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Pop Soda’s

The place so nice, they named it twice. Pop Soda’s Coffeehouse & Gallery (located at 625 Portage Ave. slightly east of Sherbrook Street) offers up good food, a great atmosphere and a stage for almost anything.
   
"We’re shooting for something that’s appropriate for all audiences and something that complements the atmosphere," says owner Christine Boss, 22. "People enjoying their meals can relax and enjoy music, poetry or comedy. It’s very relaxed. We can cater towards anybody who wants to perform as long as they’re respectful of the atmosphere."
   
Pop Soda’s — which opened in October of last year — offers entertainment almost every single night, including spoken word series Bang! It’s Poetry! every Tuesday, stand-comedy every second Wednesday and bands/singer-songwriters every night in between.
   
"It’s definitely been a learning curve because we didn’t know people would actually want to play here," says Boss, who formerly owned the Tomato Pie Co. restaurant in Osborne Village. "My husband (head chef at Pop’s) and I aren’t really involved in the music scene so we didn’t know there was such a need, that people needed a place to play. We haven’t really approached any bands, it’s more just ‘Can I play here?’ and we say ‘Yes, we’re flattered.’
   
"We’ve just had to make sure performers are respectful of the presence of our dining patrons, We have to maintain a balance volume wise where the musicians/performers are able to enjoy themselves, and we are able to operate our cafe smoothly. As long as the entertainment compliments the atmosphere, we’re open to having anybody play here."

"We wanted to function primarily as a self sustaining cafe, and initially built the stage area to function as a busk stop where patrons or whomever was inspired, could play without the pressure on them to attract a crowd, They could use it to simply to practice and explore their musical side or to perform and pass the hat. Since opening, we've been honored to receive tremendous support from many talented artist of all mediums from music to visual art."
   
Not just a venue for live entertainment, Pop’s also offers a diverse display of art, its walls decorated with paintings by Diana Thorneycroft, Peter Graham and Michael Boss (Christine’s father and head of studio programs at the Winnipeg Art Gallery) as well as pieces by less-established artists. Pop’s even has an art room where kids and their parents can get their paint on.
   
"My guilty pleasure is buying paints and not having the time to use them, so we have family Sundays," Boss says. "It gets so messy and so much fun. Last time there was a nine-month old baby on its stomach in blue paint going crazy and my daughter was covered in sparkles. We don’t charge anything and we provide some snacks. That’s what we want to do, have some fun things going on like play groups, knitting, things you wouldn’t normally go out to do. It’s almost like a community centre of activities, from young to old. In fact, we have the ladies from the Lions Manor coming here to play bridge and have cake and coffee."
   
Whether you’re at Pop Soda’s to eat, laugh, listen or rock out, Boss wants you to feel at home. She’s even inviting anyone interested to help paint the place’s many murals.
   
"Anything you want to do artistically to the space, you can," Boss says. "If you’ve never painted before, come and paint a wall. We want people to discover their creativity. Anyone can go up on stage and dance or play the piano, just get out there. It’s a fun, laidback space that everybody kind of owns."
   
For more info on Pop’s go to www.popsodascoffehouse.com.
   
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