Edmonton Journal from Edmonton, Alberta, Canada • 30

C6 SUNDAY. IUNK 10. 2012 INSIGHT iimMiiiiiiimniiimiiMiiiimimiiimmmiimmimiiimimiiiMimiuniiniiiiiim mint WMHt IbiwiKf" I 1 8- I Bh edmontonjournal.cominsight BARS ALONG JASPER AVENUE BARS 4.M'W 97 St. vip war fflf Hit ti 252627 24 oo oo i tit -ft i 1 100 St. 23 101 St.

22 103 St. 18 I 105 St. 14 16 17 107 St. The owners of the Common Nightclub: from left, Rob Clarke, Stacey Boruk, Kyla Kazeil and Justin Der 131211 8 It takes much more than a liquor licence to be 109 St. 10 CO 112 St.

116 St. 4 118 St. 120 St. 21 19 15 CD 114 St. 5 the new century, echoes those sentiments.

He owned several clubs (Club Malibu, Cowboys, The Drink), then opened two Ceili's Irish Pubs before pulling up stakes. He now lives in Calgary, where he runs several restaurants and clubs. (He's about to open an entertairirnent complex. Cowboys Casino, near the Saddledome.) VkJcers says his Calgary properties are much, more profitable than his former northern holdings ever were. Cow-town's looser wallets are one of the reasons, but he says bis experience in Edmonton also helped hone his business acumen.

i "In Edmonton, you have to be really cornpetitive he says. "Seme guys want to book a function a venue in Ednor and they 1 ask. 'T low manv free drinks do I get? What's the deai? Give me In Cakarr. they ask, 'Can jnra get me We don't want any 20 -'4 "I remember people saying, 'You're going to fail. You've bit off more than you can We love taking failed or past-their-prime places and turning them into viable businesses.

We take pride in that." The Globe was a success for years and paved the way for OCHG's subsequent makeovers taking vacant spots on Jasper Avenue and opening clubs such as Fluid Lounge in the Executive Lofts highrise on 109th Street; The Bank, an upscale lounge club in a former bank; and Oil City and Vinyl, a country bar and retro club in the once-derelict Saveco Building. As much as OCHG is hailed for revitalizing Jasper Avenue, the company's creations aren't without critics. Oil City, which the company sold in April, bears the brunt of complaints for increasing litter, noise and violence in the area. (Less than two months after a huge brawl outside the club in 2008, the Alberta government imposed price minimums on drinks.) Oil City is like the Nickelback of Edmonton establishments no one seems to like it, yet the club keeps kickin' around. "Brutal," tweets Darcy Haugh-ian.

"Terrible," tweets stylist Lindsay Kirstiuk. "Looks trashy and really drags down Jasper Ave." Even patrons aren't in love with Oil City and attendance is slipping, according to Responsible Hospitality Edmonton. "It's not great," says Donal, as he staggers outside the club one late night in May. (Not surprisingly, he doesn't want to reveal his last name.) Knowing when to remodel and when to sell are also keys to success in the hospitality industry. While Jasper Avenue continues to blossom, OCHG recently scaled back its operations across Edmonton, from 10 spots to four.

In 2009, the company rebranded The Globe as Rock Stars, which was then razed to make way for the Mayfair Village complex. OCHG soki Fluid a few years ago, then Oil City and Vinyl in April. (Cold Lake businessman Mike Stang bought the latter two.) The group, largely run by two publicity-shy Marks (Fitton and Fuller), also sold off three of its Whyte Avenue properties to the Prestige Hospitality Syndicate: The Pawn Shop, a live music venue: Lucky 13, a dance club; and Filthy McNasty's. These days, OCHG owns two downtown pubs: The Pint on 109th Street, and The Public House, in The Bank's old space. (Two men were shot outside the former lounge in 2010.

"That's why it's not The Bank says Gothjelpsen Another Pint, just off Whyte Avenue, and The Rack, a billiards. 'sportsdance ckih complete CO K3's Edmonton holdings. "We used to be all about being the biggest and then we learned what we really want to do is do what we do better," says Gehjfcsen. 33. "We're getting oider, the nightclub scene isn't re.il!y what we were striving for.

We made a five-year plan to chisel down the company and fx us on wfuf ar.t to da. which is pub ccriepts Lice ilj ,,) i A Lauren Barr is general manager of and Eatery on Jasper Avenue. The Pint, The Rack and The Public House. We just built our first Pint in Vancouver and we have plans for other cities soon Calgary and Winnipeg." PUBS OVER CLUBS Bridget Gryschuk, 26, and her husband chat about movies and music over a round of post-flick beers in Red Star, another popular Jasper Avenue pub. "The beer list is expansive, the atmosphere is great, and the sliders are to die for," Gryschuk says.

