Not just as in a place to escape the heat--but "cool" as in, you want to hang out here all day. Montage offers not just a clean aesthetic (with stools covered in beautiful Japanese imported textiles) but delicious coffee by West Roast. Located in the Red House Arts Center complex, just across the street from the SU Warehouse on Fayette and West Street, I suddenly have a place to get my coffee on as I walk to campus. Need more reasons to check it out? Can you say--baked goods by The Sweet Praxis and a commitment to sourcing local ingredients? All brought to you by Christian VanLuven and Tomomi Yoshida--the couple behind Roji Tea Lounge.
Get there.
Montage: Cafe and Bar, 219 West Street (at Fayette)
sounds good to me. Is parking available?
Posted by: Balogh | August 08, 2011 at 08:44 AM
Yes! There's parking right in front of the cafe--enter the lot off West or Fayette. I'll edit that in the post. Thanks Steve!
Posted by: Jennifer BB | August 08, 2011 at 09:13 AM
Darnit! This means there are good local baked goods nearby? I'm holding you personally responsible for my inevitable weight gain...
Posted by: Andy | August 11, 2011 at 05:56 PM
Sounds like it's worth checking out. Thank you for sharing!
Posted by: Security Integrations | August 12, 2011 at 05:14 PM
How can we get a dinner club started?! I think they have one at meetup.com but I'd like something a little more local.
Posted by: Meg | August 13, 2011 at 04:05 PM
We went on Saturday night. Nice place although it feels a bit more like a candidate to be a sushi bar than a cozy cafe. We had planned to go to Roji - which has a nice cozy lived-in feel - but opted for Montage instead. I'm very critical regrading the quality of espresso drinks and although they're using a "super-auto" machine (grinds tamps and brews espresso shot automatically) the quality of the blend made for a tasty drink. I asked if they made their drinks with double shots, as advised that they were, and then discovered that they interpreted that as an optional request rather than a clarification of how they made their standard drinks. The long and short of it is that for a small peppermint tea, a small cappuccino with a double shot, and a small bar of dark chocolate... we spent about $11.50 with tax before tipping. I liked Montage and it's all done in a very professional way but I think it needs a little tweaking. Understandable as it is new and I think they have a good future ahead of them.
Posted by: Owen O'Neill | August 18, 2011 at 02:54 PM
Hi Meg--if you are interested in starting a dinner club, email me. We've had one in the past and it would be great to revive it.
Owen--thanks for your mini-review. Sounds like they are in typical restaurant start up mode--I have no doubt they'll work out the kinks. I'm excited to see how Montage develops.
Posted by: Jennifer BB | August 21, 2011 at 02:57 PM
Yes - I'm also excited to see how Montage develops. It has the more sophisticated feel and aesthetic of the progressive cafes I have visited in larger metro markets - and that is something we could use in Syracuse. I do think they could do a much better job with the espresso drinks (I'm a part time coffee roaster and hard core espresso enthusiast.) I keep hoping that someone will open a cafe in Syracuse where the espresso and milk based espresso drinks are as good as what I make at my home bar but it still hasn't happened. They obviously put plenty of time, thought and money into the design. if they follow through with the details on the service and drink preparation process it could become my go-to spot for a place to get out to at night. As much as I love my home espresso bar and the drinks I make... getting out in a social and public environment creates a balance that I feel is important.
Posted by: Owen O'Neill | August 24, 2011 at 09:40 AM
I'm interested in starting a dinner club either.
And welcome to my home page:Fashion cooking,nice either!Thank you!
Posted by: Anglelabay | November 17, 2011 at 12:54 AM