Monday, November 07, 2016

Another Point St. Charles landmark doomed to close













*** UPDATE ****
The Capri has updated its date of closure to 24 Feb. It will then relocate to the Pub St. Charles at Butler and Wellington, on the cusp of Verdun. It will open at its new location on April 18.
***

Capri Basserie on St. Patrick will close forever on Dec. 23 and the building will be demolished, a staffer has told Coolopolis, although a borough official said that no demolition has been authorized.
Capri employees 2006
   The Capri, on the southeast corner of Laprairie, was a competitor of Magnans, two blocks west, which also closed recently.
   St. Patrick Street has been entirely closed for repairs for many months, a factor that could not have helped business.
   For a time many of the English-speaking people who didn't feel too at home at Magnans moved over to this place where old-time Irishmen were known to sing at their tables.
   In recent times it has been run by former NHL winger Yvon Lambert, who twice scored 32 goals and won four Stanley Cups for the Canadiens playing on an effective third line with Doug Risebrough and Mario Tremblay.
 
Anthony Bourdain once featured the Capri on his show
 The Capri opened in about 1960, a time when Point St. Charles had about 40,000 residents, about twice what it has today and plenty of blue collar jobs to fill their pockets.
   That era ended a few years later when industrial jobs shut down and many moved away or went on welfare.
   About half of the homes in the area are now government subsidized and it has become one of the poorest areas in the city.
   St. Patrick Street, however, appears to have some waterside appeal as it's just a puck's toss from the idyllic Lachine Canal and not far from the poser-tastique Atwater Market, so some upscale potential exists for further wealthification.   

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2 comments:

  1. I used to see Yvon Lambert from time to time some 7-8 years ago at a place called Pub St-Jacques (I belive) at 4210 St-Jacques in St-Henri, now called Pub Epoxy. It was probably before he got involved in the Capri. I used to go to the Capri with friends on Spaghetti night. The cost of beer was always higher there than the competitors in the area, such as the Regal on Center street.

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  2. I don't think it is now still considered one of the "poorest"areas with houses selling between $300,000 and $1.5 million????

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