Cafe Java Mythe

since you can’t half star on Unilocal,i rate down. its a 3.5*
a new season of indie coffee passport, a new season of discovering new cafés that are less than a year old or in this case, have been a fixture for close to a decade. located in the heart of villeray (just one street north of jarry on henri-​julien), this indie café has been serving the city (they won the krups contest 3 straight years, from 2009 – 2011 and were voted as the best of 2015 according to ctv montreal. i wouldn’t pay too much attention to news outlet when it comes to best of anything) before the 3^rd wave craze.
in terms of coffee, they are italian and do organic beans. you read that right, an italian doing organic. you don’t see that often. if they didn’t change beans through the years, its «toi, moi et café» that you’ll be drinking. i have to say, i’m not a fan of «toi, moi et café» as i find it lackluster and there’s better organic (like kittel). nonetheless, they’re part of the indie passport, gotta give them a chance to impress.
java mythe didn’t ring a bell until i looked them up on google. that’s when i remembered stefano faita mentioning that it is his favorite espresso shop and as far as i know, his taste is usually spot on so it should be at least decent.
so, on a very humid and extreme heatwave monday mid-​morning, between my heavy duty laundry cycles, i bike my way to this café shop. took me a little while in this heat but its very easy to access as its at the corner of henri-​julien which is going straight north from marché jean-​talon. if by public transit, getting off at metro jarry and its a short-​moderate walk from it. the neighborhood is very quiet as most of villeray. the shop is big enough for a small group. high chairs and tables and one church bench make up the place. i don’t know what happened to the terrace but there’s a city bench.
anyway, once in, you are welcomed by the barista and the owner of the place, George is his name. extremely welcoming and very friendly. first thing that hits you (sign by the door), NO WIFI and no outlets. forget your laptop, don’t talk on the phone, grab a coffee, have a talk with other patrons or read a book and relax. that’s the vibe of the place. friendly relaxing neighborhood café.
while they are known for their espresso, i went with my regular cappuccino. once ready, made my way to one of the free table to enjoy it. owner came by and ask some questions to get a feel of a new client. i personally didn’t mind at all. you get to know the place a little bit more and most of all, you get to know what they are good at and of course, you become more than just a client. you’re like a friend or neighbor.
as for coffee, it came in very hot. it took a good 10 minutes to get to the right temp. its decent good coffee. its a bit more bitter and different from other «toi, moi et café» that i got to try. in a way, its better but i wouldn’t go out of my way for. i’ll be back though to try their famed espresso.
if it weren’t for «toi, moi et café» lackluster beans, i’d rate them higher but you know

Awesome coffee and ambiance. Come here if you want a quiet moment. There is no internet or electrical outlets. This is not a place to necessarily work but more to relax and get away from work and noise.
The staff is super nice.

Très bon café ! Ambiance chaleureuse ! Le propriétaire et les employés sont toujours souriants et serviables. Je recommande cet endroit.

Popped in for a latté when I had a few minutes before an appointment in the area. The drink was the perfect temperature and had pretty decent foam for a soy milk latté. I love that it’s fairly traded coffee. The high stools (with back) were surprisingly comfy.
There was a note near my seat that due to abuse of free wifi they no longer provided access to electrical outlets. For me, this is a big plus … people in the café made eye contact and smiled rather than being in a little computer bubble all by themselves.
I’ll be back for longer than 15 minutes the next time I’m in the area and hope to try some of the food… it all looked so good sitting there on other people’s plates.

tres bon caffe. que dire de plus? la bonheur un samedi matin tot ensoleillé:-)

Happened upon here the other day — and now couldn’t recommend it enough. We had two café glacés, which were amazing, and George took the time to make us two espressos free of charge, explaining the science and method behind making a quality espresso. Service was very friendly and professional, and the product was great as well. Win-​win.

Excellent coffee and light meals (you’ll certainly come back for the coffee, maybe the paninis, possibly the breakast pastries).
Only uses and sells Fair Trade and Organic coffee beans from all over the world (from «Toi, Moi et Café»). Combines a small boutique inventory of gifts and coffee-​related paraphernalia.
George the owner is extremely welcoming and a very consistent top barista.
Won the 2009 and 2010 «Krups Kup of Excellence».