I hate going downtown especially at this time of year, but I deal with it to go to the Indigo Bookstore... And I found my way to calm myself down after pushing through the crowds. (I might be exaggerating.)
I found this relatively new coffee shop down in Les Cours Mont-Royal, which looked pretty cute with lights dangling from the ceiling a bit everywhere, so I decided to try it. I ordered a hot chocolate and the barista was really nice. There's not much people here, which is what I look for in cafes and the atmosphere is calm and relaxing, with some soft music, not loud pop music (though we kind of hear some because of the shops around put it a bit loudly, but it's not the cafe's fault). And my hot chocolate was delicious!