MATTHEW DALDALIAN | Local Journalism Initiative Reporter | matt.newsfirst@gmail.com
The scent of coffee mixed with the low hum of conversation at a McDonald’s on Saint-Martin Blvd. this week — not your typical morning scene, but a deliberate one.
Laval police officers took a step back from patrols and paperwork to meet citizens face-to-face as part of “grand café avec un policier,” (grand coffee with a police officer) a province-wide initiative aiming to foster dialogue between police and the communities they serve.
Held during Quebec’s official Police Week, the event created a relaxed setting for conversation, reflection, and the kind of small interactions aimed to humanize a uniform. “It’s all about creating a relaxed environment where officers can connect with citizens,” said Pierre Brochet, Director of the Laval Police Service (SPL), while pointing out an officer chatting with customers nearby.
“Too often, policing is only seen through a negative lens — use of force, difficult incidents that make the news. But at the end of the day, we’re people helping other people.” Brochet, who also serves as president of the Association des directeurs de police du Québec (ADPQ),said he launched a province-wide campaign three years ago aimed at reshaping public perceptions of police work.
He acknowledged that incidents like the George Floyd case in the U.S. sparked broader criticism of policing, including in Quebec. “At one point, I said: we need to start talking positively about this profession,” Brochet explained.
For some Laval residents, the event was a happy accident. Marthe-Élise Thomas, a science teacher at Secondary School Pierre-Laporte, hadn’t planned to stop in for coffee. “I had no idea,” she said. “I never go into McDonald’s.” Though she usually sticks to the drive-thru, a later start to her workday gave her the rare chance to sit down — and unexpectedly engage with local police.
Thomas, who was grading student work at a nearby table, accepted a coffee from one of the officers and came to understand the gesture was about more than just caffeine. She sensed the goal was to build a connection with the community. As someone with family ties to the profession — “my brother was a police officer,” she noted — Thomas said the event reaffirmed what she already knew about the people behind the badge.
“Police often have a bad reputation — people think they’re only around to hand out tickets,” she said. That kind of impact, according to SPL spokesperson Officer Nicolas Mongeau, is exactly the goal. “The event helps break down barriers between officers and citizens while strengthening trust in the police service,” he said.
“Meeting people in a context where we’re not responding to a call, but doing prevention work, gives them the chance to ask questions about what we do and better understand our role.” Mongeau explained that the initiative is part of the broader Intersection network — a coalition of police services across Quebec that coordinate public outreach and prevention strategies.
In Laval, that has included everything from in-restaurant events to soccer matches and even “lemonade with a cop” gatherings in local parks to reach younger audiences. And while the tone of the morning may have been casual, the concerns raised by residents were anything but.
“The most common questions are usually about road safety,” Mongeau noted. “People often bring up speeding on their street or reckless driving in the area— they’re concerned.” It’s an issue that hasn’t gone unnoticed by SPL leadership. According to Brochet, a survey conducted a few years ago revealed that 70% of Laval residents identified road safety as their primary concern — pointing to everyday issues like speeding, ignored stop signs, and dangerous driving near schools.
Brochet noted that events like this offer a chance to show parts of police work the public doesn’t always see. He referenced calls involving domestic violence as an example of the quieter, support-based aspects of the job that often go unnoticed.
Back at the Saint-Martin McDonald’s, the line for coffee may have been short, but the conversations were long, honest, and overdue. As Thomas quietly returned to her stack of student assignments, Brochet glanced across the room and summed up the scene simply: “We’re proud of the work we do.”
