With legal woes out of the way, Mallard Cottage planning May reopening
“We’ve got more space, more efficiency and all brand-new equipment,
Blair Mcintosh owner
It appeared for a while that the Mallard Cottage restaurant might be no more, but owner Blair Mcintosh said the legal issues they were having are no more and they’re poised to open again in late May.
Mcintosh said on Wednesday, May 8 the dispute with the Business Development Bank of Canada relating to the closure of the Waterwest restaurant in June 2023 was resolved late last week.
And with that behind him, he’s excited for people to see the changes they’ve made to the iconic restaurant.
MAY OPENING PLANNED
“I’m an eternal optimist, and I just believed that despite the obstacles that were in front of me, I was pretty sure that we were going to get through this one way or the other,” he said.
“I think, at the end of the day, everybody wanted to see this thing survive. I went ahead during the winter months and carried out those renovations inside, and now on the outside, in preparation for our opening in May, and I think people will really like what they see.”
Mcintosh said he’s glad he did decide to continue the renovations while the issue with the bank was ongoing because if he hadn’t done that, they probably wouldn’t have been able to open in time for the season this year.
RENOVATIONS
Mcintosh said they completely redid the kitchen, relocated the washrooms and opened the space where the washrooms were previously located so they could accommodate more people.
“We’ve got more space, more efficiency and all brandnew equipment,” he said.
“It’s going to be a major improvement, but we’ve kept all the ambiance and that same warm, hospitable environment that people love.”
He said the response has been overwhelmingly positive since they announced via social media that they would be reopening later this month, which didn’t really surprise him, since the community has always been a great supporter of the business.
‘FELL IN LOVE WITH IT’
Mcintosh understands why the community loves it – he does, too. He said he fell in love with the restaurant when he first visited it in 2015 and was ecstatic when the former owner, Todd Perrin, contacted him about a year later about an investment opportunity.
“I’d never heard of the place before and just fell in love with it,” he said. “It was the night of the federal election in 2015, when the Liberals swept Atlantic Canada, and (MP) Seamus O’regan was there that night along with Mark Critch and a few other characters and we hung out with them after the big win. That night, I talked to Todd and I said, ‘I love what you’re doing here, and if there’s anything I can do to help out let me know.’ He called me about a year later and said there was an opportunity to buy some shares, so I jumped on it.”
Mcintosh said they plan to launch a new website for Mallard Cottage soon, which will have information on the menu, opening hours and upcoming events.