It wasn’t until I had a fancy cocktail in my hand that I began to appreciate the true vibe of FONO, the new hi-fi listening lounge housed in a 100-year old building on Bronson Avenue.
After all, I’d been hearing plenty of buzz on this intriguing spot, much of it generated by influencers who spent FONO’s grand-opening weekend in April posting glam shots of everything from the polished decor to the “elevated” cocktails.
I feared it would be filled with hipsters, particularly upon learning the only beer on tap is Sunsplit, a hefty IPA made by a renowned local brewery, Dominion City. It’s a magnet for beer snobs, but with an ABV of 6.5%, too strong for my tastes. But I was sure I’d find something suitable to drink the evening a friend and I made the short stroll over from his Centretown apartment
Then the cocktail menu caught my eye. The list of drink names read like an homage to the Ottawa music scene of days gone by: The Rotters Club. Zaphod. One Step Beyond. Paradise Room. (Still to come, perhaps, are drinks named after Barrymore’s and Babylon?)
My mind flashed back to the historic spots. The Rotters Club on Bank Street was before my time as a clubgoer, but I knew it as a stomping ground for the late-70s punk scene. A decade later, One Step Beyond opened as a rare, all-ages venue that welcomed young local acts.
And Zaphod, of course, refers to Zaphod Beeblebrox , the legendary bar on York Street, located in the ByWard Market space currently occupied by 27 Club. I saw hundreds of shows at Zaphod’s before it closed, including early Ottawa gigs for a wave of Canadian rock bands of the 90s, such as Our Lady Peace, Nickelback, Headstones, I Mother Earth, Junkhouse, Big Sugar and many more.
Also memorialized on the menu is Cinqhole, the unique DIY establishment run by a team that included Matias Munoz, one of the partners in Fono. It shut down during the first year of the pandemic.
To get inside FONO, look for the red-lit exterior entrance on the side of the building. You will step into a sleek front room dominated by a bar counter and flanked by low chairs and tables. I had made a reservation in the lounge and got low-slung seats in a corner that were great for observing everyone else. For one or two people, sitting at the spacious bar is probably more comfortable and likely to lead to more socializing.
Arguably, the best thing about FONO was the fact that we could hold a conversation while the music was playing. We didn’t have to yell, thanks to the well-modulated sound system. The next best thing was the low lighting; nothing kills a vibe more, in my opinion, than glaring white lights.
A closer look around the room revealed a series of voluptuous speakers placed around the perimeter, DJ gear behind the bar and a dearth of giant screens. Don’t come here for hockey playoffs, but do come to see the gorgeous hardwood speakers from Automatic Audio, and hear the magic they bring to old-school soul, funk or whatever else the DJs choose to spin.
For his part, Munoz is happy he didn’t cut corners on the sound system. “Sometimes when you spend the time and money on these things early on, you ask yourself, ‘Will this all really make a difference?’ or ‘Will people even notice?’ I’m so glad I followed through with the plan of not sacrificing audio fidelity and sound quality,” he said, noting the “overwhelmingly positive feedback” from patrons.
In the lounge, we sipped our drinks and ordered food from a snack menu that was limited to items that don’t require a fryer, from half a devilled egg ($3.50) to a Jumbo Shrimp cocktail ($23). We enjoyed the tuna crudo with orange and jalapeno, a bowl of olives, a devilled egg and the smoked ham plate, although I’d suggest ordering bread ($6) to go with it.
The next night, I returned to check out a sold-out show in the cozy ballroom. With little more than four bare walls, the space reminded me of Cinqhole’s intimate, unpretentious setting. People clustered towards the front to see the performer, local sound guru Nick Schofield, who appeared to have recently overcome his mistrust of melody.
Performing from a seated position that made it tricky to see him over the crowd, Schofield’s new material bubbled with melodic threads to the delight of the audience. Any sound bleed from the chatting that might have spilled over from the lounge was eliminated by a door between the two rooms, firmly shut during the music.
It was at this point that I concluded FONO is a direct descendant of some of Ottawa’s most memorable live-music hangouts. It’s being cultivated by owners who are making an effort to combine the best parts of past endeavours into something new and, more importantly, sustainable.
As Munoz put it, the drinks sold in the lounge help cover the performances in the ballroom, allowing “more freedom to book artists who we’re excited about.” Even the $6 beer that I don’t like plays a role in the operation.
“We are a neighbourhood spot that is for everyone, and not everyone has money to spend on a $20 cocktail,” Munoz said. “But those who can afford a $6 (beer) should still feel welcome and enjoy the space as much as the person drinking cocktails all night.
“My goal,” he added, “is to reduce as many financial and physical barriers as possible for artists and patrons to use the FONO Ballroom for intimate kinds of shows .”
Bottom line? I’ll drink to that.
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