[coalminecanary]

Just heard via a friend of the owner that Gallaghers is finally opening (corner of john/augusta) -- this wednesday (i.e. tomorrow, april 30).

I don't know what time but I heard they are opening for dinner and of course staying open for drink time afterwards.

I am definitely going. I'll try to wear my light rail t-shirt in case anyone from here pops in and wants to see who I am... come say hi :-)

I have been peeking in the windows there for months and drooling. It looks really great in side. cozy, pub-ish. they have an upright piano there too... should be good times.

[DC83]

I have been peeking in the windows there for months and drooling. It looks really great in side.

phewph! So I'm not the only crazy-looking one! haha
I walk by it every day after work and check out what's good... never any news.

Do we know if they got the patio application approved?

edit: Game 4 (Habs v. Flyers) is on tmw night... perhaps I should watch it here? I think I just may! (IF it's open haha)

[coalminecanary]

THey had better be open

i will be angry if my first impressio of them is walking up to a locked door. then it will feel like the corktown!

[DC83]

^^ If that's the case, I guess we can both just stand there and stare through the windows together! hahaha

[coalminecanary]

hahaha... i admit, i'm a pro at it.

[coalminecanary]

I just talked to them and they are opening at 5:30 tomorrow, kitchen will be open as well. I'm gering up to welcome these guys to the neighbourhood like crayzee!

[DC83]

^^ Sweet!! I wish they would have made the opening a bigger deal! There's no sign or anything?

You're from Corktown, right Coalmine? Have you gotten an issue of the Corktowner or Corktown Gazette or whatever the heck it's called lately?
I got my 'Downtowner' newsletter yesterday, but haven't gotten the Corktown one in months!

[FairHamilton]

^^ Sweet!! I wish they would have made the opening a bigger deal! There's no sign or anything?

Perhaps their plan is to have a 'soft opening', which many places do so they can work issues out and get up to speed before having a 'Grand Opening' event.

[block43]

^^ Sweet!! I wish they would have made the opening a bigger deal! There's no sign or anything?

It seems like whenever new businesses open in hamilton they never make it a big deal. If I was openning a restaurant or shop I'd be marketing it for weeks before the opening to create a buzz.

I don't get it.

[coalminecanary]

Ya i'm from corktown.

Did you move here recently? How long have you lived in corktown? The new crier is due out soon, its just a slow process due to a small team working on it :-)

[raisethehammer]

How was Gallaghers??

[DC83]

How was Gallaghers??

Hey, I 4got to mention I was there not too long ago and they actually don't have a menu menu yet, just bar service.

HOWEVER, I was informed (at the time) that they'll be launching their true menu in conjunction w/ the opening of their patio!!! :D

I'm so surprised they got the patio license considering it's on a residential street!? Whatev, I'm psyched! I also love how the dining room facing John St has a garage-door'esq window. This place should be awesome once the patio's all set up (and they have actual food haha)!

[raisethehammer]

awesome news!
I walked by last week when the sliding door was open...the place looks friggin wicked.
Another hot addition to downtown on a new TWO-WAY STREET! yes!

[DC83]

^^ OH, in addition to Gallaghers, I stopped in at Shawarma Hut (the new Shawarma place on John/Jackson -- same new TWO-WAY street) Sat night on my walk home from the bars and it was awesome!

Worth checking out, 4sure!

[thistleclub]

This place has some potential. Sometimes I wish I had a sensory EQ, though. I would fine tune the lighting, drop the art to eye level, knock the bar down by about three inches and extend the look of the lounge in the middle to the northernmost room. Still, better than silver spray paint and karaoke.

[raisethehammer]

so, Gallaghers is getting their patio:

http://www.myhamilton.ca/NR/rdonlyres/0171734F-4B21-473F-B11D-510FC7080DA1/0/Aug06PW08087.pdf

Pretty bad when the owner needs to go through the neighbourhood and get 35 signatures to help approve a patio.
"too many patios in the neighbourhood" was some of the opposition. Yea, it's another Hess Village over there on John Street.

[Jon Dalton]

Shawarma hut disappoints, unfortunately, but it's close. I hope the Augusta St. momentum spills over to James next. James South could use a ton more diversity.

