Victoria bars and restaurants bracing for a New Year’s Eve let down

Bars and Restaurants in downtown Victoria are bracing for what’s expected to be a painfully slow New Year’s Eve.

The night is usually one of their biggest of the year with food and alcohol sales flowing in at a rapid pace, but this year it’s not expected to be anything like that.

Currently, province-wide COVID-19 restrictions only allow people to attend with members of their immediate household, as well as a mandatory 10 p.m. last call, are crippling the majority of the industry

Darcy’s Pub, which usually put on one of Victoria’s more popular events every New Year’s Eve, estimates that their sales are already down by about 90 per cent so far this month.

The popular pub had originally planned to combat the 10 p.m. last call by holding a New York-style countdown event. But when the provincial government introduced tougher COVID-19 restrictions that only permitted people to dine out or attend with household members, Darcy’s reversed course.

“The revenue and the patrons aren’t really there to justify it and spending the money and bringing in features and advertising a special event,” said the pub’s general manager, Tanya Heartwell. “People are following the rules and guidelines which is great, but unfortunately having very little business is the side effect.”

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Darcy’s Pub is not the only establishment in town experiencing a serious decline in sales this month.

Bartholomew’s Public House, located on Douglas Street, is also seeing a major drop off in sales.

Morgan Watson, the pub’s general manager, estimates that sales are down anywhere between 75 and 80 per cent for the month. However, they’re planning to attempt to salvage an event, ringing in the new year, Newfoundland style.

“We kind of thought, well where’s the first place in Canada or North America that celebrates New Year’s Eve and that’s Newfoundland,” Watson said. “So, we’re going to ring in a Newfoundland New Year at Bartholomew’s at 7:30 we’ll doing the countdown and raise a glass of screech.”

The loss of regular New Year’s Eve festivities is another blow for an industry already that’s already suffering.

According to the British Columbia Restaurant and Foodservices Association, restaurants on Vancouver Island are expected to lose a combined total of anywhere from $300 to $350 million in December alone.

Ian Tostenson, president of the BCRFA, says anyone who plans to stay in on New Year’s Eve should order take out from a local spot because, for many, it’s their lifeline.

“Takeout and delivery sales right now are approaching almost 50 per cent of a lot of people’s business, so it’s providing a way to cash flow that business, and hopefully there’s enough to carry that restaurant over to spring,” Tostenson said.

Tanya Heartwell, general manager of Darcy’s Pub in downtown Victoria, says the popular establishment has seen its revenue decline by nearly 90 per cent this month. (Ben Nesbit/CHEK News)

bnesbit@cheknews.ca

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