Ottawa's Rainbow Bistro — a longtime live music fixture in the city's ByWard Market for nearly 40 years — will close its doors come the end of September, barring a change in ownership.
Speaking with The Ottawa Citizen, owner and co-founder Danny Sivyer shares that COVID-19 restrictions — which currently allow for a capacity of 40 people, compared to a pre-pandemic crowd of 148 people — have posed financial challenges for the second-floor bar at the corner of Murray Street and Parent Avenue in Ottawa's downtown.
"We were hoping for a reopening this fall but we're only allowed 40 people, and 40 people just doesn't do it for paying bands and sound men and doormen and everything else," Sivyer shared with the paper. "I just can't keep shovelling out the dough."
The Citizen notes that while the Rainbow secured loans and grants to weather pandemic shutdowns and and was eligible for the federal government's rent-relief program, Sivyer did not see the venue staying afloat through the winter.
"We thought (the pandemic) would be over by fall, and it would be like the Roaring Twenties. We'd make some money and pay back the government. But not with 40 people," he explained. "And now the fourth wave is coming."
Describing the effects of capacity reductions to The Citizen, Sivyer recalled, "People weren't allowed to dance or stand up...We had signs that said, 'Please dance only in your mind.' It's fun to be there when it's packed and the band is roaring and the dance floor is full. But when you have 40 people spread out quietly watching a band, it's kind of sad. It wasn't the Rainbow."
Sivyer opened the Rainbow Bistro in November of 1984 alongside co-founder Ron Knowles, who passed away in January of 2020.
Canadians that have graced the Rainbow's stage include the Tragically Hip, Blue Rodeo, k.d. lang, Colin James and Junkhouse, while it has also played host to the talents of John Hammond Jr., Koko Taylor, Albert King, Albert Collins and more.
Earlier this year, storied Ottawa venue Babylon Nightclub went up for lease.
Speaking with The Ottawa Citizen, owner and co-founder Danny Sivyer shares that COVID-19 restrictions — which currently allow for a capacity of 40 people, compared to a pre-pandemic crowd of 148 people — have posed financial challenges for the second-floor bar at the corner of Murray Street and Parent Avenue in Ottawa's downtown.
"We were hoping for a reopening this fall but we're only allowed 40 people, and 40 people just doesn't do it for paying bands and sound men and doormen and everything else," Sivyer shared with the paper. "I just can't keep shovelling out the dough."
The Citizen notes that while the Rainbow secured loans and grants to weather pandemic shutdowns and and was eligible for the federal government's rent-relief program, Sivyer did not see the venue staying afloat through the winter.
"We thought (the pandemic) would be over by fall, and it would be like the Roaring Twenties. We'd make some money and pay back the government. But not with 40 people," he explained. "And now the fourth wave is coming."
Describing the effects of capacity reductions to The Citizen, Sivyer recalled, "People weren't allowed to dance or stand up...We had signs that said, 'Please dance only in your mind.' It's fun to be there when it's packed and the band is roaring and the dance floor is full. But when you have 40 people spread out quietly watching a band, it's kind of sad. It wasn't the Rainbow."
Sivyer opened the Rainbow Bistro in November of 1984 alongside co-founder Ron Knowles, who passed away in January of 2020.
Canadians that have graced the Rainbow's stage include the Tragically Hip, Blue Rodeo, k.d. lang, Colin James and Junkhouse, while it has also played host to the talents of John Hammond Jr., Koko Taylor, Albert King, Albert Collins and more.
Earlier this year, storied Ottawa venue Babylon Nightclub went up for lease.