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![\"MIKE](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/4436327_web1_29832714_200730-FORT-GARRY-HOTEL-0044.JPG\")
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tMIKE DEAL \/ FREE PRESS FILES <\/p>\n
The Fort Garry Hotel announced in 2022 its opening of a Yuk Yuk\u2019s in a room previously used for nightclubs.<\/p>\n
The franchise counts at least 10 locations nationally.<\/p>\n
In 2022, the Fort Garry Hotel announced it\u2019d open a Yuk Yuk\u2019s<\/a> in a room that\u2019s previously housed nightclubs.<\/p>\n Comedy acts have since frequented the stage Friday and Saturday nights.<\/p>\n But the Winnipeg shows quietly stopped this year. The last events posted online were in May.<\/p>\n Franchisee Ida Albo, who owns the Fort Garry Hotel, said she chose not to renew a lease with Yuk Yuk\u2019s in March. The initial lease was three years.<\/p>\n \u201cWe had a better use for the space,\u201d Albo said, adding the comedy set-up \u201cwent well.\u201d<\/p>\n The Fort Garry Hotel is pivoting to something new; Albo declined to provide details.<\/p>\n She called the relationship with Yuk Yuk\u2019s \u201cgreat.\u201d<\/p>\n Breslin underscored he didn\u2019t know the official reason for the Winnipeg closure, but it was among the locations with the lowest attendance rates.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s a certain point when it\u2019s just not worth doing anymore,\u201d he said. \u201cMaybe downtown Winnipeg hasn\u2019t bounced back quite enough for people to feel comfortable going out there, and they want to go to the suburbs\u2026 I\u2019m not sure.<\/p>\n \u201cWe certainly brought in the best Canadian talent imaginable.\u201d<\/p>\n Downtown foot traffic was relatively stable in the first months of 2026, though overall visits dropped six per cent year-over-year, a recent Downtown Winnipeg BIZ report states.<\/p>\n Visitation in 2025 was roughly 10 per cent lower than the year prior.<\/p>\n The Fort Garry Hotel room is \u201cgorgeous\u201d and its ownership likable, Breslin said. He\u2019s looking for a new Winnipeg franchisee to launch Yuk Yuk\u2019s in the city.<\/p>\n The company had an Osborne Village franchise in the 1980s and \u201990s.<\/p>\n Comedy venues such as Rumor\u2019s and The Basement continue to operate in Winnipeg.<\/p>\n Rumor\u2019s will apply unused Yuk Yuk\u2019s gift cards to its regular price show tickets, said club partner Drew Mindell. He encouraged gift card holders to contact Rumor\u2019s.<\/p>\n \u201cI always want to see businesses thriving, no matter what industry,\u201d Mindell said. \u201cI\u2019m sorry to hear that (Yuk Yuk\u2019s has) decided to shut down.\u201d<\/p>\n Despite the closure, Mindell considers Winnipeg\u2019s comedy scene a \u201chot one.\u201d Rumor\u2019s is finishing its best July in its four-decade history, Mindell said.<\/p>\n \u201cEspecially in the age of AI, where people see videos online and they\u2019re not sure if what they\u2019re seeing is real \u2014 they know, they come to a comedy club, what they are seeing is absolutely 100 per cent authentic,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \n\t\tWinnipeg Free Press | Newsletter\n\t<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t Customers seem to crave authenticity, he added.<\/p>\n The Fort Garry Hotel, meantime, is in transition. Ownership is looking to sell; the Manitoba M\u00e9tis Federation has expressed interest.<\/p>\n MMF President David Chartrand said earlier this month the federation would acquire the historic hotel<\/a> \u201cif the price is right and the partnership is positive.\u201d The 113-year-old hotel was listed without a price.<\/p>\n It underwent a major renovation to its restaurant and bar in 2021.<\/p>\n gabrielle.piche@winnipegfreepress.com<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t Gabrielle Pich\u00e9 Gabrielle Pich\u00e9 reports on business for the Free Press. She interned at the Free Press and worked for its sister outlet, Canstar Community News, before entering the business beat in 2021. Read more about Gabrielle<\/a>.<\/p>\n Every piece of reporting Gabrielle produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print \u2014 part of the Free Press\u2018s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press\u2019s history and mandate<\/a>, and learn how our newsroom operates<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Reporter
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