Café Postal’s Special Delivery
Making music and making coffee have more in common than you might think.
“You’re interacting with people, it’s detail-oriented. It’s like being on stage. They’re watching everything you do. You create and experience and offer a product to wow them.”
Louis Lévesque Côté was a touring musician, working at Café Postal between gigs. When the opportunity to buy in to the business arrived nearly seven years ago, he was ready to seal the envelope on life on the road.
For the last four years, he and Shaylyn Plett have managed the St. Boniface coffee shop together. Now, the postage-stamp-sized space is poised for an expansion. “We’re proud of what we have been able to do with only nine seats,” said Côté. “We’re still here and it keeps getting better.”
The French Quarter café will expand into former office space that recently became available in the building at 202 Provencher Blvd, tripling in size.
“People come to discover the francophone aspect” said Plett of the environment at the café. “We’re happy and proud to live our culture here.” Creativity is also part of the café’s ethos, springing from Côté’s musical and Plett’s artistic backgrounds. More room means a bigger opportunity to offer the café as a hub for a community of artists and musicians and a place to host events and exhibits.
The expansion project is awaiting permits. Once secured, Plett and Côté expect things to move quickly, as much of the work can be done in the new space before the walls are opened between old and new. It also means regular service at the café can continue until the spaces are joined.
The café’s product line is also expanding with the introduction of a bottled cold brew line, called Boulevard. The effort is driven by Café Postal’s Dom Druwé, who has researched and worked alongside supplier Flatland Coffee Roasters to develop the brew. Using Gimli’s Flatland is an extension of the café’s commitment to local. “It’s important to keep local dollars here and have those relationships with the community and the people who live here” said Côté.
“We know the shop owners around us. You’re not going to see the CEO of Starbucks going to buy milk,” he said.
“We want an environment where people are welcome and feel important and valued. We take the time to get to know them, not just to be polite or because they are customers,” said Plett. “Our regulars become friends. They’re part of the family.”
All photos by Claudine Gervais
