Soon-to-open Port Bistro to offer unique atmosphere, affordable local food products

By Kirk Starratt

THE ADVERTISER/NovaNewsNow.com

Years of planning and conceptualizing will soon come to fruition for proponents of the new Port Bistro on the Port Williams waterfront.

President and CEO Bruce McLeod says they’ve come a long way since that first evening a few years ago when a group of doctors got together for a few beers and started discussing the idea. They hope to open to the public by Nov. 20. They have been conducting interviews for staff positions for the last couple weeks and will probably be creating 25 full and part-time jobs.

Their goals include providing employment, increasing the tax base and hopefully acting as an anchor for economic development or redevelopment in Port Williams. He said one reason Maple Leaf sold them the land was because they knew something would be done with it in terms of economic development.

There are rumours circulating that the “gastropub” will be a private club for doctors and that the menu will be too overpriced for the average person, but McLeod said neither is true. At the moment, the highest priced single menu item is $13.95, and that contains lobster. They’re hoping to be able to maintain affordable menu prices. The chef will be Michael Howell of the Tempest Restaurant.

“We want healthy, local, affordable food,” McLeod said, pointing out that the establishment won’t be black tie or private. “It’s not in any way exclusive. We want to be as broad-based as possible.”

They plan to bring in fresh local vegetables, fruit and meat from surrounding farms. The mash from beer produced by brew master Randy Lawrence at the Sea Level Brewery, a separate business located with and supplying the pub, will be fed to cattle on a local farm. In turn, beef from the cattle will be served at the pub. Lawrence will be featuring an organic beer, as well.

Local talent

They plan to utilize local musical talent and there’s lots of wall space for local artists to showcase their work. There will be a deck facing the Wolfville waterfront and a unique garden sitting area nearby. It’s a quiet area with a great view.

McLeod said they’d need to apply to the County of Kings for an amendment to their development agreement. The agreement calls for a 1,000 square-foot deck but the deck will be closer to 1,500 square feet. However, it’s all well contained between the establishment and the waterfront. McLeod said it was difficult to fully envision the deck before it was built and they’d like to increase their planned size.

The building design incorporated flood proofing but hopes for geo-thermal heating and cooling were dashed once a study was completed.

McLeod said they were quite disappointed to discover that it wouldn’t be cheaper to go this route and the pub would create a worse carbon footprint compared with other options. The government provided a $6,000 grant for a mechanical engineering study to explore the geo-thermal option.

He said they’re still bringing shareholders into the mix through a Community Economic Development Investment Fund (CEDIF). They have 45 now but hope to add another five, at a minimum investment of $5,000. This qualifies investors for a 30 per cent Nova Scotia Equity Tax Credit. The investment is RRSP eligible for further tax savings. They have raised over $1.1 million in capital for the project and they hope to come in on budget at $1.2 million so the “gastropub” will be close to being paid off the day it opens.