Café de Mercanti

Growing up in Italy, Gianni Battista was used to seeing espresso bars everywhere – not to mention he worked at one owned by his best friend, just outside of Rome. In 2012, he was living in Montreal and wanted to recreate that Italian style café that he remembered. “When I came back to Montreal, I never felt there was a typical, authentic Italian café,” explains Gianni. “I wanted to do something more authentic and cultural. I wanted to bring a little bit of Italian culture to the city.”

Café de’ Mercanti opened in a small 400 square foot shop in NDG with a straightforward menu – great Italian roasted coffee, pastries, desserts and gelato. “My concept was only and specifically Italian culture,” says Gianni. “All the products and all the coffees I serve are Italian. You’re not going to find chai lattes, or anything with flavouring. It’s pure Italian, the way I’ve been serving coffee all my life.”