You know those corner storefronts that sit vacant for ages and you can’t help thinking, ” that would be a great spot for a cafe” every time you walk by? The southwest corner of St. Laurent and St. Viateur was such a corner for the longest time. Floor to ceiling windows covered in a thick layer of dust and every few months a glass pane would get shattered and repaired.
Then as the neighborhood known as Mile End and the city reached full renaissance a cafe opened thereand then anotherand so on for years as businesses around it thrived and software giant Ubisoft opened across the street in a building once known to house garment sweatshops. Occupying the space as of this writing and seemingly there to stay is Cagibi, bustling in a spot that was once emblematic of the neighborhood’s decay.
The front room is designed to look like the world’s most comfortable kitchen – one that might seat 40 of your closest friends and neighbors. A warm, homey feeling surrounds you and along the back wall is an assortment of artfully arranged bric-a-brac not so well-designed as to be pretentious and not so haphazard as to be an eyesore. There’s a solid vegetarian menu featuring a highly-regarded veggie burger and coffee that’s good and strong and comes in mismatched cups. The back room is quieter in the daytime and louder at night when there are shows.
5490 Saint-Laurent Boulevard
