by MARK SLUTSKY

These days Little Italy is known almost as much for its Latino restaurants as its Italian cafés, but one of the nicer, and newer, places to grab a bite or a coffee around the neighbourhood is neither. The Sablo Kafé, on the corner of St-Zotique and St-Dominique, is a bright, airy place, unpretentious and friendly, with an affordable menu offering a nice selection of simple, internationalist cuisine.

The Sablo's front room is big but comfortable, the space broken up with plants here and there that blow in the breeze on days when the doors are open. Art hangs on the walls; right now there's a nice show of photographic portraiture up, as well as some crazy, presumably computer-generated, flowery things on a black background.

The menu lists a variety of breakfast and lunch (or light dinner) choices, along with the chalkboard of daily specials on the wall. Breakfast is definitely a strong point here. There are several egg dishes in the $4–$6 range, and they're all quite tasty. I especially enjoyed the Bou-Bou ($4.75), which consisted of eggs scrambled with spicy coriander chutney and served in a little white ceramic bowl. You don't see too many spicy egg dishes on this town's breakfast menus, and it's a shame, for the combination is a winning one. Also worth trying is the verdure ($4.50), which features eggs scrambled with cheese and fresh herbs, a variation on the traditional omelette.

All the breakfasts are served with a healthy arrangement of fresh fruit - bananas, melon, and to top it all off, a baked, cored half apple with a little dollop of cream. Filter coffee is included in the price. When I visited, the chalkboard was also advertising the somewhat intimidating Sablo Warrior omelette ($9.95), made with three cheeses, smoked turkey, pesto, tomatoes and mushrooms. If eggs aren't your style, bagels, grapefruit and the like are also available.

If you visit the Kafé later in the day, make a point of ordering the Looz Shorba soup ($2.95). A Middle-Eastern dish, the soup's made with ground almonds, heavy cream and lots of seasoning. It's quite a nutty delight, not to mention big and suitable for sharing. Also in the appetizer range are a couple of salads worth mentioning, most notably the spinach salad ($4.25), made with feta cheese, mint and a light vinaigrette - a flavourful and wholesome choice. An endive salad, $4.50, is also available, but they were out of endives when I visited.

Sandwiches and pasta make up the bulk of the Kafé's main dishes. I especially enjoyed the jerk chicken sandwich ($5.95), which came with a miniature side of almonds in a creamy, sweet sauce. Served on Italian bread, the chicken was lightly spiced and very tasty. The waiter had warned me that the dish was a hot one, though it tasted pretty mild to me (I was offered the option of super-sizing the spiciness when I ordered, but I declined, maybe a mistake on my part). Other sandwich fillings include smoked turkey, and a tandoori chicken sandwich with the same spicy coriander chutney that enhanced the Bou-Bou. (All sandwiches were in the $5–$7 range.) Less recommended was the cheese tortellini ($8.95), served in a creamy sauce. The sauce was tasty, but the pasta was overcooked - not a bad dish by any means, but I would've preferred it a little more al dente.

The Sablo is a great place to drop by, should you find yourself in the Little Italy/Petite-Patrie neighbourhood. In addition to the tasty food, there's a very full drink menu, including homemade fruit juice blends, and they're licensed for booze as well (they have a happy hour special from 5–7pm). Drop by on a Tuesday evening and stick around for the Kalmunity Live Organic Improv night, which takes over the place every week.

Sablo Kafé
ADDRESS: 50 St-Zotique E. (corner St-Dominique)
PHONE: 807-8241
HOURS: Sun 9AM–5PM; Tues 9AM–9PM; Wed–Sat 9AM–11PM
BEST FEATURES: Friendly atmosphere and inexpensive tasty food
ALCOHOL: Yes
WHEELCHAIR ACCESS: Yes
VEGETARIAN FRIENDLY: Yes
CREDIT CARDS: No
NO-SMOKING SECTION: Yes
PRICE: $5–$15 per person, before tax or tip
RATING: *** out of ****