At least Captain John went down with his ship.
While many in this city cheered the sight of Captain John’s restaurant being towed away from her berth at the foot of Yonge street today, I shed a tiny tear for a couple of reason, the second of which I will reveal in a minute. I spent a lot of time on Captain John’s when it opened in the 70’s. I ate a lot of shrimp cocktail on the deck, drank a lot of beer and sipped way too many Black Russians well into a Friday night. My first job in radio ( circa 73 ) was at CKEY 590 which at the time was located on the top floor of the Toronto Star building at #1 Yonge – so the ship became our after work meeting spot and Friday night launch into the weekend. On any given afternoon to early evening there would be dozens of us from the station or the Star Newsroom holding court on the issues of the day. Along side us would be the very politicians we were slagging from city council or Queens Park – from councillors like Fred Beavis and Joe Piccinini to Metro Chairman Paul Godfrey and Premier Bill Davis. It was the place to be and to be seen. The Captain himself ( John Letnik ) would stroll tall and elegantly throughout the ship proudly schmoozing his A list while sending the odd ” on-the-house” round our way just to keep us coming back. I can only imagine how many free lunches were offered and accepted by politicians of the day. It was quite a time and what memories I can remember ( through the haze of Black Russians ) came flooding back today.
The second reason I’m a touch sorry to see the ship go is because as it came up for auction, a small part of me wanted to buy it! Seriously. Although I have enjoyed every second of my lengthy radio career in Toronto, as a #Masterchef ( in my own mind ) and as I whistle by the grave yard, my latent dream is to own and run a restaurant.. Having travelled quite extensively, I’ve seen my share of unique WATERFRONT spots – In San Francisco, Chicago, Florida Keys, Mexico, BVI, Hong Kong, Boston, Cape Cod, Naples, Sicily, Nice, along Italy’s Amalfi coast and throughout the Greek Islands. The notion of an actual ship as a waterfront restaurant destination is gold, anywhere in the world. I even ( just musing ) almost called Paul Godfrey ( fixer ) to joint venture with me – LOL
Yes, just a dream. It would take a ton of financial, administrative, physical, political and legal energy to clear up the liens, back taxes, bad will and rust that has accumulated on the hull of Captain John’s – but oh baby, what a dream! I’m glad that John Letnik realized some of his and at least he went down with his ship – unlike other Captains’ who abandon passengers and crew to save themselves.