The Cove:
Something new from the owners of First Light Distillery
First Light Distillery is owned and operated by Kevin and Jen Stewart. Located in Hanwell, the distillery has an impressive space, a tasting room open on weekends, and an event space perfect for weddings or corporate parties. With their distillery products available at ANBL stores across the province and at your favourite bar, they have decided to add another space to offer First Light products.
The Cove by First Light Ditillery (FLD) will be launching in early fall in downtown Fredericton at 280 King Street. Jen and Kevin hope to reimagine the space and will be providing sneak peaks on their social media as contruction continues. They plan to offer fresh, fun, reasonably priced cocktails, made with First Light spirits (including the Fredericton Word approved Coastal Cream liqueur). They have arranged to share the space with Scout’s Original Sandwich Shop (see below interview with owners Dee and Ben!)
The space on King Street, beside St. Louis Wings (formerly the lounge at McGinnis Landing) will have room for about 50 in the cozy space plus more in the outdoor patio. They will be offering bar service to grab your drinks (or grab food at Scout’s) but there will be no table service. They are also working on offering their products to-go for those who want to have FLD spirits or vodka sodas for their home bar.
“Enjoy every sandwich.” - Warren Zevon
Finally!! Downtown Fredericton is getting a real, much needed, sandwich shop! Scout’s Original Sandwich Shop. will be located inside First Light Distillery’s brand new “The Cove” at 280 King Street. We asked the owners, Ben and Dee some questions about their exciting new business and their plans.
Why Downtown Fredericton?
Dee: We wanted Scout's to have a neighbourhood feel, where everyone is welcome and people come together to enjoy great eats and make valuable memories. It made sense to "scout" (no pun intended) out a place that was in the hub of the city where people could pop in during a quick lunch break, or walk to after work to enjoy a hearty meal.
Ben: We love downtown Fredericton, we love the atmosphere, and we really wanted to be a part of what we feel is part of the revitalization of the Freddy downtown the last few years. We’re hoping we can draw more people downtown and really contribute to its growth and development and get people out and walking around and visiting other great local businesses.
Why partner with The Cove instead of a stand-alone shop?
Ben: Well we explored a few options for locations downtown, and not much was panning out. We had decided to go the route of a food truck, and the weekend that I was going to pick up the truck I got a call from Jen and Kevin and they pitched the idea of The Cove to us. We were immediately in love with the idea.
Dee: Ben and I also realize how valuable of an opportunity this is to us, as Jen and Kev have already owned and operated a brick-and-mortar business and this is new to Ben and I.
Why sandwiches?
Ben: I love sandwiches, and it was always my plan to open a sandwich shop when I left the army. We are so blessed to have a pretty great variety of ethnic foods in Freddy. Carribean Flavas, Hana, Dimitris, Midsea, Tandoori Adda etc but I find after that it’s a lot of… “gastro pub” and pub food, and I didn’t want another bar with another copy/paste pub menu. It just so happened that Fredericton is lacking a sandwich shop, so it was a no-brainer for us.
Dee: I used to go to M&T Deli all the time when I went to NBCCD. Their homemade chips and pickles were to die for. I have been longing for a good sandwich shop since. When Ben told me his dream to always open up a sandwich shop I knew he was onto something, and that it was something that Fredericton desperately needed.
The website says open daily, 12 hours a day, will this be at opening or the longer term plan?
Ben: That’s the plan for now. We are playing with the idea of doing a reduced late night menu of different grilled cheese/melts but we’ll see.
Dee: We want to start out with long hours and see what the traffic trends are. After we get a sense of when people are eating, we can edit our hours up or down if need be.
Finally if you had to recommend one sandwich off your menu what is a must try?
Ben: for me, it’s The First Bite. I love a deli sandwich, and it’s the perfect mix of salty, spicy, sweet, and savoury.
The First Bite sandwich
Ham, Hot Genoa Salami, Swiss Cheese, Lettuce, Tomato, Banana Peppers, Lady Ashburns, Remoulade.