[coalminecanary]

Great to see some patios being approved. Hopefully the corktown will get one. I just don't understand fighting patio applications. Patios mean more eyes on the streets, more activity, more vibrancy and safer streets. Of course there is a risk of noise problems, but those should be dealt with separately. I personally worry more about dark, quiet, abandoned streets than bustling ones.

[raisethehammer]

Nothing is noisier than speeding transport trucks and cars.
I had lunch in Little Italy in TO two weeks ago on a patio. It felt downright deathly quiet compared to Main or York (or most streets) in Hamilton.
I'd love to see a decible reading comparing streets like College with a ton of patios and Main with nothing but trucks and cars.

[thistleclub]

I think Gallaghers faced additional hurdles because it's on a residential strip – Augusta face, east of John, where it's the only patio (Cat 'n' Fiddle is relatively tame, but patio noise can grow exponentially as you add adjacent patios). Circa 2000 the club that was in the Gallaghers space pulled loads of people but the noise levels got them locked in an adversarial relationship with the neighbours, who eventually got the patio sidelined. I see outreach as a positive in this situation. The signatures are just reassurance that you've done your due diligence, that you're community-sensitive, so that you don't get blindsided by those neighbours, who are of course free to object to a license application. I'm guessing this is why somewhere like the Casbah/La Luna has a substantial patio that is essentially useless -- the neighbours have probably dug in their heels.

[adam]

I disagree with you about Casbah/La Luna. Nobody wants to sit on a patio next to King or Main street with 5 lanes of traffic going by. Spent some time in Ottawa recently, they have PLENTY of 1 way streets, but they are 2 lanes + a car pool/bus lane, parking on at least 1 side, and sidewalks are 3-4 times wider than here. Plus they have a row of trees or other plants between the parking and the pedestrians. They had a busker festival going on, Cyclists were plentiful traveling on the far side of the carpool lanes, there were ABSOLUTELY NO synchronized stop lights, office buildings were obviously in use during business hours. Hamilton is 2/3 the size of Ottawa, but Ottawa's downtown infrastructure is miles ahead of ours. We could really learn a lesson from Ottawa.

[raisethehammer]

I think Gallaghers faced additional hurdles because it's on a residential strip – Augusta face, east of John, where it's the only patio (Cat 'n' Fiddle is relatively tame, but patio noise can grow exponentially as you add adjacent patios). Circa 2000 the club that was in the Gallaghers space pulled loads of people but the noise levels got them locked in an adversarial relationship with the neighbours, who eventually got the patio sidelined. I see outreach as a positive in this situation. The signatures are just reassurance that you've done your due diligence, that you're community-sensitive, so that you don't get blindsided by those neighbours, who are of course free to object to a license application. I'm guessing this is why somewhere like the Casbah/La Luna has a substantial patio that is essentially useless -- the neighbours have probably dug in their heels.

I'm guessing the Casbah patio is useless because you'd need to use a megaphone to talk to someone at your table.

[coalminecanary]

The casbah patio is not licensed, and the casbah does not serve food. So their only products (liquor and music) are not available on the patio. I believe that is reason enough for patrons to limit their time out there!

[raisethehammer]

the patio is also part of LaLuna. It's accessible through the dining room.
If it were in Hess or on Locke (or any normal street) it would do a bustling business.

[thistleclub]

Chicken and egg. It seems like neither La Luna nor the Casbah (which offers a light menu of La Luna menu options -- the two businesses are connected behind their bars) has licensed their patios, and you think that as businesspeople they would want to increase their potential business and capacity, regardless of the aesthetic value to customers, who are free to take it or leave it. They obviously put time and money into the patio treatment, so I doubt that they squashed their ambitions because of traffic considerations (overstated, in any event: speeds at an intersection are often negligible, and with the exception of public transit, a lane of parking buffers the site on both street faces, effectively making two lanes on Queen North and three on King West, roughly the same lane frontage as Augusta and John). My suspicion, again, is that neighbours complained to liquor inspectors at some point in the licensing process, as they might have in the Gallaghers application. But I could be way off.

