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You Have to Check Out Café OSMO, The Newest Addition to Montréal’s Café Scene

This article is written by a student writer from the Spoon University at McGill chapter.

It seems like everyday, new cafés are popping up all over Montréal. One such example is Café OSMO which opened its doors a little over a month ago. Located just north of Sherbrooke on Clark, Café OSMO is tucked away on the ground floor of the Notman house, home of Montréal’s start up community.

The Ambience

Café OSMO

Photo by Helena Lin

The vibe of Café OSMO can only be described as modern and sleek. With designer furniture that is deceptively comfortable and large tables for you to sprawl your notes over, this café has become my new favourite place to study at.

Café OSMO

Photo by Helena Lin

The staff at Café OSMO is always extremely friendly, and take service to the next level. Need an extension cord for your laptop? They’ve got your back. I was lucky enough to get the opportunity to pick the brain of café manager Denis Robinson and this is what he has to say about Café OSMO.

1. What separates Café OSMO from other cafés in Montréal?

Café OSMO

Photo by Helena Lin

In short, Robinson says, “We love coffee, but we love connecting people more.” At Café OSMO you aren’t just getting the normal coffee shop experience. Robinson aims to merge the feeling of going to your regular jazz club to with the day to day mundane coffee shop experience.

2. What brand beans do you use and why?

Café OSMO

Photo by Helena Lin

Café OSMO is proud to be one of the only cafés in Montréal to carry Anchored Coffee, a roaster from Dartmouth, Nova Scotia. “The reason why we use Anchored is first because they are a Canadian brand, and because they are extremely passionate,  enthusiastic, and proud about their product.”

From my (many) tastings of the coffee here at Café OSMO, I have found that what separates Anchored Coffee from others famous roasters in Canada is the beautifully thick, creamy crema (as shown in the photo above) that their espresso produces.

3. What is Café OSMO’s signature drink or what drink are you most proud of?

Café OSMO

Photo by Helena Lin

As a latte lover, Denis enthusiastically recommends the lattes at Café OSMO. What I love about the latte here is that even with the large amount of milk added, there is still great depth of flavour and richness that many lattes lack.

Although the current menu at Café OSMO only features the standards found at any cafe, in the next month they will be rolling out innovative coffee creations (there may have been some mention of a mojito flavoured coffee or cold brew “coffee beer”).

Wait, what about food?

Café OSMO

Photo by Helena Lin

Sticking to its desire to stay local, Café OSMO supports food from vendors all across Montreal. Currently, Café OSMO provides an assortment of pastries from Hof Kelsten, mouth watering savory pies from Ta pies, as well as a variety of salads and wraps from Le Kitchen.

#SneakPeek: tune in for the debut of Café OSMO’s summer terrasse and picnic tables on the lawn outside the café.

Helena Lin

McGill '17

Helena is in her final year studying Psychology at McGill. When not in school (which is as much as possible), you can find Helena recipe testing or exploring new cafes and restaurants in Montreal. Currently, Helena is also studying French cuisine at Le Cordon Bleu and is a food photographer for Foodora. "Some eat to survive, I survive to eat" - Helena Lin