Maison Sociale: The Ultimate Hybrid Social Experience

Young professionals and entepreneurs in Montreal are making riskier and more innovative moves when it comes to anything from restaurants to bars and venue spaces. 

Case in point: Maison Sociale.

Opening in December, this endeavour has brought together a number of partners, all who’ve made a mark in Montreal in their own right. The concept is simple: it’s a social house, in the most basic sense.

To get the real scoop, we caught up with one of the partners, blogger and entrepreneur Na’eem Adam, to find out more about the concept, podcast room, and their membership.

What is the concept behind Maison Sociale?
It’s a space to bring people together. Third-wave coffee and a one-item lunch menu by day, it transforms into a cocktail-focused speakeasy by night. We offer our guests social memberships that provide special benefits to those who sign up. Maison Sociale also sports its own radio room for open live broadcasting about our city.

How does membership work and what do you get for it?
You can sign up on our site. Expect us to then send out a questionnaire where we will ask simple questions about your culinary and drink habits. From there, we will develop special events just for our members, but open to all. Chef Dan and bar master Christophe will be doing special seminars and brunches, for example.

Can people without a membership also come by?
It’s open to everyone! The membership program is for us to develop a closer relationship with our customers. We want to know what they want and offer it.

Will you have a menu? If so, what’s the inspiration?
We are really excited that Chef Dan Geltner is our partner. He comes up with the most amazing dishes and it fits our personality perfectly. God knows where he get his inspiration! There will be a small menu for lunch and late nights. We will host pop-up events and occasional brunches, too.

Why the name Maison Sociale?
It’s a social house. It’s exactly what we wanted to do, so why not be clear with the name too? Don’t just come for a quick lunch, but enjoy the space and invite friends.

How will the podcast room work?
James Benjamin, a veteran in the business, will be running our radio room. He will be organizing dedicated slots for continuous shows by local personalities, magazines, DJs and blogs.

There are a lot of partners involved. Can you name them and tell us why you choose to have so many?
We think that we have the perfect amount of partners. We are all friends and this is a fun project for us. We wanted a balance of responsibilities and to focus on everyone’s strong points. With good leaders, we work as one. 

The Partners:

· David Schmidt – Mastermind

· Na’eem Adam – Communications and Marketing

· Julien D’Aoust – Operations

· Dan Geltner – Chef

· Christophe Beaudoin Vallières – Bar Program

· Philip Tabah – Content and Blog

· Marc-Antoine Clement – Design and Woodwork

· Emerson Loustau – Branding and Web

· James Benjamin – Radio and Music program

When are you opening and where?
December 2014 at 5386 Boul St-Laurent. Stay tuned!

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