Atlantic Canada saw the opening of its first vegan butcher in January, along with several axe-throwing lounges. We said goodbye to several national chains and quite a few restaurants too.

What’s Open

Real Fake Meats | Halifax, N.S.
Real Fake Meats opened on Friday, January 4th, at 2278 Gottingen Street, Halifax and is the first vegan butcher in Atlantic Canada, serving up meat-free donairs and grilled cheezes to hungry vegans.

Yoga on the Rock | St. John’s, N.L.
A new Hatha yoga studio opened in Goulds, N.L. on January 7. Yoga on the Rock, which set up shop in Bidgood’s Plaza, offers practice on Mondays, Tuesdays and Fridays and is led by owner Arun Yadav who has 15 years of instruction experience.

No. 4 | St. John’s, N.L.
The space that housed The Casbah at 4 Cathedral Street in St. John’s is now No. 4 Restaurant & Bar. This new St. John’s eatery opened January 9 with a giant cocktail list and dishes like ribeyes with smoked bone marrow, mac & cheese and cod tongues.

Timber Lounge | Moncton, N.B.
Halifax’s Timber Lounge opened their Moncton location on January 18 at 19 Orange Lane. The axe-throwing lounge is the first of its kind in the city.

HaliMac Axe Throwing | Halifax, N.S.
The owners of Jack Axes in St. John’s, NL expanded their mainland presence on January 18 with the opening of HaliMac. The third in the axe-throwing franchise is located just down the street from Two Crows brewery at 1920 Brunswick Street — their third location is HaliMac Kentville.

The Tipsy Muse Cafe | Fredericton, N.B.
The Tipsy Muse opened January 19 at 86 Regent Street aiming to support the creative community, feature local bands and serve up bagels, coffee and local craft beers on tap.

P.E.I. Cannabis | O’Leary, P.E.I.
Prince Edward Island’s fourth and final cannabis retailer opened on January 25 more than three months after legalization. The P.E.I. Cannabis shop at 478 Main Street in O’Leary was delayed due to construction issues.

Boutique Zekara | Saint John, N.B.
This women’s clothing shop opened on January 26 at 101 Prince William Street, where Ella The Shop had just closed in the fall. Boutique Zekara also has locations in Halifax and Rothesay. 

Eat Clean Grill | Moncton, N.B.
Eat Clean Healthy Grill opened its newest location on January 29 at 40 Champlain Street in Dieppe, N.B. The franchise serves smoothies, wraps and power bowls, in addition to meals tailored to those who are bodybuilding, gluten-free and vegan. This will be the fifth location for the Newfoundland-based clean food franchise, which was established in 2014.

What’s Shut

Route 145 Bar and Grill | Bloomfield, P.E.I.
This Bloomfield grill closed its doors just days after holding New Year’s Day celebrations. The owner posted a brief Facebook post announcing the closure after a late-evening disturbance brought the RCMP to the lounge.

Amazing Land | Dartmouth, N.S.
After announcing a temporary closure on January 2, Amazing Land, the Portland Hills indoor playground closed its doors permanently and are offering reimbursement for gift cards purchased after November 25, 2018.

Local 311 | Summerside, P.E.I.
The Summerside family restaurant Local 311 announced their closure via Facebook post after their shuttering in early January. The owners, Dave Ashford and MJ Doyle, say they will be filing for bankruptcy after claiming thefts from the restaurant totalling $100,000.

King Street Ale House | Fredericton, N.B.
The King Street Ale House — one of the first locations in New Brunswick to focus on selling craft beer — closed its doors on January 3 after 10 years of operation. The 30 people employed at the alehouse ran their last service on New Year’s Eve.

Things: A Hippie Boutique | Fredericton, N.B.
After 26 years, the owners of this cannabis paraphernalia shop announced their closure via Facebook on January 3. The downtown store closed its doors on January 13.

Leon’s | Coldbrook and Bridgewater, N.S.
Two independently-owned Leon’s furniture stores closed in Nova Scotia without notice. The Coldbrook and Bridgewater locations shut their doors on January 4, leaving customers without access to their active furniture orders.

Zephyr Rug & Home | Halifax, N.S.
The Quinpool Road rug and furniture, Zephyr Rug & Home, store closed its doors on January 26 after more than 15 years of operation.

RONA | Various Newfoundland locations
The RONA stores in Newfoundland closed their doors on January 27, leaving more than 250 people without employment. The move is part of a larger set of closures by parent company LOWE’s who announced the closure of 31 stores in six provinces across the country back in November.

Smiling Goat | Halifax, N.S.
The South Park Street location of this coffee shop brand has closed, the fifth to close in the past year in the city. Only one location remains at Bishops Landing.

Tilleul | Fredericton, N.B.
The downtown women’s clothing boutique closed its doors at 593 King Street on January 31 after three years of operation.

Colwell’s Fashions | Saint John, N.B.
In a Facebook post on January 4, the fashion boutique announced they would be closing after more than 30 years of business. They locked up for the last time on January 31.

Jeans Experts | Marystown, N.L.
After more than 20 years, the Marystown location of Jeans Experts, which has only seven locations remaining across Atlantic Canada and Quebec will be closed. One full time and five part-time jobs were made redundant at the end of January.

Did we miss something? Know of a business opening or closing in Atlantic Canada? Email our Associate Editor Gabby at [email protected] and let us know!