[Jon Dalton]

Casbah gets denied every time because the neighbours object.

[raisethehammer]

friggin lame.
The neighbours would never hear a thing over the traffic noise.

[coalminecanary]

I feel like casbah is a victim of it's geography in this case, being just around the corner from hess...

[DC83]

Sweet! I've seen them maybe twice chalking out & measuring the potential patio space the last couple of weeks. I'm excited! That must mean they've got food now too!

Corktown Pub is literally smack-dab in the middle of a residential area. It would be way tougher for them to get any type of patio license. They DO have picnic tables outside for those looking to enjoy a Cigarette Platter (aka Ash Tray).

The #1 problem with my neighbourhood re: liveliness would be that damn plaza on John @ Young-Forest! It's totally seperated from the streetlife and causes so much annoyance for ppl trying to get in/out of the parking lot.

Get rid of it, replace those two garages on John with something a lil more ped-friendly, streetscape for Steeltown, and voila! Hottest Hood in Hamilton!

Casbah gets denied every time because the neighbours object.

Neighbours? Who? The empty Mount St Joseph's Bldg, the Church, or the Scottish Rite? There are NO neighbours to bug in that area!? That's the most rediculous thing I have ever heard. I always wondered why their patio was never set up?

[Jon Dalton]

Single family homes on Queen St.

[raisethehammer]

Sweet! I've seen them maybe twice chalking out & measuring the potential patio space the last couple of weeks. I'm excited! That must mean they've got food now too!

Corktown Pub is literally smack-dab in the middle of a residential area. It would be way tougher for them to get any type of patio license. They DO have picnic tables outside for those looking to enjoy a Cigarette Platter (aka Ash Tray).

The #1 problem with my neighbourhood re: liveliness would be that damn plaza on John @ Young-Forest! It's totally seperated from the streetlife and causes so much annoyance for ppl trying to get in/out of the parking lot.

Get rid of it, replace those two garages on John with something a lil more ped-friendly, streetscape for Steeltown, and voila! Hottest Hood in Hamilton!



I agree about John South.
Was down there tonight. Man, what a great strip. Even in the pouring rain. I LOVE the mural being painted at the Cat N Fiddle.
Gallagher patio will add more vibe to the hood, along with their sliding glass wall. More trees and street parking would really give this strip a boost, but I can't see the city losing one of the northbound lanes (even though we can easily afford to once LRT gets rolling).
Another stop light at Augusta would be nice too...it's tough to cross and tons of pedestrians are always trying to.
Rumour has it that the old Imperial Coiffures place was bought and will turn into an eatery...I hope they don't ruin that beautiful facade. I love it...one of my faves in the city.

[the dude]

i think john is another example of our half-assed attempts at two-way conversion. i used to live in corktown and john was a nightmare to cross when it was one-way. it sounds like not much has changed, at least on the upper section.

i agree with the stripmall on john. it's a loathesome place, although i frequented it often for movie rentals, laundry and groceries. it needs to go.

[raisethehammer]

actually, most of John was converted pretty straight forward, except for the section by Main/King and up by St Joes Hospital.
It's better than James South.

[flar]

They really do need a crosswalk of some sort at John and Augusta though.

[coalminecanary]

A more pleasant pedestrian experience at augusta might draw some of the current patio crowd eastward - would be a good thing!

another corktown eyesore is the building on the north side of augusta at walnut. my vision for that is a year round indoor market. or even just a grocery store. oh to dream!

but i have to say, corktown is looking really nice these days... lots of property upgrades going on in the private sector - good signs that homeowners wo care are beginning to move in.

the dynamic will totally change once the school reopens too - there will be a lot more pedestrian activity and i'm certain that the city will get serious about traffic calming on charlton and walnut - both streets need it!

[raisethehammer]

I know they did a Corktown Traffic calming plan a couple of years back.
I think they called for a lot of traffic calming in Corktown.
I'll try to find it.

