City Life

Best place to spot a celebrity

1. On St-Laurent
2. Globe
3. Buona Notte
4. On Crescent
5. HMV
6. On Ste-Catherine
7. Old Montreal
8. Time
9. Newtown
10. Bell Centre

The former home of immigrants flogging salami and bratwurst is now suited to a different type of meat, the paparazzi. The Rolling Stones' high-profile stay in the old city did nothing to upend the long-held sense that this is the place to make an idiot of yourself with an autograph book.

Best place to spot a babe

1. On St-Laurent
2. On Crescent
3. On Ste-Catherine
4. Cours Mont-Royal
5. Jet
6. On St-Denis
7. McGill
8. Tam-Tams
9. Foufounes Électriques
10. Thursday's

Our Boulevard of Broken Dreams seems also to be the homeland of quick beating hearts. But the downtown crowd of shopkeepers and office workers is rising with a bullet.

Best neighbourhood

1. Plateau
2. NDG
3. Mile-End
4. Westmount
5. Downtown
6. St-Henri
7. LaSalle
8. Verdun
9. Outremont
10. McGill Ghetto

Honourable mentions: Gay Village • Monkland • TMR • West Island • Côte des Neiges • St-Leonard • Rosemont • Villeray • Montreal West • Old Montreal • Park-Ex • Little Italy

The perennial neighbourhoods hold their traditional spots in the top five, though southwest Montreal, long dismissed as the land of poutine and sweatpants, appears to be on the rise with St-Henri, LaSalle and Verdun gaining newfound critical mass in the voting box.

Best minority

1. Italians
2. Anglophones
3. Greeks
4. Jews
5. Gays
6. Filipinos
7. Chinese
8. Arabs
9. Blacks
10. Indians

Honourable mentions: Latinos • Lebanese • Pakistanis • Germans • Irish • Goths

Pop out your St-Leonard dictionary, as the Italians have mamboed off with our hearts, kicking out the traditional Jewish-anglo dominance. Greeks, Filipinos and Arabs also make strong showings this year.

Best architecture

1. Old Montreal
2. Notre-Dame
3. Olympic Stadium
4. 650 Vinet
5. St-Joseph's Oratory
6. Habitat 67 7. Old Port
8. McGill University
9. Loyola Campus
10. IBM Building

Old Montreal wins again. In fact, readers give the nod to most things old, as one-time winner Ex Centris is ignored and the high-profile PVM, Sun Life building and Ailes de la Mode also get snubbed.

Worst eyesore

1. Big O
2. Palais des Congrès
3. AMC
4. Concordia's Hall Building
5. Paramount 6. Habitat 67 7. Bell Centre
8. Seville Theatre
9. Provigo on Mont-Royal
10. Casino

Taillibert's toilet still tops the loathed list, while the coloured glass of the convention centre also irks many readers. The (new) Old Forum and the Hall building also turn stomachs, while the Seville Theatre is the only dilapidated building to make the list in years.

Best kept Montreal secret

Best way to learn French

1. French boyfriend/girlfriend
2. School
3. Speak it
4. Work
5. Go to France
6. Live in the East End
7. Immersion
8. Practice
9. TRY
10. Insist on speaking French even when the locals try to switch to English

Best festival

1. Montreal International Jazz Festival
2. Just for Laughs
3. World Film Festival
4. Fringe
5. Divers/cité 6. Celtic
7. Elektra
8. Beer Festival
9. FanTasia
10. Obey the Flame

Best place to impress out-of-towners

1. Old Montreal
2. Old Port
3. Mount Royal
4. St-Laurent
5. 737 6. Downtown
7. Crescent
8. Olympic Stadium
9. Strip clubs
10. Tam Tams

But you always say that! If you all love Old Montreal so much then why are half the streets deserted down there? As for those who voted for Crescent Street, the category is how to "impress" not "depress" visitors. McGill Stadium, Summit Circle, Lafontaine Park, La Ronde, the Golden Square Mile, all again conspicuous in their usual absence.

Best place to get mugged

1. St-Henri
2. Downtown
3. Villa-Maria metro
4. The metro
5. Vendôme metro
6. Montreal North
7. Parc-Ex
8. Westmount
9. Little Burgundy
10. NDG

You've got a better chance of being bugged, lugged, tugged or slugged than of getting mugged in this burg. But it's nice to see that last year's fears of NDG and its metros have abated and we agree to pick on good ol' working class St-Henri again.