New York has it, I’m sure Toronto has it, and I can bet you money Vancouver has it, too. But not to worry, Montreal had it. Montreal was blessed with a little more cool last week with a pop-up coffee shop.
For those of you who didn’t watch ‘How To Make it in America’, a pop-up shop is a temporary store. What’s Really Good Magazine delivered this latest trend to Montreal hot and fresh with cupcakes, meatball sandwiches and cookies. But it was more than just a store serving food. It was also about the arts and the community. What’s Really Good Magazine prepared the shop to celebrate their 8th anniversary (#ATEYear) of being online. Some of the proceeds went to the Share the Warmth charity.
What’s Really Good Magazine opened the coffee shop on St. Denis street on Friday and closed midnight Sunday. Over the 3-day span they had a long list of Montreal DJs playing tunes and artists live painting on canvases. To some it was an art gallery, to others it was a place to chill and have a bite to eat. For the few hours I was there, people did not stop popping into the store for goodies and ganders.
I went over with Montreal Alouette linebacker Shea Emry. We were both desperately craving cupcakes and tea. Leslie and Lindsey of WRGmag were proudly behind the bar preparing dishes for everyone in the shop. Shea and I shared every dish the WRG pop-up had to offer. You can find some of the recipes on their website.
There are two takeaways here: Don’t cover the bill if you’re eating with a linebacker, and be courageous. WRGmag had some balls to open up that shop and I salute them. I hope and almost expect to see more pop-up shops of different kinds in the next little while – Montreal definitely deserves it.