History
The restaurant is owned and operated by John Letnik who came to Canada as a refugee from Yugoslavia in 1957. He opened the restaurant aboard the MS Normac in 1970. The Normac had served several years with the Detroit Fire Department and then as a ferry that travelled between Tobermory and Manitoulin Island. In 1975 Letnik bought the larger Jadran from the Yugoslav government. The Jadran was one of three luxury cruise ships built in Split for the Jadranska Linijska Plovidba company. For several years it operated as a luxury cruise ship in the Adriatic and Aegean. Letnik purchased the ship in 1975 for a million dollars, and it became a second location for his restaurant. As well as being its owner, Letnick also serves as chef.
The ship is one of many attractions in the area known as Harbourfront.
In 1981 the Normac was struck by then Metro Toronto Parks-operated ferry Trillium and sunk. No one was hurt, but the restaurant was destroyed. This set off a long legal battle between Letnik and the city. Letnik was eventually awarded damages, but reportedly not enough to compensate for the destruction. The Normac was raised and refurbished and served as a floating restaurant in other communities with the Jadran being the sole home of Captain John's since then.
While in the 1970s and 1980s, the floating restaurant was a desired culinary destination attracting prominent diners such as Brian Mulroney, Mel Lastman, Robert Campeau and Steve Stavro, it lost favour as the city's gastronomical scene became more sophisticated and diverse. More recent reviews from local papers rated its culinary fare as average, despite the restaurant's boasts of having "the best seafood in town!" Reviews by patrons are decidedly mixed. The restaurant's clientele is primarily tourists and many bus tours stop at Captain John's.
Read more about this topic: Captain John's Harbour Boat Restaurant
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—Norman Mailer (b. 1923)
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