The faces have changed over almost 170 years, but the sound of laughter and good times remain at one of Barrie’s oldest watering holes.
The iconic Simcoe Hotel, located at the historic Five Points intersection downtown, has been a mainstay since the 1870s.
The original hotel on the site was built in 1853. However, fire on a February night in 1876 destroyed it and the stable, but barely scorched the hardwood beams in the cellar, which remain to this day.
The current structure, with its distinct flat-iron design, was built on the old foundation and opened in 1877, or in 1876 if you believe a T-shirt worn by Bonny Greer.
“This is like a second home to me: a home away from home,” she says while shooting a game of pool. “About 25 years ago, I actually lived here. I was a dishwasher/cook, a waiter. I’ve done everything in this bar.”
She describes 'The Simcoe' as “a very special place” with a rich history similar to the Queen’s and the old American Hotel, which used to be located on the site of city hall’s Circle at the Centre skating rink.
“It’s so important because of the people around you. They love you. They’re your friends. I know them all,” Greer says. “If you know the Simcoe, you know the Simcoe.
“We used to call it the office: ‘We’ll meet you at the office’."
Jason LeBreton is another regular who has a soft spot in his heart for the Simcoe Hotel.
“I’ve been coming here since I was a little boy, and my grandma used to come here all the time. They had a female section and a male section, a smoking section and a non-smoking section,” he says. “And there was a kids’ section. I remember my mom would drop me off and I’d get my poutine and gravy and vinegar.
“Then she’d go in and talk with my grandma for an hour while I enjoyed my food.”
The history of the place is a vital component of the downtown, LeBreton says.
“It’s part of my family. We’ve always come here. My grandmother, my grandfather at one point in his life, my mom and all the people she knows,” he says. “Downtown Barrie is where I was born and raised. I’ve also lived in Owen Sound, but this always felt like home, so I moved back.
“This building is definitely important and history is important because it’s always valuable information. It dictates the future.”
Owner George Peacock says Bourbon, as the restaurant is now known, sat empty for two years about seven years ago.
“When they closed it, I got in the mood to open it up again. I knew nothing about the bar business, but we’re still here,” he says, while chatting up other regulars. “Fifty years ago, my dad bought me my first beer in here.”
Peacock seems to know most of the bar crowd.
“They’re good people, a good bunch. It’s like a big family. Everybody here genuinely cares about each other. They know each other,” Peacock says. “It’s a fun place to come into after work. It’s a working man’s bar. We’ve also got a lot of men here who don’t work, but they’re welcome, too.”
Just about everyone in the place seems to be a regular. Steve Verschaeve is one of them.
