Fairouz Cafe in the ByWard Market to close, replaced by three new food-and-drink businesses (Citizen)
March 26, 2025 - Ottawa Citizen
Fairouz Cafe on Clarence Street is to close in mid-April so that its owners can open three new food-and-drink businesses in the National Capital Commission-owned space.
“We’re trying to embrace a new style, a hybrid hospitality space,” co-owner Tony Garcia says.
His Middle Eastern restaurant is to have its last service on April 12. Garcia hopes that just a few weeks later in the Fairouz space he will be able to open a steakhouse called Sussex & Co. and a cocktail bar called Little Sussex. A third brand, a burger business called Burger Bar, is to open later this year, according to his plan.
The cocktail bar will be in the front of Fairouz’s space, while the steakhouse will be in the rear and include the rear patio. The side patio will become the burger business, Garcia says.
“We’ve survived through trucker things and the pandemic, we have wonderful regulars,” Garcia says. “But there comes a time when you make a decision. The world is changing.” The idea behind the hybrid business is to attract more customers with three concepts and price points.
