What to know
- Electric Bill, a popular Australia-themed cocktail bar at Ossington Avenue and Bloor Street West, will permanently close on Aug. 16 after two years in business.
- Co-owner Casey Ryan says rising operating costs, the cost-of-living crisis, and the inability to open the bar’s patio made the business financially unsustainable.
- The loss of the 50-seat patio eliminated a major summer revenue source, while increasing costs for food, alcohol, and licensing further squeezed already thin margins.
- Following the closure announcement, customers have flooded the bar with messages of support, thanking the team for its welcoming atmosphere and community-focused hospitality.
A Toronto neighbourhood bar is shutting its doors due to rising costs that they say make operating in our city unviable.
Electric Bill, nestled in a spacious corner unit at the corner of Ossington Ave. and Bloor St. W., is an Australia-themed bar serving delicious cocktails, appetizers, and a warm atmosphere to the neighbourhood.
Casey Ryan, a co-owner of the local watering hole, said a lot of factors led to their decision to close their doors after two years in the community.
“The main factor, obviously, is that everything’s a lot more expensive these days. Not just for us with like our costs, but also like for guests,” he shared, explaining that while it’s costly to operate a bar, the cost-of-living crisis has made going out to drink less accessible for would-be patrons.
“I feel like it’s very hard for people in general right now to go out, just with how expensive things are.”
He explained that he knows of other bar owners across Ontario who are struggling with the way the ongoing cost-of-living crisis is impacting both operating costs and their guests’ ability to visit.
Other factors that led to the closure include licensing issues for the patio, meaning that they haven’t been able to open the outdoor space, leaving them with fewer opportunities to serve customers.
“Summertime in Toronto, it’s a patio city, right? So patios are very much a main source of revenue for us. So that was a big thing as well.”
Ryan explained that licensing the outdoor seating area, which has a capacity of 50 people, is also expensive, costing the bar about $7,000 a year.
“Not viable for us“
The closure comes as the owner says that the viability of running a bar in Toronto has been interrupted by the continuously rising cost-of-living.
“It’s not viable for us. I’m not saying it’s not viable for anyone,” he explained. “It didn’t make sense for us to be open anymore with the increasing cost of everything and the drop in business [from] losing the patio.”
He explained that while small businesses such as theirs often see smaller margins when it comes to earnings, things have gotten too tight to keep operating.
“It is a struggling economy at the moment, so it doesn’t take a huge shift to sort of push you from getting by to not getting by.”
Ryan, who has consistently worked in Toronto bars since coming to the city from Australia in 2010, says that he thinks that having a nice drink should be affordable.
“I don’t think that cocktails should be an elitist thing. I don’t think it should be something that only the very rich can afford. It shouldn’t be like a luxury thing. It should just be like a staple of living in a great city like Toronto,” he explained.
But he also shared that rising costs make that impossible for their business, as the rising costs of things like produce and alcohol mean that they have to increase their prices to make some kind of profit.
“At what point are you like, ‘This price is too high?’ When is it not fair? We’re a neighbourhood bar. We want neighbourhood people in,” he shared. “We don’t want to be a place that only a certain percentage of people can afford.”
Ryan told Now Toronto that the public reaction to the closure announcement has been sweet.
“We’ve had a lot of people like reaching out to us. We’ve had a lot of nice messages, people coming in and sharing how much they enjoy coming in, how nice it was for them,” the co-owner shared.
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He hopes that Electric Bill is remembered as a fun place that always tried to put hospitality first.
“We wanted people to come in and have a good time. We wanted to be very friendly and very welcoming. I hope people just remember it as a warm and fun place.”
Online, patrons have been sharing love for the Toronto bar following the closure announcement.
“Sad day for our hood! Will miss you all. Thanks for the amazing cocktails and even better hospitality,” one Instagram user commented on a post about Electric Bill closing down.
“Danm shame, you folks are an absolute gem. Will raise a few to you,” another posted.
“Absolutely devastated to hear this.”
Electric Bill will serve its last drink on Aug. 16, 2026.
