Toby Lyle

By Dan Laxer
The Suburban

The Office québécois de la langue française has reversed its decision regarding the Pub Burgundy Lion, and has apologized, says co-owner Toby Lyle.

A breathless Lyle told The Suburban that he had just left the gym, where he did not have his phone, and found a flurry of emails, texts, and messages congratulating him. He got the good news last Thursday, two days after a language inspector had paid a visit to the pub.

Brigitte Hernando, the OQLF’s Director of Business Support and Partnerships, had emailed Lyle asking him to call her.

It has also put out a statement saying that the inspector who had visited the pub, telling Lyle that the word “Burgundy” was not French enough and would have to be changed had acted prematurely.

“This is a regrettable situation,” the OQLF said in an official statement, “and we are sensitive to the reactions it has generated, both from the company and the public.”

“The sign stays,” Lyle triumphantly told The Suburban. “Nothing changes.”

The OQLF statement affirms that the Pub Burgundy Lion sign “is compliant” after all. The inspector had also told him that certain whiskey designations would have to be changed. However, those, too, will be allowed to remain as they are.

“We will do everything possible,” the OQLF said, “to ensure that similar situations do not recur.”

Lyle tells The Suburban that whatever else had to be changed on the pub’s menu and website, which he had no problem with, were done immediately.

After the initial announcement that an OQLF inspector had been to the pub, ordering Lyle and his partners to change the name, a prankster had the pub listed as “Permanently Closed” on Google, which Lyle had remedied right away. He also said that some had posted one-star reviews in the aftermath of the OQLF visit. But it still has at least 4.4 stars at present.

The pub has been around just shy of eighteen years, “almost old enough to drink,” Lyle jokes. It is named for its neighbourhood – Little Burgundy, or Petite-Bourgogne. That would have been Lyle’s defense in the fight he promised to wage against the OQLF, the “Little Burgundy” is a place name used by residents for generations.

It was just the latest in a spate of business name changes in the wake of Bill 96 which saw businesses like Walmart and Canadian Tire spend tens of thousands to bring their outdoor signs to compliance.

“My issue with this case,” Lyle had written in a Facebook post after the language inspector’s visit, “is that it contributes to the increasing polarization of our city and our province.”

Earlier this week, the Coalition Avenir Quebec government suffered a serious setback when it lost the Arthabaska riding to the Parti Québécois in a byelection. Premier Francois Legault was scheduled to meet with his ministers on Thursday to discuss that apparent negative comments and feedback he and the party have gotten from people throughout the summer months. Before the scheduled meeting, Legault stepped out to meet citizens in Quebec City. n