Chateau Briand Fine Dining is now open in the former home of Corso Cafe in Granville Mall. The Chateau will serve all manner of French specialties, including duck a l’orange, frog legs, escargots, pepper steak and its namesake, chateau briand. “Chateau briand is the best piece of meat in the filet mignon,” explains manager, chef and part-owner Herve Hemlin. “It’s the centre part of the filet mignon.” Hemlin, who jokes, “I became French because of the food,” is excited about his new location, having recently moved from Dartmouth (the home of his former restaurant, Herve). “I decided to move to Halifax because it’s busier,” says Hemlin. “It’s more fun to be busy.” Chateau Briand seats 50 inside, with room for 30 more on the patio in the summer. Hemlin expects to cater mostly to the business crowd during lunch hour, with more of an emphasis on intimate, relaxed fine dining in the evenings.
Cup of Khyber
The Khyber Club now opens at noon every weekday and will be serving organic, free trade coffee and teas. “There was a lot of requests from members of the centre to be open during the days,” says manager Heather Gibson. “We’re responding to what the members wanted. It seems like a good fit, and it will be good to have more traffic in the building to see the exhibits.” The Khyber Club will also sell homemade cookies and seed cakes, with the possibility of branching into sandwiches and fancy coffees depending on demand. “We haven’t had much call for that yet, but if that’s what people want then we’ll add that as well,” says Gibson. The Khyber’s coffee service will generally run until 8pm, and “it’ll be business and bands as usual in the evenings.”
An apple a day
Entrepreneurial Dalhousie student Lindsay Pugh has started a new business, Nine to Five Fruits, delivering fresh fruit to businesses around HRM. “The idea of delivering fresh fruit to the workplace originated from my previous work experience,” says Pugh. “ Employers consistently provided doughnuts, cookies, cake and coffee for employees. I was gaining weight consistently and feeling sluggish from eating an extra donut or a couple cookies everyday...I thought it would be so much better if there were healthy choices.” Before starting Nine to Five Fruits, Pugh did her homework and discovered there is a direct correlation between healthy snacks and healthy employees. “I found that workplaces that introduced fruit to employees experienced increased productivity, reduced short-term sick absences and increased overall satisfaction amongst employees,” says Pugh. “ I also found that only 43 percent of Canadians meet the minimum of 5-10 servings of fruit and vegetables a day.” Nine to Five Fruits delivers large (50 pieces) or small (30 pieces) fruit bowls from Monday to Friday, between 8:30 and 11am. For more details visit www.ninetofivefruits.com.
Style guide
www.GKFA.com, an online magazine for the Sex and the City generation, launched a new website design last weekend. “It’s a big change,” says director of marketing Lynda Arseneault about the more interactive site. Content includes articles, columns and reviews on life, style, health, entertainment and travel. “We deal with topics that can be incorporated into women’s daily lives,” says Arsenault. “Our objective is to help and entertain women, while promoting a positive, realistic model and reflection of a generation who is enjoying the present and preparing for the future.” GKFA, the editorial branch of search engine www.genieknows.com (GKFA = GenieKnows.com Featured Articles) and property of IT Interactive Services, differs from traditional women’s magazines in a number of ways. “It’s more interactive, and we have quality, informative and entertaining content that’s updated seven days a week,” says Arsenault.
Cellar Computers Limited, located at 120 Suzy Lake Drive in Halifax and 135 Wyse Road in Dartmouth, is closed. A breach of lease notice on the door of the Wyse Road store, addressed to Cellar president Paul Mason from the law firm Burchell Hayman Parish, states: “Cellar has abandoned and left the premises unoccupied and has failed to pay rent when due.” A Cellar customer alerted us to the closure, after discovering Cellar’s emergency help service number was out of service. Peter Wedlake, trustee in bankruptcy acting for Cellar Computers, confirmed the closure. “The doors have been closed by the owner,” says Wedlake. “The business just wasn’t viable any longer...and they’ve made an assignment in bankcruptcy.” As for customers who still have a warranty through Cellar Computers, Wedlake says, “Unfortunately for customers with warranty or service issues, the company will not be able to fulfill those needs.”
This ’n’ that
Congratulations to Kara’s Urban Day Spa. The spa celebrated the grand opening of its Cole Harbour location on October 1, complete with DJ, barbecue and ribbon cutting by counsellor Harry MacInroy and owner Kara Landry. ... And lastly, Cozy Corner Saunas & Juice Bar has opened on 152 Ochterloney Street in Darmouth. We’ll get the details for you.
Warm up to new business ideas. Email: [email protected].
