Bought in 1956 from a great-uncle moving back to Italy. The Serri family never left.
The grandparents, who arrived from Tuscany after the war, took over the café from a great-uncle who was going back home. Seventy years later, it is still the same address, the same counter, and the same family: Luciana Serri — who met her husband when he was a customer of the house — now keeps it with her daughters, Nadia and Laura.
The room has not changed, and it will not. The family refuses to open a second address. "There is only one Caffè Italia — this is where all our memories are," Nadia says. They are now serving the fourth generation of the original customers.
Espresso starts at 6 AM. In summer, the caffè freddo and caffè crema are among the best in the city; cannoli and panini hold the counter through the rest of the year. In 1985, the house gave its name to a documentary — Caffè Italia, Montréal — about the history of Italians in the city.