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| - Maybe I'm biased as I live upstairs from this gem of a cafe but a place where people remember your name and your usual orders is always heading in the right direction with its customer service experience in my opinion. As a native European who has idled away many an hour in cafes in Edinburgh, Dublin, Brussels and Bologna, La Plume for me is a true hybrid. It has the precision of the perfect Italian cafe with perfect short espresso shots and exemplary cleanliness. The staff while relaxed are always busy even when there's no one waiting to be served... It has the expert service of Brussels; efficient, polite, friendly and professional...And most importantly knowledgeable. I like when someone can speak at length about their coffee beans, ingredients in sandwiches and who know the difference between a tea and a tisane! There's definitely passion here, genuine passion. It has a bit of the atmosphere of Dublin and Edinburgh too. It has the service of a great restaurant and the laid-backness of an Irish pub... it feels slightly edgy and very unique. The place is replete with interesting magazines on the wall, interesting people sitting around, all shapes, sizes, styles and backgrounds, old and young, professional, artist, student, geek, tourist, fashionable, gay, straight, gorgeous... They all drift in and out, blending seamlessly into the cafe. The music played always causes me to ask the owners what the last song was... The view out the window onto Avenue du Mont Royal Ouest is always interesting especially with the Veterinaire next door as you see all manner of pampered pooches and their owners coming and going. Of course such a place can only exist in Montreal. And ultimately from my experience thus far, Montreal is like the coffee in La Plume, a perfect unique blend of all the things you like.
PS: All the prices here are inclusive of tax. There just isn't enough of that in Montreal!
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