Crew Collective & Café

Crew Collective & Café occupies the old main banking hall of the Royal Bank of Canada building at 360 rue Saint-Jacques in Old Montreal. The tower was built in 1927 and 1928 to designs by the New York firm York and Sawyer, working with the bank's chief Montreal architect Sumner Godfrey Davenport. At 121 metres and 22 floors, it was the tallest building in the British Empire when it was completed, until the Royal York Hotel in Toronto overtook it in 1929.

The bank moved its main office to Place Ville-Marie in 1962 but kept a branch in the hall until July 2012. Today the space is open to anyone who wants a coffee, and the scale of the neo-classical interior, with its high ceiling, is the reason many visitors come. Take a few minutes to look around before you settle in, and be considerate of people working at the tables.

The coffee is serious. Baristas use beans from the Montreal roaster Traffic Coffee for classic espresso drinks, hot or iced, and a custom filter blend. The signature drink is a dulce de leche latte, made with a double espresso and dulce de leche syrup. Brunch is served daily from 9am to 3pm, and orders can be placed online in advance through the café's ordering page, which is handy if you are short of time.

Crew is also a coworking space. Visitors can buy a day pass for shared booth seating, members have round-the-clock access, and meeting rooms can be booked online. The whole space can be hired for private events. This makes it one of the most useful cafés in the city for remote workers or anyone who needs to answer emails between sightseeing stops.

It suits architecture lovers, laptop workers and anyone who wants coffee in an unusual setting. A short visit for a drink and a look at the hall takes half an hour; a working session can last all day.

Full opening hours are not listed on the home page, so check before a very early or late visit. Olive et Gourmando on rue Saint-Paul is also in Old Montreal if you want a full lunch.