-by Rankin MacDonald
The worst has come to pass.
The Dancing Goat in North East Margaree closed indefinitely on Sunday, March 16th.
It was in 2006, but it seems like yesterday, that The Oran sat down with Merv Tingley who had moved home from Ontario to start a new business in, of all places, North East Margaree.
None of the development agencies would loan him any money, so he had the grit to do it all on his own.
Jumping right in the deep end and locating in his beloved Margaree was a stroke of genius, and with unparalleled quality and a winning personality he built The Dancing Goat into one of Cape Breton’s iconic restaurants.
You couldn’t drive by without dropping in for the food and hospitality.
The sandwiches were fabulous, including the world’s best egg salad sandwich, the soups adventurous and delicious and the baking as mouth-watering as any you’ll find in fine bakeries in gay Paris.
It was praised by locals and those who discovered it while visiting our island.
But after eight years The Dancing Goat was forced to close due to financial woes.
On the weekend the parking lot was filled with patrons.
We spoke to some, and while people came to redeem their gift cards, most were there to show their support and appreciation to Merv and his staff.
“After months of careful thought and consideration I felt there is no other choice but to close The Dancing Goat in Margaree,” he said in a Facebook post. “This has been a very painful decision for me to make and something I have not taken lightly. Financially, however, I can no longer keep the wheels running after the Inverness location went bankrupt.”
When we spoke to Merv last week you could feel the pain in his voice.
“I know there has been a great deal of speculation about The Dancing Goat since last week’s front-page news, and I have been inundated with questions and comments from our loyal customers. I am including some of the financial details here that led me to this decision,” he continued.
“Although sales in Inverness were above projections the contract I entered into was completely unattainable which led to sever financial challenges and eventually its closure. This in turn has impacted Margaree greatly and I am unable to carry on.
`Inverness was burdened with high rent and a $235,000 renovation loan with an interest rate of 18.08 per cent over five years. The utilities were approximately $2000/month, and this doesn’t take into consideration payroll and operation costs and higher than expected start-up costs and losses.”
He said it is a difficult time for the staff, family and friends, and he appreciates all the support he received.
Cabot Links purchased the building and renovated it for The Dancing Goat.
Ben Cowan-Dewar said he was sad to hear the news because they were very fond of the restaurant.
He didn’t say what the building in Inverness will be used for.
“We are exploring all options for Margaree to secure a new owner,” Tingley concluded.
