Ottawa restaurants and bars are gearing up for a boost in business after the Toronto Blue Jays clinched a spot in the World Series Monday.
With yesterday’s win against the Seattle Mariners, the Blue Jays are on their way to the World Series for the first time in 32 years. Dave Longbottom, owner of Flora Hall Brewing on Flora Street, called last night’s win and the upcoming action in the World Series “a galvanizing event.”
He told OBJ on Tuesday that while his bar has not typically been a place to catch sporting events, his team is setting up a projector in time for the World Series.
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“We’re traditionally never shown sports but we’re in the midst of installing a sort of dramatic projection screen, precisely for things like this where the world and Ottawa wants to watch. It’s not specifically for the Blue Jays, but I’m sure happy that they did win,” Longbottom said.
Though the projector isn’t exclusively to show the Jays’ games, Longbottom said plans to bring it out were “triggered by the building excitement” and “universal interest” in the MLB playoffs.
“The plan was catalyzed by the ever-increasing interest when a team – in this case, the only team in Canada – is in the mix,” he said. “I know my customers well and they’re going to enjoy watching it here at their watering hole, their gathering spot. It’s going to allow them to share the experience with their regular friends and colleagues here.”
He added that showing upcoming Blue Jays’ games will be of interest to everyone, even those who don’t typically follow sports.
“This is significant. It’s been a long time for Canada to wait for excitement like this. Even when a Canadian hockey team gets into the (NHL) finals, not everybody will support the team, but the Blue Jays are quite unique in that regard,” he said.
“This is one of those things where it transcends all sorts of different communities, because people are excited by the prospect of a Canadian baseball team taking on an American team. The excitement is palpable when I talk to customers,” he added.
Speaking to OBJ on Tuesday from Toronto, Alex Sirois said last night’s game made for an exciting environment at Rogers Centre in Toronto and at Lowertown Brewery on York Street in Ottawa.
Having created some buzz earlier this year by creating the “Sens Lot” – a parking lot that was turned into a viewing area when the Ottawa Senators were in the NHL playoffs for the first time since 2017 – the ByWard Market bar is now opening its second floor to accommodate sports fans, much as it did when the Ottawa Charge were in the playoffs.
“What we do now when there are big games is we open up the second floor, which used to be Sens House (Sports Bar & Grill) … We definitely opened it up last night and with that big of a win, it was great,” said Sirois, managing partner of the brewery’s operator, Ottawa Venues.
“The colder it gets, the less likely we would use (the Sens Lot). When it comes to the NHL playoffs, it makes sense,” he added.
As he looks forward to watching “Canada’s team” take on the Los Angeles Dodgers starting this Friday, Sirois said he expects his 345-person venue to be “absolutely packed” throughout the next week.
“(There will be) a lot of fans and a lot of excitement. We’ll definitely see a lot of business for it,” he said.
Over in Bells Corners, Derek Urban, general manager of High Fives Sports Pub on Robertson Road, said he hasn’t seen as much hype as he’d hoped in the lead-up to the World Series.
“Honestly, it hasn’t given us as much of an influx (in business) as we were hoping for … As we have gotten further into the playoffs, the buzz has grown,” Urban said.
With the promise of a Canadian team in the series final for the first time in more than three decades, Urban said he expects numbers to grow.
“Eighty per cent of people coming in (today), it’s the first thing they mention: ‘What a heck of a win last night!’ I think it’s gotten people a little more inspired, a little more intrigued,” he said.
Atlético Ottawa and Ottawa Rapid also in playoffs
The Blue Jays aren’t the only team with their eyes on the prize. Both of Ottawa’s professional soccer teams have clinched spots in their respective playoffs, with games kicking off tomorrow in the men’s Canadian Premier League and early November in the women’s Northern Super League.
Longbottom said he may not broadcast the local teams’ playoff games, opting instead to wait for the FIFA World Cup in 2026.
“Canada’s got a team in there next summer and that’s a completely different ball game. Everybody is going to be interested in that,” Longbottom said.
Sirois said he expects to see Atlético and Rapid fans before and after home games, but the biggest crowds of soccer fans will file in to watch the World Cup or the UEFA European Championship. “We were the unofficial local Spanish team watch party headquarters,” Sirois noted.
While Urban said the pub has a good following for English Premier League soccer, there hasn’t been as much traction in the regular season for either Canadian leagues.
“We have a good following for the EPL. We have supporter groups for four different (EPL) teams. For any one of their matches, I can expect a decent amount of volume, but there doesn’t seem to be the same kind of passion for the local teams,” Urban said.
Still, Urban said he’s expecting things to pick up once playoff games start.
“We’re advertising and we’ll always have it on here. People will keep a half-eye on it, but playoffs always intensifies people’s interests.”
