n.d.g.’s beloved shaika café reborn with portuguese twist

the husk of shaika café sat on the corner of sherbrooke st. and old orchard ave. in notre-dame-de-grâce for nearly half a decade, a constant reminder to passersby of the quiet demise of the once-bustling community spot.in a surprising twist, it reopened its doors on thursday, with a green makeover of the facade and a new vision. still technically shaika café, it has been reborn as a portuguese-inspired café-bar that honours its predecessor in ways that stretch beyond the name.

allen mcinnis / montreal gazette

sitting at a front table of the café, owner alex fernandes said his initial idea was to open a portuguese restaurant, plain and simple — until he stumbled upon the lore of shaika, a place that hosted concerts, open-mic nights and art exhibits. "i started talking to the neighbours; everybody was telling me about shaika," he said. "i thought it was such a nice story and i decided to keep it that way — but i added a little portuguese to it, a little flair."the last owners of shaika café had attempted to sell the business in the spring of 2021 and quietly closed shortly thereafter, leaving customers bereft.

marie-france coallier / montreal gazette files

"the community was heartbroken and they have not stopped talking about it," said mauricio peña, administrator of the thrive ndg community facebook group, who showed up thursday to support the opening. "consistently, they've been posting about it. it didn't help — or it did, let's say — that the exterior stayed the same. it was a constant reminder to everybody walking by that it still exists; it's a part of your community."name aside, it takes a minute to locate the shaika references upon entering. the wooden pallets and string lights are no more, and the mismatched furniture and glassware have been replaced with, perhaps unsurprisingly, new stuff. but art still decorates the walls and the general layout is the same, with a small stage intact at the back. glance at the menu, and the sandwiches will sound familiar."i just changed the bread for portuguese rolls," fernandes said. "i didn't have much information about it. ... i tried to do my best, my vision of it."

allen mcinnis / montreal gazette

fernandes's vision includes coffee, pastries, tapas, sandwiches, salads, smoothies and cocktails. the concept, combined with the terrasse directly on sherbrooke st.'s wide sidewalk sans perimeter, across from n.d.g. park, feels quintessentially european."my influence is, really, european," fernandes responded matter-of-factly to the observation. take a closer look at the menu, and his greek roots also shine through: greek salad, baklava cheesecake and baked feta.the café had a steady stream of customers shortly after opening, including pnina brender, who has lived in the neighbourhood for 16 years and regularly frequented shaika in its former iteration. "it was sort of the heart of the community for us, a place right across from our beautiful park where we can come to get a nice drink, a bite to eat, and also just to hang out with friends and neighbours," she said, adding that she was "overjoyed" about the news of the reopening. sitting across from brender, rachel hoffman agreed the closure had been crushing."this was the place that was kind of the community centre, a place that you could not just come here with people, but ... run into people already here that you knew," she said.

allen mcinnis / montreal gazette

acknowledging that it's a departure from the original shaika, brender said she suspected as much. "but they did honour a lot of things," she said. "i also appreciate the fact that the new owners are putting their own flair to it, they're making their own choices." both pointed out that sit-down cafés are few and far between in eastern n.d.g., and that a business of this kind — regardless of affiliation to old shaika — was much needed in the area. "we've been missing this, a place of a good size," hoffman said. "i'm happy it's open." asked how he thinks the community will react to his vision, fernandes said simply: "i hope they like it."that's why i'm doing this," he said. "it really comes from the heart. this business is not about the money — it's really about the love of it." shaika café, located at 5526 sherbrooke st. w., is open from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily.kthomas@postmedia.com