Café La Touche

Montreal has a lot of coffee shops, so if you’re going to open one here, you need an edge to separate you from the rest. At Café La Touche, owner Koony Nalbandian sets himself apart with a broad selection of coffee beans from around the world, from which he will make you a customized mix depending on what flavours you prefer. “If you say ‘I don’t like acidity,’ or ‘I don’t like bitter,’ but you want to have a lot of fruit flavour, or mocha flavour, that is not a problem for me,” Koony explains. “Maybe you want a lot of acidity, and a lot of bitter, it’s not a problem for me either.”

Each bean has its own distinct flavour and everyone has their own preferences. That’s why Koony will let you sample beans before you buy anything. He also sells beans in bulk, so you can purchase whatever amount you want. “If you taste Cabernet Sauvignon from Australia, or Africa, or California, it’s not the same,” Koony points out. “The Arabica coffee bean is the same way. If you taste the Arabica from Ethiopia, from Nicaragua, from Bolivia, it's not the same thing.”