In 1958, André Roy bought a premises from a man named Paul-Émile, at the corner of Knox and Charlevoix streets. He keeps the first name. The Roy family has not left Pointe-Saint-Charles since.
André Roy had already been running Le Roi Snackbar since 1956 when he bought, in 1958, a location on the corner of Knox and Charlevoix streets, in Pointe-Saint-Charles. “I had already been running Le Roi Snackbar since 1956, and then I bought this place from a guy called Paul-Émile. I decided to keep the idea of his first name, and to rename my business Paul Patates! ”, he would tell Tastet decades later. Born on Knox Street in 1935, he has never left the neighbourhood: “I have known this corner of the city forever, and over time, we have been able to build a loyal clientele. ”
In 1990, André and his wife handed over the business to their son Dany, who set up shop at the corner of Charlevoix and Coleraine streets – the current address – and himself designed the blue and yellow retro decor, around thirty seats. The menu remains deliberately unchanged: steamed hot dogs, fries, poutine, Angus beef hamburger, club sandwich, smoked meat.
The signature of the house remains the house spruce beer, brewed on site the old-fashioned way for half a century - four ingredients, fermentation carried entirely by yeast, two versions sold in bottle (Bertrand, according to a recipe from 1898, and Émile, sweeter). The seventies decor of the snack bar also attracted the cameras: a cult hot dog scene from the series Taxi 0-22, with Patrick Huard, was filmed there.
Service is done at the counter, but without haste: “Here, we do counter service, but not fast food; people want to take the time to share and discuss with us,” says Dany.