Patisserie. “And this year it was in June, and they just broke in by the window, and everything is on camera. I have alarms, and I have everything to prevent these kinds of things, but it’s not working.”
“It’s very bad because it’s money, it’s time, and it’s discouraging for the small business.”
Melançon says, “I’m a part-owner also on Beaubien, La Buvette Beaubien, and we had a break-in not long ago. So incidents like this are really increasing, not only on Duluth, on the Plateau, against businesses.”
The Canadian Federation of Independent Business could not confirm if there has been an increased of break-ins into restaurants in the Plateau, but say that certain Quebec small business owners have been reporting higher levels of crime in the past year.
“In October 2025, we surveyed our members, about 450 members of Quebec responded. So what we saw is that about 28 per cent of them saw an increase in crime over the last year,” said Vincent Pâquet, Quebec senior policy analyst with the Canadian Federation of Independent Business. “It’s mostly theft, vandalism and shoplifting.”
Gamboa says, “If the police can set up like a small team just to deal with these kinds of break-ins, because it’s not just a business owner, a small business owner, it’s also the security that our neighborhood is feeling.
“And second, in these principal streets, I would like to have more cameras for surveillance.”
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