While staying in Montreal last month we took a day trip to Prévost, in the Laurentians. Xavier was keen to visit a bakery there he'd heard about, intriguingly named 'Merci la Vie'. (I saw intriguingly because I don't remember coming across an equivalent in English, but I will add beautifully named, also).
Albert and Johanne opened their unique and lovely bakery/café in November 2015, and have garnered an excellent, and deserved, reputation since. The space is small but open and light, and as a visitor you feel a part of the action, with Albert's workspace just beside the tables and the rest of the team bustling away just on the other side of the counter. And the food! We tried both pizzas (one with a garlicky, fresh tomato base, the other with pancetta and egg), the soupe du jour (à l'oignon), and a deliciously rich cookie composed of matcha, pistachio, cardamon and white chococolate. Everything seemed to have a unique twist (pizzas have a naan-like dough, chargrilled) and was beautiful to taste and look at.
Merci, Merci la Vie!