"But Sherlock's (on Rice Howard Way) is my favourite place ever. It's somewhere I can go, unwind, have a drink, talk to my friends. We go there often after work. The live music is great on Friday and Saturday nights everyone's singing along. And their wings are really good." Smaller, cosier pubs with craft beers on tap, intriguing menus and in most cases, musicians, DJs and dance floors are increasingly popping up downtown and around Edmonton, as patrons look for friendlier, multipurpose venues and nightlife impresarios opt for greater financial stability as they near middle age.

Oil City Hospitality Group is only the latest Edmonton company to choose pubs over clubs. Mowing in the footsteps of another one of Edmonton's kings of nightlife, Mike Yasinski of Gateway Entertainment. After years of owning various clubs, including The Standard, Union HaR, The Armory and two Club Mahbu locations, he opted to focus solely on his burgeoning chain of Hudsons Canadian Tap House a modem take on the traditional EnghshIrish pub. The 41-year-old former bartender now owns five in Edmonton, two in Calgary, one in Saskatoon, with another on the ay in Regirsa. He won't reveal specifics when it comes to his company's arjiual revenues, but in i IOCS Journal article, he ex-tted his West Edrxa.tanMa2 location to make up to S3 rriijon per war $1 miZicm more than the Mt of the renon-Jtxxs to the e.MO-square-fbot space.

Yi i sjvs clubs are three Urr.es cheaper to build, but JOHN LUCAS, EDMONTON JOURNAL successful 5 SHAUGHN BUTTS, EDMONTON JOURNAL The Treasury Vodka Bar they have shorter lifespans. (The Standard "probably had a three-year success," for example, while Hudsons will celebrate its 10th anniversary in 2013.) That's because clubs cater to 18- to 21-year-olds, who might go out every weekend, but don't have as much money to spend, says one of Yasinski's former employees, Jesse James Kupina, who now co-owns The Ranch Roadhouse, a mega club on 104th Street and 61st Avenue. As your customers get older, they go out less, and your club starts losing customers unless you can attract the next batch of 18-year-olds before a competitor can. "You can open up a big nightclub for a reasonable price," says Yasinski. "The trade-off is you've always got the competitive landscape boming, they only last so long, you've got all the baggage that deals with operating a nightclub the violence, the crime, the noise and all of that.

But you can make some really good money in the three- to five-year horizon." In contrast, Yasinski says pubs can be safer because they're smaller and easier to control. More importantly, they appeal to an older, wider and wealthier demographic of customers men, women, young and old because they offer more than just drinks and a dance floor. "You're open seven days a week, you're open for lunch, you're open all the time," he says. "They really cater to a lot of different things, whether it's watching sports, going out and dancing with your friends, getting out on the patio, going there for wing night, there's just so much more to offer than a traditional pub andor Rich Unger, a veteran consultant who advises troubled nightspots across the U.S.. says pubs are taking over North America because of their versatility and hours of operation.

"Pubs are the way to go bee ause in this economy nightcliw can only depend on four nights at the most to open and they have to be creative or dtpend on the Lb promoters" who hire Djs ot organize special events wih is insane the brain. Yet Fdr-'-r pub owners JUMPIN' JASPER AVE. Here's a rundown of some of downtown Edmonton's hottest nightspots, on and off the Ave: 1. Suede Nightclub Lounge, 11806 Jasper Ave. 2.

Buddy's Nite Club, 11725B Jasper Ave. 3. On The Rocks, 11740 Jasper Ave. 4. The Druid, 11606 Jasper Ave.

5. Level 2 Lounge, 11607 Jasper Ave. 6. The Gas Pump, 10166 114th St. 7.

Black Sheep Pub, 11026 Jasper Ave. 8. Fluid Lounge, 10888 Jasper Ave. 9. The Common, 9910A 109th St.

10. The Pint, 100 10125 109th St. 11. The Public House, 10765 Jasper Ave. 12.

Oil City Roadhouse, 10736 Jasper Ave. 13. Vinyl Retro Lounge, 10740 Jasper Ave. 14. Metropolitan Billiard Cafe.

10250 106th St. 15. The Cask and Barrel, 10041 104th St. 16. Red Star Pub, 10534 Jasper Ave.

