Chez Popo: Isle de Garde’s signature café-boutique

Above all, Chez Popo is a place to drink good coffee. We also head there for the soft serve and to peruse their boutique.

Chez Popo opened its doors on August 28, 2022, exactly eight years after the Isle de Garde adventure began. The gang behind the popular microbrewery is expanding its base on the stretch of Beaubien Street at the corner of Christophe-Colomb, where the brewery and the dining room of the popular microbrewery are already located.

Close to their community and their clientele, they have given themselves the mission to make the Petite-Patrie shine.

Tribute to Popo

The new owners wanted to pay tribute to the former occupant of the premises, the convenience store Chez Popo, by preserving its name. Michael Ruel, one of the partners, confides that for the people of the area, it was an important business. Moreover, the regulars are happy to find the familiar blue and yellow colours in the sign.

The small place, which has only two seats at the counter, is very welcoming. The walls are covered with stickers, bags of Traffic coffee – which is the coffee they serve – vinyls, baseball caps, t-shirts and other odds and ends.

A bit more space for Isle de Garde

Although the café-boutique occupies the front of the space, the back has become an extension of Isle de Garde. ” It might help us cut down on the wait for a table in the winter!” hopes Michael. A glass wall with a large door separates the two sections.

Chez Popo now serves the coffee at Isle de Garde. Although Chez Popo cannot accommodate seated customers, you can order their coffee in the microbrewery’s dining room. By the way, they are happy to share their wifi to whoever wants to come in and work during the day!

Another nice addition is the vegan soft serve. “To allow parents to drink their draught in peace, why not offer soft serve to the kids?” suggests Michael, confiding that many families stop by the terrace on their way home from school. The ice cream base comes from Iconoglace and Isle de Garde’s chef, Marc-Aurèle Lussier, has fun varying the flavours using local ingredients. Kids won’t be the only ones to enjoy this new addition to the neighbourhood: you can also enjoy it in an affogato.

How it all began

The idea for Chez Popo came about quite naturally. Michael explains that during the pandemic, they decided to help some musician friends by selling their records. They also started selling cans (of their own beer, of course), and then other merchandise created in collaboration with local artists.

Since the reopening of the dining room, it had become complicated to manage these sales during service.

Beer geeks, the partners also wanted to extend their curiosity to other beverages. It is Thierry Harvey, passionate about coffee since a trip to Australia, who decided to take this aspect more seriously and who now leads the project.

Chez Popo is a beautiful addition to the Isle de Garde family and the Petite-Patrie.

Written by Sarah Laporta
Photography by Alison Slattery

Last update: September 12, 2022

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