Distilled from history
In 1919, Prohibition arrived and the bottles went into hiding. What looked like the death of the drink was really the birth of the craft — because the corner apothecary, already stocked with bitters, botanicals and “medicinal” spirits, quietly became the place to get a proper cure. Apothecary Lounge is our love letter to that era, and to the bootleggers, herbalists and undertakers who kept the lights low and the glasses full.
The building
Our home is the Swalwell-Borbridge Building, designed in 1875 by Ottawa architect William Hodgson. Its earliest tenants — an undertaker, a baker and a wholesaler — tell the story of a working ByWard Market, and over the years it has housed the Fish Market Restaurant, Coasters and Vineyards Wine Bar. We kept its bones: original light fixtures, exposed brick, and cellar stone the other basement bars only wish they had.
the craft
Artisanal spirits, house-made tinctures, craft cocktails, local beer and a cellar of exclusive wines — served in a room built to make you lose track of the hour. Every Remedy tells a story…ask, and we'll tell it.
One building, three moods
