Montreal has plenty of cocktail bars where music helps create the atmosphere. At Sample, the relationship is reversed. It focuses on a music-first approach. The new hi-fi listening bar in Old Montreal puts vinyl and attentive listening at the centre of the experience, while cocktails, conversation and hospitality are built around it.
Sample officially opened on July 13 at 101 De la Commune Street West, beneath the boutique Arcadia Hotel. The basement space sits inside a greystone building that dates back to 1863. It was previously used as a café before the Sample team took it over.
The lounge comes from the group behind several established Montreal bars, including The Coldroom, El Pequeño Bar, Bar Bello and Bisou Bisou. Sidenote: El Pequeño Bar is Quebec’s smallest bar and Canada’s second smallest. You’ve probably walked by it many times without even knowing it was there. I’d say that it could make for an interesting evening if you start off at Sample, with its lounge atmosphere and then move on to the small party-ready cocktail bar (with its room for 11 people!).
During the official opening, I spoke at length with managing partner Jama Joachim, who explained that the team wanted to build the identity of the brand around the room itself.
A Bar Where the Music Comes First
At most bars, the playlist is something you hear without really listening to it. At Sample, the vinyl collection and analog sound system are intended to hold your attention. The room launched with around 150 records, four speakers, and studio-quality acoustics.
To be sure, Sample isn’t trying to become a nightclub. You can move or dance when the mood feels right, but the system and layout weren’t created for a packed dance floor or booming club music. Instead, the idea is to sit down, listen closely, and let an album or carefully selected series of records shape the evening.
Modibo Keita, whose curatorial work includes the Festival International de Jazz de Montréal, is helping develop the musical direction of the bar. Every second Wednesday, Keita is expected to lead guided listening sessions. He’ll play selected records and pause after every few songs to provide background, context, and observations about what guests have just heard.
There are also plans for Monday events where guests can bring their own vinyl, along with Sunday programming centred on the B-sides of records.
That kind of programming may help Sample become more than a room people visit once because it’s new. It gives music fans a reason to return and participate.
Put the Phone Away for a While
One of the strongest ideas behind Sample is also one of the simplest: Slow down and stop staring at your phone. Sample wants to encourage guests to leave their phone off the table. They want them to be more present in what’s happening in the room.
That doesn’t mean the bar is silent or overly serious. It’s still a social space. The seating is intimate, with many guests positioned close enough that starting a conversation with the person beside you could feel natural.
In the right circumstances, the music itself provides the opening. Someone recognizes a record. Another person comments on the song. A conversation begins without anyone needing to get drunk first or shout over a nightclub sound system.
Of course, the close seating also means Sample may not be the ideal destination for a highly private conversation. Depending on where you sit and how busy the room is, neighbouring guests may be close enough to hear you.
Even the Cocktail Program Avoids Distractions
Sample describes its concept as “Hi-Fi & Highballs,” but Joachim stressed that guests shouldn’t hear the bar operating over the music. There’s no loud cocktail shaker competing with the record currently playing. Drinks are built around highballs, stirred cocktails and other preparations that can be made without disrupting the listening experience.
I found this to be an unusual decision because it limits the types of cocktails the bar can offer. At the same time, it reinforces the concept according to the team behind the lounge. Sample isn’t claiming that music comes first while allowing every other part of the operation to interrupt it.
Giving People a Reason to Go Out
Opening a new bar is difficult at a time when many people are watching how much they spend. Joachim said the team didn’t want to open another smooth, attractive cocktail lounge and assume that was enough. They understood that people increasingly need a clear reason to spend money on a night out. Sample’s answer is to offer an experience that can’t be recreated by ordering a drink at home and playing a Spotify playlist.
Sample is for people who want to hear the music, enjoy a well-made drink and spend an evening paying attention again.
Sample Listening Bar
101 De la Commune Street West
Old Montreal
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