Here's what's replacing Casa Coffee in Kensington Market
Fans of the Kensington Market mainstay Casa Coffee were crushed last month to learn that their favourite corner café slash bulk food shop would be closing its doors for good after 55 years in business.
It was unclear, at the time of its May 31 closure, what would become of the coffee and candy emporium's corner space at Augusta and Baldwin avenues.
A few days later, we have our answer, and it has nothing to do with condos.
Canadian cannabis rights activist Jodie Emery (oft-dubbed the "princess of pot") announced on Instagram Tuesday that she will be launching a hemp-themed cafe called Jodie's Joint in the space left behind by Casa Coffee, complete with the former occupant's blessing and support.
"I'm honoured to have been chosen as the inheritor of a cornerstone landmark, where 'Casa Coffee' operated for decades in the heart of Kensington Market," wrote Emery on Instagram in announcing the business.
"It's a privilege to be able to carry on the corner cafe tradition that Ozzie and his family have built up for more than half a century."
Emery stressed in her post that Jodie's Joint will not be a dispensary, and that no cannabis products will be sold there until legally permitted.
"While I am most well-known for cannabis legalization activism, this cafe is focused on offering my other personal passion: great coffee!" she wrote in another post on the new cafe's Instagram page.
That said, she wrote that "Jodie’s Joint is also a form of community advocacy, by aiming to normalize cannabis hemp alongside already-normalized coffee culture."
Emery says her intention is to keep the space a welcoming place to engage with locals and tourists, in fitting with how Casa functioned since 1963.
"It's an honour and pleasure to join the many diverse shops, restaurants, cafes and businesses that make Kensington Market so special to so many people," she wrote.
Jodie's Joint is expected to open sometime this summer.
Jesse Milns
