The St. James Hotel has been undergoing a pretty extensive rehabilitation. A fire in 2017 could have been the end of the 1928 built hotel. The second floor damage included smoke and water damage to the Fox and Hounds pub on the first floor. It certainly looked like curtains for the landmark historic building that greeted people as they passed down Portage Avenue to St. James.
One of the frequent questions as people drove by was whether the classic British style pub The Fox and Hounds would rise from the dead. The answer is no. A pub shall return but it will come with a new name: Barstool Pub and Eatery.
The marquee sign gets a digital upgrade as well for Portage Avenue drivers advertising the fare inside.
More to report as we get closer to it all being done.
This has been a guest editorial by John Dobbin.
To read more from John, visit his blog Observations, Reservations, Conversations
