Halifax’s Heartwood Restaurant Closing After Three Decades in Business
HALIFAX — All good things must come to an end. And after our entire world changed back in March of 2020, those endings are coming faster and more frequently. Carrie Sullivan, the owner of beloved vegetarian restaurant Heartwood, located in downtown Halifax, noted that two major changes have led to her decision to close after nearly 30 years on Quinpool Road.
First, Westwood Group has been planning a major development in the Quinpool Road area, where Ben’s Bakery used to be. The new development will include 204 residential units and 20,000 square feet of commercial space, according to information given to the HRM in 2016. Sullivan said the building Heartwood leases will be torn down for something new, although she hasn’t heard of a timeline of when this might happen.
“It’s a sad time for Heartwood,” said Sullivan, who has yet to choose a closing date. “We’ve known for a little while that we are part of the phase of development with the [former] Ben’s Bakery. I guess that has been on our minds. And we just decided to announce that we were closing because we’re such a mainstay in the community.
“We wanted to offer an opportunity for customers to come and celebrate versus just closing our doors and not tell anyone.”
Huddle reached out to Westwood for an update on the project but didn’t hear back before publication.
Arguably a bigger factor for the future closure of Heartwood is one that is affecting small retailers and restaurants everywhere. Foot traffic in cities (especially the downtown areas) has not returned to pre-pandemic levels. People are used to being inside, they are ordering online, and hybrid working models are denying eateries precious lunchtime customers.
Sullivan estimates Heartwood’s sales have dropped 50 per cent since last November.
“We were contemplating to be part of the new build [on Quinpool],” said Sullivan. “But part of the announcement and the push that we had to close was just driven by the last six months.”
“It’s been a struggle. Small businesses are used to the day-to-day battles and struggles, and we do what we do because we’re passionate about it. But the struggles over the last three years have been difficult. It’s been a hard December and January and I just have to admit the reality at some point.”
Although Heartwood on Quinpool will be closing in the near future, Sullivan plans to keep Heartwood By The Sea open seasonally. That restaurant, located on Lower Water Street, is due to reopen in May.
On top of everything else, Heartwood and the entire industry have been struggling with high food inflation. In Canada, food prices went up 10.6 per cent year-over-year, according to data collected in February. That’s more than double the overall inflation rate.
For restaurant owners this creates a dilemma. While grocery stores can pass on all of their inflation costs, restaurants risk losing customers if their menu becomes too pricey.
“The sales were just not as expected, and you mix that with the rising cost of food. We try to keep our menu accessible and I don’t think we raised our prices to match inflation.”
“Food has always been a higher price point. We use organic ingredients and we support local farmers and try to pay them as much as we can. So, we’ve always expect to pay a little bit more for food because we use quality ingredients and we make everything from scratch.”
Sullivan also mentioned the new minimum wage as a factor in the higher costs of operating a restaurant. Sullivan stated that she supports a higher minimum wage but that, without government subsidies, it’s becoming harder for small business owners.
The minimum wage in Nova Scotia rose from $13.60 to $14.50 per hour on April 1. It will rise by 50 cents more come October.
Heartwood originally opened in 1995 on Quinpool. Sullivan bought it in 2011 after she ran a health food store in Moncton. Despite the current difficulties facing her business, Sullivan is trying to remain positive. She says support from the city and the neighbourhood has been immense over the years. Sullivan is planning celebratory events for May and into the early summer.
“I think it was very heartfelt that the community felt the same way (about the upcoming closure) and the outpouring of support also meant a lot that it will affect people and others are grieving, not just us.”
But Sullivan still worries about the future of small restaurants and independent retailers. With people ordering more food, clothing, and other items online, she wonders how much culture cities will lose.
“It will mean there’s a lot of closures of these small businesses and we will lose a lot of culture. Amazon deliveries might be convenient and really exciting right now, but when we look up and we realize that all the cute retail stores are gone; it’s a landscape is going to change dramatically.”
Derek Montague is a Huddle reporter in Halifax. Send him your feedback and story ideas: [email protected].