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NilsClausson writes: I lived in Halifax from 1971 to 1976 and can confirm that the Garden View Restaurant on SpringGardenRoad was a popular eating place for gays and lesbians who lived in the area. It was a Chinese restaurant, though it served Canadian food too. DavidGray (who operated the bar in the GreenLantern Building), BrianDoat (the DJ at the club from about 1974 to at least 1976), TommyBurns (the first chairman of GaeGala), and myself used to eat there frequently as we lived close by in the Green Lantern Building, and we always ran into regulars from the Club when we went there. As I recall (from the perspective of 30 years!) its decor was rather kitchy, with huge murals of Chinese gardens from which it got its name.
DanielMacKay writes: it was a hangout because it was open very late and was on TheTriangle. It's also possible that the name came from its proximity - a half a block - to the Public Gardens
HistoryProjectTodoList: NorvalCollins says it was open 24 hours, have to verify.
Tammy: The Garden View (or "Gag and Spew") was a mainstay in the gay community in Halifax in the mid-eighties. Many a night was spent there after the club to eat, cruise, or just to escape the cold with a coffee. It was on the block of Spring Garden with Dresden Row on the right and Birmingham Street on the left - the two streets that met at Sackville Street to form the infamous cruising/hustling strip of the era known as the Triangle. It was between the CIBC building on Spring Garden Road and (the former) My Mother's Bloomers. These days, it is home to the entrance to HMV.
RandyKennedy: 2nd booth on the viewing left was my favorite booth ! And the booth on the right by the bridge in the photo was where i was sitting with FredBerringer the night we started the food fight with 4 str8 guys who called us Faggots ! LOL!
I remember one night after The Turret closed, a gang of us went to TheHeidelberg for last call and then as usual finished off at the Garden View . The restaurant was full and again as usual, half the clients were gay. There was 4 straight guys sitting halfway down on the right side of the photo, Iris and I were in the booth behind them and FredBerringer was sitting against the wall with 3 other guys. The str8 guys started making fag remarks very loudly, and so an argument ensued. Suddenly Fred picked up a handful of chicken balls and let them fly hitting the str8 guys. It was not long before a full fledged food fight broke out. LOL The management threw the str8 guys out as we were all regular clients. Good times!
DougBrown?: I can remember the Garden View on Spring Garden Road next the CIBC during the late 50s through 1970s. The restaurant of the Same name on Main St. in Dartmouth is a branch of the original and owned by the same family. It still may be. (Note: the Garden View in Dartmouth closed in 2016.)
ca. 1970
AnthonyWallace: The first snow of the winter came one Thursday night in early December, 1978. On our way home that night from The Turret, Bert, Pat Innis and I had an inspiration to go tobogganing down the Citadel Hill. So we went to Pat's apartment and got garbage bags to slide on. And, wearing shoes, we trouped up the hill and screeched our heads off sliding back down. After we finished our welcome to winter late night recreation, we went to the Garden View for hot chocolate at 2 a.m
RegGiles: On this night a young Chinese lad just off the boat (I assumed because he had a limited english vocabulary... just like most of us on a Saturday Night after the bar.) He arrived at our table to take orders and I looked at him and then the menu and ordered a wonton soup and a plate of sum yung guy, without blinking he looked at his menu and replied "not on menu " and we are sure he had no clue as to the connotation.
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