Don't call it a mall: With its chandelier and winding staircase, this upscale complex (part of the Underground City—the city's vast labyrinth of office and residential buildings, shopping centers, and hotels), is far more sophisticated than that. It's where to find primo brands like Dolce & Gabbana and Gucci as well as boutiques stocking emerging local labels. Three Monkeys is on the ground floor, a location that complements the shop's chic, streetwise clothing lines, which include Valerie Dumaine and Travis Taddeo, both Montréal designers (514-284-1333; www.threemonkeys.ca).

The city's main shopping strip is lined with North America's biggest fashion chains and shoe shops. Simons is Montréal's version of H&M—check out the flirty selection of socks and hosiery and the house-brand mittens, scarves, and toques, which are as warm as they are cool (977 St. Catherine St. W.; 514-282-1840; www.simons.ca). This is also where you'll find the red-stoned facade of the historic Hudson Bay building, home of department store The Bay (585 St. Catherine St. W.; 514-281-4422; www.hbc.com), and its longtime rival Ogilvy (1307 St. Catherine St. W.; 514-842-7711; www.ogilvycanada.com). If department stores were siblings, The Bay would be a price-conscious suburban mom, and Ogilvy her snooty sister-in-law, draped in Louis Vuitton, Burberry, and Michael Kors accessories. Nearby The Bay is the headquarters of Birks, which stocks everything from diamond rings to gold watches to crystal decanters (1240 Phillips Square; 514-397-2511; www.birks.com).

St. Denis's blend of restaurants and furniture and clothing stores offers a peek at how native Québecers like to shop and live. Three-level Zone sets the tone for home design with modern classics like the Wassily armchair and more playful items like the Urban Dots bathmat with oversize polka dots in shades of brown and silver (4246 St. Denis St.; 514-845-3530; www.zonemaison.com). Côté Sud, with its teak furniture from Indonesia and white leather couches, follows suit (4338 St. Denis St.; 514-289-9443; www.cotesud.ca). Not to be missed is the teashop Camellia Sinensis, which imports from India and Japan (try the grass- and oat-scented hogi-cha). It's located on a hidden strip just off the main drag—look for the Quartier Latin cinema on St. Denis (351 Emery St.; 514-286-4002; www.camellia-sinensis.com). Pick up a looking-glass pendant and a pair of Knight jeans at medievalist boutique Excalibor (4400 St. Denis St.; www.excalibor.com).

Bounded by Chinatown to the south and Little Italy to the north, "The Main" is all about stylish boutiques. Lola & Emily (think Anthropologie north) feels like Holly Golightly's bedroom; check out the Voluspa candles and frilly Third Floor lingerie (3475 St. Laurent Blvd.; 514-288-7598; www.lolaandemily.com). Head to U&I for a pair of Swedish jeans and an asymmetrical Vivienne Westwood blazer (3650 St. Laurent Blvd.; 514-844-8788; www.boutiqueuandi.com). Near trendy St. Viateur Street, you'll find Morales, a women's apparel atelier that's a cross between Stella McCartney and Mexico's Day of the Dead (5392 St. Laurent Blvd.; 514-271-5061; www.renatamorales.com). For loft living, ship home the Art Deco armoires and sectional couches stocked by Côté Ouest (5330 St. Laurent Blvd.; 514-278-3047), or Eames chairs and bulbous '60s pieces (both new and reproduction) carried by retro shop Phil'z 20th Century Design (5298 St. Laurent Blvd.; 514-278-2323). Finish your spree by browsing Maison Eros Greatti's collection of jewelry, women's blouses, scarves, and luxurious textiles. You can hire owner Eros Greatti to design custom window treatments, consult on interior design, or even shop for you. But if you like to shop for yourself, we recommend the blown-glass Lollipop-brand bracelets, which recall childhood games of marbles (5427 St. Laurent Blvd.; 514-272-3767; www.maisonerosgreatti.com; closed Mon. and Tues.).

This street is a microcosm of the renaissance taking place all over Old Montréal. High-end boutiques and exclusive restaurants nestle side by side in ornate buildings that wouldn't be out of place on Paris' Left Bank. Actually, boutique Reborn would be more at home in NYC's Soho, with its expensive, trendsetting stock of international designers (Raf Simons, Fifth Avenue Shoe Repair). Reborn also has a considerable selection of menswear (231 St. Paul St. W.; 514-499-8549; www.reborn.ws). Nearby is Collection Méli Mélo, a home-decor and apparel retailer with a global stock: huge ceramic fruit bowls from Morocco, reproduction Louis XVI chairs, Indian jewelry (205 St. Paul St. W.; 514-285-5585). Refuel at the homey bistro Marché de la Villette. The alpine mural on the wall signals the owner's homeland: Lorraine, France, whose namesake quiche they do rather well (324 St. Paul St. W.; 514-807-8084). There are also many galleries lining St. Paul, such as Espace Pepin, so you can even bring some of the area's bohemianism home in a painting (350 St. Paul St. W.; 514-844-0114; www.pepinart.com).