BeautyâÂÂs Luncheonette (often simply BeautyâÂÂs) is a long-running, kosher-style diner in the Plateau-Mont-Royal borough of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1942 by Hyman ("Hymie") and Freda Sckolnick, the restaurant is known for classic breakfasts and brunches, notably the Mish-Mash omelette and the BeautyâÂÂs Special (lox and cream cheese on a Montreal-style bagel). It occupies the same corner of Mont-Royal Avenue West and Saint-Urbain Street that it has since opening and is widely regarded as a Montreal culinary landmark.
BeautyâÂÂs began when newlyweds Hymie and Freda Sckolnick bought a small snack bar at Mont-Royal and Saint-Urbain and started serving quick hot lunches to workers in the nearby garment district of the former Jewish quarter. Demand for Sunday breakfasts soon followed, and the counter evolved into a brunch destination. The place was initially known as Bancroft Coffee Shop but regulars nicknamed it "BeautyâÂÂs" after HymieâÂÂs bowling nickname; the name later stuck officially.
Over time the Sckolnicks expanded into an adjacent space and developed several signature items. Co-founder Freda is credited with creating both the Mish-Mash omelette and the BeautyâÂÂs Special bagel and lox plate, dishes that would come to define the dinerâÂÂs menu. BeautyâÂÂs remained a family-run business; their son Larry joined in the 1960s and later took over day-to-day operations, with subsequent generations also working at the diner.
Founder Hymie Sckolnick died in 2017 at age 96.
BeautyâÂÂs is not a kosher restaurant, but it is often described as a kosher-style diner reflecting MontrealâÂÂs Jewish foodways, mixing Jewish comfort foods with classic North American diner fare. Two dishes are especially associated with the diner:
Other long-standing items include banana pancakes, challah French toast, blintzes and classic breakfast plates.
BeautyâÂÂs closed in March 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic and underwent a substantial renovation. It reopened in June 2021 with refreshed interiors that preserved the classic lunch-counter aesthetic while modernizing infrastructure.
BeautyâÂÂs is frequently cited as a Montreal institution and a fixture of the cityâÂÂs Jewish culinary heritage, often grouped with other historic eateries such as Wilensky's Light Lunch and Schwartz's. The dinerâÂÂs multigenerational, family-run character and unchanged location are frequently noted in profiles and travel writing.