Minding their Ps & Qs at Glebe Central Pub

Pints & Quarts (Ps & Qs) will soon have a new name, a nod to the name of the building itself: Glebe Central Pub.

By John De Genova

The successful ownership change of a treasured business can be tricky to accomplish, particularly when the previous owners were as well loved and respected as Amir and Maryam Aghaei of Pints and Quarts (Ps&Qs). But Glebites Blair Brassard and Dan Rogers have effectively managed the feat with aplomb, after acquiring the pub at 779 Bank Street and taking over as its new proprietors last August. Brassard and his father started negotiations for the ownership change, and Brassard sought out Rogers as a business partner.

Dan Rogers (left) and Blair Brassard are the new(ish) owners of Ps & Qs, soon to be Glebe Central Pub.
Photos: John de Genova

Brassard, who has worked around the world after growing up in a small northern Ontario town, moved to the Glebe 15 years ago without knowing a soul. To meet fellow Glebites, he ventured to Pints and Quarts’ predecessor, The Royal Oak; over beers and years, he made many friends. Rogers, who moved to Ottawa in 1972 and has spent most of his years since in the Glebe, had his first beer at the present site when it initially opened as Noddy’s back in 1982.

For Brassard, owning a Cheers-like bar is something he always dreamed of.

“The Glebe itself is like a small town,” Brassard tells me. “People walk and shop in their neighbourhood. A five-minute walk takes twenty as you chat with acquaintances along the way. Our pub is part of this wonderful Glebe society.”

It’s obvious that Rogers and Brassard are comfortable around each other. The two men have a great sense of humour, always laughing and smiling, and both have a tremendous gift for gab, able to carry a lively conversation with interesting anecdotes. For Rogers, who spent years on Parliament Hill as a political assistant, lobbyist and communications professional, talking and dealing with people comes naturally.

Friends through the pub and loyal, frequent customers, the two often talked over beers and bites about what it would be like to own Pints and Quarts and how they might develop and grow the business if they did.

“This is not a franchise,” Rogers explains, “so we can be creative. And it was important to us both, that we kept the ownership local. Be part of the community.”

Community is essential to how this pub sees itself and how it is setting itself apart. Besides serving tasty beverages from local breweries such as Bicycle, Dominion City, Beyond the Pale, Whitewater, Perth Brewery and more, and supporting local businesses like McKeen Metro and Nicastro’s, they are turning the pub into a community hub.

“We want to make a positive contribution to the community,” Rogers explains, “through music, sponsorship, charity and possibly art.”

Some endeavours have included a Movember calendar of “Boys from the Bar” with proceeds going to cancer research, and involvement in the Santa Claus Parade. In talking with Mary Tsai of the Glebe Neighbourhood Activities Group, I learn that the pub is partnering with GNAG’s social sports programs, golf tournament and community development fund. Other new features include Trivia Monday, Wing Night Tuesday, Open Mike Wednesday, Karaoke Thursdays, Live Music Fridays, European Football pints, Jazz Sundays, a shortened menu with weekly specials, a cocktail menu, a revamped and enhanced weekend breakfast menu and extended hours that keep the pub open until 2 a.m.

“Our bar is accessible to all members of our community in a safe, fun, welcoming environment,” Brassard says. “Families, LGBTQ members, university students, everyone. A place where a twenty-year-old and a sixty-year-old can have a meaningful conversation.”

“We have no tolerance for intolerance,” Rogers adds.

A name rebranding is also in the works. With a nod to the charming Glebe Central building that houses, word is that the bar will be renamed Glebe Central Pub.

Interview completed, I settle in for a tasty Whitewater brew. I love this building, always have, with its majestic, theatre style-curved bannisters leading to a basement laundry and the pub itself with its alleyway entrance. I talk to my neighbours at the bar while glancing at highlights from last night’s Sens game. It’s a comfortable, cosy place to be with friends, with family or just with oneself and the friends you’ve yet to make. This is Glebe Central (Pub), part of my community.

John De Genova is a poet and retired public servant with a penchant for small business.

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