This second location of the Honey Dew was also known in the 50s and 60s to be a safe spot for queers, particularly gay men, to pop into while cruising up and down Bank Street. Drag legend and icon Peaches Latour described the cruising scene on Bank…

The Honey Dew Coffee Shop was one of a small chain of diners in the Ottawa area. The one on Rideau was a hangout for gays in the 50s and 60s due to its closeness to cruising areas, notably Mackenzie Avenue and Major's Hill Park.Paul Fournier, aka…

In 2007, the owners of the Edge nightclub decided to open a bathhouse called the Edge Sauna, in the same building as the bar. There were already two bathhouses for men in Ottawa, but neither were considered very attractive or clean. The Edge Sauna…

Clover was a clean and bright little bistro that offered, as their Web site describes, 'humble' cuisine that's all made with local, sustainable ingredients. It opened just north of Laurier on Bank in 2014, but closed in 2019. If you know more…

The Town House Motel is now the Days Inn beside the Bytowne Cinema. In the mid-70s, LOON (Lesbians of Ottawa Now) held regular women's dances here for several years.Rose Stanton from LOON remembers the dances, at which she DJ'ed, being very popular…

The Rialto opens in 1931 on Bank At the time of its opening it was described as beautiful and upscale, but it wasn't well-maintained and the building quickly began to show wear. In the 50s to 70s, it was known as 'The Rat Hole', because of the other…

The Grand Hotel was Ottawa's second oldest hotel when it was demolished in the 1980s to make room for the Rideau Centre and Westin Hotel. It too had a reputation as an unofficial queer hangout before the modern liberation movement. If you know more…

The Rock Bottom Grill was a small bistro-like space in the basement level of 307 Dalhousie. The space is now occupied by Ahora Mexican Cuisine. A unique feature of the space are the windows at street level that allow you to peer down into the…

The Ottawa Women's Bookstore is opened in 1982 by Peggy Harris and Lee Fleming at 380 Elgin Street at Gladstone, three years after a horrible fire destroyed the building which housed the GO Centre for a time. The store becomes a welcomed meeting…

Lewis Street Sauna, named for much longer as Steamworks for Men, was a men's bathhouse owned by Wayne Cave and Ed St Jean, who also owned CP and Icon. The location was ideal for those who were at either of the bars, but wanted to walk over to the…