[raisethehammer]

here:

http://www.myhamilton.ca/NR/rdonlyres/1470859D-01F1-4447-956B-9CECBA304988/0/Corktown_FinalPlan.pdf

And here:

http://www.myhamilton.ca/NR/rdonlyres/E9405F1E-1E9B-42E7-A193-7147F642163F/0/Corktown_TTR_April2005.pdf

[coalminecanary]

yep - man that thing is hard to read electronically. I understand that part ofthe plan is a circle at walnut/charlton which would be great

I think what a lof of neighbourhoods in Hamilton need is a similar setup to toronto, where certain side streets are made one-way specifically to create dead ends and eliminate through traffic.

not everywhere, but in a few problem areas...

[raisethehammer]

so they plan mini-roundabouts on Charlton at Walnut and Ferguson.
That will be sweet.

[flar]

I think what a lof of neighbourhoods in Hamilton need is a similar setup to toronto, where certain side streets are made one-way specifically to create dead ends and eliminate through traffic.

not everywhere, but in a few problem areas...

They would really have to do that if we eliminate all the big one ways like Wellington and Victoria. The setup we have now is not that bad for neighbourhood side streets. Most of them are fairly quiet since through traffic is funneled onto the major arteries. That would change instantly if capacity were lowered on the major streets as people tried to find shortcuts.

[raisethehammer]

people already use these neighbourhoods as shortcuts. Traffic in Corktown and Durand interior streets in rush hour is 60-65% cut through traffic from the Mountain and other suburbs.
People in Hamilton have a mentality that if they are 5 cars back at a stoplight it must be NYC style gridlock up ahead.
I see people in a lineup sometimes heading up the mountain at a slow pace - 10km an hour due to construction at the top or something and they start turning around and heading back downtown I presume to look for another way.
Even though they'll end up adding time and distance to their trip instead of waiting, they think they should always be going 60-70km. It's nuts.

I saw a few guys with keys coming and going today from the Imperial Coiffures building on John. Wish I could have asked what they were up to.

[DC83]

Gallagher's Patio is finally open!

I saw them setting it up as I was getting home from work yesterday afternoon, and by the time I had gone back out to see a Fringe Fest show around 9pm the patio was pumpin.

I was with my friend who moved to Vancouver 2 years ago (back for a visit), and he was amazed at how John St has changed... he was especially surprised/impressed by the London Tap House "HAMILTON has a rooftop patio now!?!?!" haha He also really, really liked Gallagher's garage-type-door facing John. LTH is more impressive to me I think haha

[coalminecanary]

They have done a great job with gallaghers. FUnny, we had a drink there last night, and locked bikes by the patio, and I didn't even clue in that the new patio was open - it just seemed so natural to have a patio there! Glad they got it - wish the corktown could get one. If they could put a well-enclosed patio in half of their parking lot, it would be fantastic... build a little urban oasis...

[raisethehammer]

does gallaghers sell food??

[DC83]

^^ When I was in at the beginning of the summer they told me they were on Bar Service (finger foods) until the patio was open.

I'll have to check back soon, unless Coalmine knows the deal?

[coalminecanary]

I saw a sign in there for grilled panini sandwiches last night. Also the side that has the garage door looks like it's set up more restaurant style than bar style.

[DC83]

^^ Totally, they even have resto-style POS's much like Kelsey's or whatever. It's a very, very nice place. Did they tell you what's up w/ the paint job? It seems like they're testing new colours in different lighting/shades but who knows.

[astroblaster]

i was at cat and fiddle on monday night and i kept looking across at this place. looks classy.

[raisethehammer]

I hope they do something better with the patio than what's there now....a black iron fence would be awesome.
I'm a huge fan of two-way streets and their impact, but I'm actually quite shocked at the changes on John South. I didn't think it had the same bones as James to see revitalization so quickly, even with two-way streets. I really wish the city would add street parking on the northbound lanes so that it functions like Queen or King in TO - one lane each way with parking on both sides. Rush hour I can understand having 2 lanes each way, but the rest of the day/evening this strip could be packed with people.
More trees would be good too, although I did notice that they planted some recently.

[raisethehammer]

so, just got back from Gallaghers.
Wow! What a wicked place. amazing reno, great food - they have NO deep fryer on site!
Starting tomorrow they are open at 11am for lunch with salads, sandwiches, pizza etc.....
this place should have a long future once word starts to spread.