Sault bartender realizes her dream of business ownership
A long-time Sault Ste. Marie bartender is teaming up with a local restauranteur on a new business venture.
With the reconstruction of the downtown section of Queen Street to begin soon -- and some new businesses setting up shop nearby – Becky Sawyer and Blake Richards said the time was right to turn their long talked-about idea into reality.
With only days to go before the grand opening of The Dive Gastro Pub, the pressure is on to finish renovations that have been ongoing since the beginning of April.
Sawyer is a longtime presence on the local food and beverage scene.
“We’re looking at 26 years I have been in this industry,” she said.
“I started when I was 18 and it’s definitely something I have a hard time walking away from. I enjoy the people, I enjoy the public -- I enjoy the chaos and organized mess of it all.”
Richards is another well-known name in the local restaurant community. He was co-owner of Low & Slow, which was the last business to occupy the space that will now house The Dive.
“Ten years ago we started with Low & Slow and kind of just jumped into it,” he said.
“Before that, no experience. Just kind of learned on the fly and it’s been a whirlwind.”
The Dive is located in the heart of downtown Sault Ste. Marie, where a number of changes are taking place – changes the owners are hoping will work in their favour.
“I think it’s definitely up and coming,” said Richards.
“You can see stuff starting to grow with the market next door here, Muio’s just got bought again. Stuff seems to be happening, Queen Street is being redone, which is amazing. So, hopefully it doesn’t hold us up too much, but it should be fine.”
o Download our app to get local alerts on your device
o Get the latest local updates right to your inbox
“We’ve all seen the decline in the downtown,” Sawyer said.
“With the city putting in as much effort as they have down the road, and all the things that are happening downtown right now, the hope is that it is going to be on the upswing and we are going to see a bigger boom downtown than we did before.”
The Dive Gastro Pub is already creating a buzz, as both grand opening nights this weekend are sold out.
The new pub will be open to the general public April 22.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Indian envoy warns of 'big red line,' days after charges laid in Nijjar case
India's envoy to Canada insists relations between the two countries are positive overall, despite what he describes as 'a lot of noise.'
Stormy Daniels describes meeting Trump during occasionally graphic testimony in hush money trial
With Donald Trump sitting just feet away, Stormy Daniels testified Tuesday at the former president's hush money trial about a sexual encounter the porn actor says they had in 2006 that resulted in her being paid to keep silent during the presidential race 10 years later.
U.S. paused bomb shipment to Israel to signal concerns over Rafah invasion, official says
The U.S. paused a shipment of bombs to Israel last week over concerns that Israel was approaching a decision on launching a full-scale assault on the southern Gaza city of Rafah against the wishes of the U.S.
Former homicide detective explains how police will investigate shooting outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion
Footage from dozens of security cameras in the area of Drake’s Bridle Path mansion could be the key to identifying the suspect responsible for shooting and seriously injuring a security guard outside the rapper’s sprawling home early Tuesday morning, a former Toronto homicide detective says.
Northern Ont. woman makes 'eggstraordinary' find
A chicken farmer near Mattawa made an 'eggstraordinary' find Friday morning when she discovered one of her hens laid an egg close to three times the size of an average large chicken egg.
Susan Buckner, who played spirited cheerleader Patty Simcox in 'Grease,' dead at 72
Susan Buckner, best known for playing peppy Rydell High School cheerleader Patty Simcox in the 1978 classic movie musical 'Grease,' has died. She was 72.
Jeremy Skibicki has 'uphill battle' to prove he's not criminally responsible in Winnipeg killings: legal analysts
Accused killer Jeremy Skibicki could have a challenging time convincing a judge that he is not criminally responsible for the deaths of four Indigenous women, a legal analyst says.
Bye-bye bag fee: Calgary repeals single-use bylaw
A Calgary bylaw requiring businesses to charge a minimum bag fee and only provide single-use items when requested has officially been tossed.
Alcohol believed to be a factor in boating incident after 2 men die: N.S. RCMP
Two Nova Scotia men are dead after a boat they were travelling in sank in the Annapolis River in Granville Centre, N.S., on Monday.