17. Halo, 10538 Jasper Ave. 18. The Warehouse Nightclub Lounge, 10220 103rd St. 19.

The Hat Resto Pub, 10251 Jasper Ave. 20. The Starlite RoomBrixx Bar Grill. 10030 102nd St. 2L Afterhours .10028 102nd St.

i 22. Lux Steakhouse Bar, 196 10155 102nd St. i 23. The Rose Crown Pub, 195 10235 101st St. 24.

The Sherlock Holmes, 10012 101A Ave. 7 25. Moria -ty's Bistro Wine Bar, 10154 100th St. 26. Hundred Bar Kitchen, 10009 101A Ave.

27. The Treasury Vodka Bar Eatery, 10004 Jasper Ava WHO Some of Olcf LThe Empr 2.Wunderbl 3. Cook Co 4. New City 5. Rumors 6.

Suite 69, 7. MKT.8KX 8. Hudson's 9. Blues in 10. The Bep 82nd Ave 11.

Twist Ult 12. Funk- 13. 14. The hex 15. The Rnt 16.

TiltecK 17. TheBac 18. TheVali 19.02's'apl 20.NortiS 21 The tillil 22.Squre's 23.The3ld 24.ThePal 25. Lucyl3 26. 27.

0'Rvrne 23. Union BARS Continued from page CI As more people live, work and play downtown, some growing pains will likely ensue such as litter, noise complaints and intoxicated idiots who want to flex their muscles or urinate on walls. Yet these idiots only make up about one per cent of the population, says Const. Mike Bates, one of Jasper Avenue's beat officers, and he prefers to look at the positives of a vibrant nightlife. "I really enjoy watching the evolution of Jasper Avenue," says the five-year veteran of the Edmonton Police Service.

"I want people to come down and enjoy it." A FEW DROPS OF OIL CITY Stand at the southeast corner of 109th Street and Jasper Avenue and you can spot five clubs and pubs within a span of two blocks. Oil City Roadhouse, Vinyl Retro Dance Lounge, Fluid Lounge, The Public House and The Pint more than 2,000 revellers can visit these establishments on a Friday or Saturday night. All five are products of the Oil City Hospitality Group (OCHG), one of the main forces behind Jasper Avenue's rejuvenation over the last decade. "Nightlife also gets kicked up a notch or two or three downtown in an area recently christened as 'The New reads a 2008 news release from Edmonton Economic Development Corp. What does it take to run a successful nightspot? Much more than just a liquor licence.

(One industry veteran says the ingredients in a $5.75 rum and Coke only cost 96 cents including the straw which translates to almost a 400-percent markup.) Creativity, loyal staff and patrons, safe environments, adaptability, and working long hours are some of the requirements, says Al Gothjelpsen, OCHG's director of Edmonton operations. Being able to take a few risks helps, too, since the multimillion-dollar hospitality industry can be volatile, subject to new government regulations, unpredictable trends and market forces. (Ov er the last seven months, at least six venues have changed hands.) In 2002, OCHG picked one of the worst locations to open its first downtown club. The Globe a former funeral home on Jasper Avenue and 109th Street, which also presided over the death of eight clubs in 10 years. At the time, the company owned two bars on Whyte Avenue Devlin's and Filthy McNasty's and saw downtown as an untapped market, not to mention a necessity for 'be conrpany's expansion plans.

Thanks to the infamous Canada Day riots of 2001, the City of Edmonton slipped a cap on the number of bar 'cUb licences in Oil Strathcona. OO'C'i were dealing with rrxTrstorkim on Wnyte and there was ncfhira ex4 oo 5 r- sjvs Gcthx bsen we just win' say competition is fierce with Yasinski and OCHG taking on long-established pubs (such as Sherlock's, Filthy's, On The Rocks, The Druid, Squires, The Billiard Chub) as well as rapidly expanding up-and-com-ers (Canadian Brew house and 02's). Two new downtown spots opened in March The Common on 109th Street and The Cask Barrel, a rustic resto-t a vera on I04th Street. Another two. The Mercer Tavern and felly's Pub on 104th Street, are imminent.

"Edmonton's market is a lot harder than people think. We have some great competitors, says OCHG's Al Gothjelpsen. "Whether it's us or our competition. I think we do well when we go to other towns because we're used to havirg to work fee every body we gsf in." Paul Vckers. who was baptized in Edmonton's nightlife in the "90s.

and early in JVCH 4 Over at' catedinth? Grill on ICQ new eater" Saturday loeiled fr March, reja in the evoL venues ir i north end middle, arc door, a djs. end. Tdmer dobuaneiM dowT.tov"-CTjeotthrt all want WV;.