A voluminous and opinionated Montreal foodie blog:

Le Comptoir:

Rigid French classics, like veal kidneys and andouilette, with an accent on the canon of French sauces served at rock bottom prices (for French food that is). Le Grand Comptoir caters to the lunch crowd but is eerily quiet at night.

But apparently Au pied de cochon is the place to go:

Here, with no advertising, and a current "last updated" date.

Crescent (L out of the hotel, L, then a few blocks along from the Europa) has lots of eateries & drinkeries including a couple of places I'd definitely recommend:

Los Tipos: Mexican

Allo Inde: Indian

Both fulfil my criteria for excellence - tasty, authentic food with friendly service - & are not v. expensive.

The Extreme Gourmet, 2006-08-10

La Crême de l’Extrême: The Extreme Gourmet Visits Toqué
David J. Birnbaum, djbpitt+xml@pitt.edu, 2006-08-10
Who would have guessed that you could get a reservation at Toqué, perhaps the most elegant restaurant in Montreal, the day you call? Okay, it was mid-week, but by 9:30 the dining area was only three-quarters full. Why weren’t you there?

The Extreme Gourmet, 2006-08-09

La Crême de l’Extrême: The Extreme Gourmet Visits L’Express
David J. Birnbaum, djbpitt+xml@pitt.edu, 2006-08-09
If you are looking for L’Express, look down, since the signage for this Montreal take on the Parisian bistro is labeled not on the façade of the building, but only in the black and white tiles on the sidewalk in front of the door. Once you find your way inside, though, the decor, the service, and especially the food are all happily reminiscent of dining precisely in an upscale Parisian bistro, and only the lack of smoke (a recent government policy in Quebec province) betrays the fact that you are on this side of the pond.

The Extreme Gourmet, 2006-08-08

La Crême de l’Extrême: The Extreme Gourmet Visits the Globe
David J. Birnbaum, djbpitt+xml@pitt.edu,
2006-08-08
Since the early 1990s the Globe has enjoyed a reputation as a place to see and be seen, with a lively atmosphere and a smart, stylish crowd. Behind that appealing, attractive façade lies one of Montreal’s finest kichens, with food that is as fresh as it can be and that is prepared with expert attention to both gustatory and visual composition.

Googling about and discarding anything with sponsored links, I find these sites:

Jeremy & Vinita's Montreal Restaurant Guide. Straight from the shoulder bite-sized reviews in all price ranges.

Montreal Food. Reviews.

Gourmet Magazine's top Montreal restaurants (though Caprice de Nicolas isn't on it because they wouldn't let the reviewer take a menu away...)

Chowhound.

Though lacking equivalents to Berlin's imbiss and the Manhattan/Philly/DC food cart, Montreal abounds in every other dining experience.

Having stayed in cheap lodgings and spent virtually nothing on transport, you can afford to dine well (where the operational definition of "well" is "as the Quebecois do.") When in Montreal...

There are some excellent restaurants within easy walking distance of the Europa (the conference hotel). Some of my favorites are:

1. Le Taj an extraordinary Indian restaurant, with fantastic decor and moderate prices.
2. Chez Cora's breakfast restaurant. It's a chain, but fantastic. There's one two blocks from the Europa at 1425, Rue Stanley.
3. [2005] The oriental restaurant on the second floor of The Incomparable Europa is odd, but quite good. The deal is, you pay a fixed price per person and select some things off the menu. They bring small servings of several of them to start you off, and you can ask for as many more as you want. They keep bringing small plates of the stuff you ask for. And it's good - or at least it was last year.
4. There is an Afghan restaurant two doors down the street from the Europa (out the door to the right). Nothing fancy, but cheap and good.

The following restaurants are extraordinary. All use local, seasonal ingredients.