Stash Café

200 Rue Saint-Paul Ouest, Montréal, QC H2Y 1Z9, Canada, Montréal

A Polish institution in Old Montreal that has been feeding the neighborhood since 1972, when Stanislaw "Stash" Pruszynski opened it as a modest flea-market gathering spot before it grew into a full restaurant. Run by Polish women since 1978, it now occupies a quiet corner near Place d'Youville, having carried its convent furnishings through two moves — including one forced by a fire that leveled its previous St-Sulpice building. A live pianist plays every night the room is open, turning a bowl of borscht into something closer to an evening out than a quick meal.