6 of the best cafés in Montreal for people who love music
Coffee with some tunes thrown in the mix.
Someone poses in front of rows of records. Right: People gather around tables near a DJ booth.
There's a Montreal café for every taste — foodie and musical taste, that is. If you enjoy scanning stacks of vinyl records, catching live DJ sets, or taking in piano performances with a coffee in one hand and fork in the other, these places have you covered:
Café Cantinova x Audiophonie
Where: 4035, rue Saint-Ambroise #102, Montréal, QC
Reason to go: This Saint-Henri café near Aubut serves great specialty coffee and also specializes in repairing hi-fi audio equipment. Kaz, the friendly barista and a knowledgeable audiophile, welcomes visitors warmly and provides expert advice on selecting the perfect record player and speakers. The café stocks an impressive collection of audio gear, which ensures excellent background music while you sip, snack and/or work. The menu includes paninis and baked goods — the lemon poppy seed loaf is especially recommended. Canitinova may expand to add an event space soon, so keep an eye out for a rebrand.
Le 180G
Where: 5866, ave de Lorimier
Reason to go: This vinyl cafe in Rosemont stacks records and cappuccino cups so you can rouse while you browse. There's also an adjoining casse-croûte food counter, called Ma Mere en Feu, with burgers, fried chicken, homemade pogos and poutine, among other fare. It was deemed a "magical, yet somewhat hidden, gem" by CN Traveler.
Café Got Soul
Where: 1970, rue Notre-Dame Ouest
Reason to go: This Little Burgundy café offers coffee and samosas on one side and records, urban art and sneakers on the other. It makes for a hip excursion, especially when one of the resident DJs is throwing down on the central set-up.
Café OSMO
Where: 51, rue Sherbrooke Ouest
Reason to go: This discreet café near the corner of St-Laurent and Sherbrooke is a perfect stopover for coffee, a Japanese-inspired meal and a record browse. The menu spans miso soup, kaarage dishes and various curries prepared by Marusan. The spot also hosts weekly broadcasts with guest DJs and vinyl-only sets to accompany your meal.
Le Depanneur Café
Where: 206, rue Bernard Ouest
Reason to go: This Bohemian-style café hosts live acoustic shows and piano performances, so you're serenaded while you dig into one of their epic grilled cheese sandwiches or all-day, everyday breakfast platters. Music, coffee, brunch, check!
Café SAT
Where: 6, place du Marché
Reason to go: "Baristas by day, DJs by night" is the tagline at this downtown Montreal café attached to the Société des Arts Technologiques (SAT). During the day, you can get third-wave coffee and farm-fresh meals in the well-lit industrial space. On Friday nights, starting at 4 p.m., the venue hosts the independent web radio station Shift Montreal, so you can catch live electronic music sets by local artists. Once a month, the café also becomes a club from 10 p.m. to 3 a.m.
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