Dee: I loooove the "Sweet Dee" which is a hot honey, deep fried chicken sandwich. It has the most delicious homemade hot honey, spicy coleslaw and fresh dill pickles. It won't be on our daily menu, but we will bring it on as a special.
Thanks to Ben and Dee for their time and we at The Fredericton Word wish them all the best as things ramp up
In the Hood: Fredericton’s Best “Dive” Bar
Dive Bar definition from Wikipedia:
“A dive bar is typically a small, unglamorous, eclectic, old-style drinking establishment with inexpensive drinks; it may feature dim lighting, shabby or dated decor, neon beer signs, …. and local clientele. The precise definition of a dive bar is rarely agreed on, and is the subject of spirited debates”
Fredericton has relatively few “dive” bars using the definition above. Even if you add the option to order food, there isn’t many places to go where the bartenders know your name, drink of choice and you can walk home. There is no Maryville bar, Hanwell bar, Garden Creek bar etc. If you include food, The Red Lantern, Mama’s Pub, Cannon’s Cross and Wetmore Street Pub in New Maryland might be considered your local Dive Bar.
But there is only one true Dive Bar in the city that matches my definition and it is perfect in every way.
Speed Bumps Sportsbar is the best Dive Bar in Fredericton.
As soon as you enter the front entrance you go down a long hallway a suspenseful journey before you enter the main door. Inside is everything you could ever dream of for your local bar,
Speed Bumps Sports Bar, located in the heart of Nashwaaksis on Main Street, first opened in the mid 1990’s as a NASCAR themed sports bar (replacing The Right Spot pool room). They had an old driving simulator in the corner and were known for their NASCAR parties. Originally owned by Andy Mabie then taken over by Bill “Billy Bumps” Smythe in 2000. It was the unofficial watering hole for City Club members on the northside. Speed Bumps hosted Fredericton legends such as the late Tim MacTavish (There is a shrine dedicated to the affable MacTavish in the corner called the TMAC Lounge). In 2018 the bar was taken over by the dynamic duo of Al Gratto and Jim Cooper (no stranger to managing famous Fredericton watering holes)
My investigative research began at 6 pm on a Monday night and there were already twenty people enjoying a beverage. Perhaps the only bar in town with Coors Light on tap, Coors Light by the can and Coors Light by the bottle for the discerning beer connoisseur. Have a more eclectic palate? They have a beverage option for everyone including local craft beers on tap and in cans for the beer snobs. Wine on tap for the sophisticated sommelier types and a deep well of hard stuff.
As the regular clients flow in throughout the evening, the bartender has the drinks open and ready before they can even sit down and a snappy come back line to any regular that gives her grief. As a non-regular I was still served as soon as I sat down and within 5 seconds of finishing my first drink. Speed matters.
Some of the regulars play pool, some are watching one of the 8 TVS set to sports. Uncle Kracker plays on the jukebox. Many regulars gravitate to the wall of VLTs. I was happy to find the classic VLT game “Swinging Bells” (advertised as the Original Maritime Swinging Bells game from the 1990’s) If you know, you know.
The bar itself has classic styling, the bar stools and chairs are well loved. There is a stage for music and events. long tables for gathering, a back exit and covered patio. (The back exit/entrance is key as there will be less prying eyes on who might be coming and going at various hours). How a neighbourhood bar should look.
Basically, the bar is perfect: cold beer for $6!, varied drinks, witty bartenders, friendly clientele, entertainment and games. It was almost hard to leave, alas for research purposes I had just one more cold one before I left.
Brews News - A Correction?
As first reported in The Fredericton Word in January, Picaroons Brewery was close to being sold to a local buyer. Fast forward a few months, and the deal has been switched to a different group of local investors according to multiple sources (not the original group as rumoured). We at the Fredericton Word regret nothing.
Next issue…
Falling for Fall, Harvesting 101