How This Story Started
In mid-November, we shared a short recommendation for Silversmith Brewing Company in NOTL News.
It wasn’t sponsored. There was no campaign attached. It was simply a local place worth highlighting — the kind of recommendation you’d make to a friend while talking about where to grab a good meal on a cold evening in town.
A few weeks later, I stopped by Silversmith again. As usual, I ordered the poutine — comfort food that somehow feels even more appropriate once the Christmas lights are up.
While I was there, Erin VanBussel, the general manager, noticing I was having a poutine, struck up a conversation and asked me something I didn’t expect:
“Are you here because of the article?”
They explained that over the previous weeks, a growing number of people had come in mentioning the newsletter — locals and visitors alike — saying they had chosen Silversmith specifically because they’d read about it here.
That’s when I got to smile and jokinglysay, “I am NOTL News — I wrote that article.”
We laughed, and I left thinking it was one of those moments that only really happens in a small town.
The Week After, It All Clicked
The following week, I ran into Don and Lisa at the May Court Christmas Gala.
Don is originally from Sherbrooke — very French Canadian — and both he and Lisa now call Niagara home. In conversation, they casually mentioned they had gone to Silversmith because of the recommendation in NOTL News, and that they had told the team there exactly that when they visited.
If you’d like to learn more about the May Court Christmas Gala, you can read our full coverage at the link included below.
That was the moment the story came full circle.
A recommendation written in November
turned into real foot traffic in December,
which turned into a conversation with a local business,
which came back to me through readers I hadn’t even met yet.
The Poutine Test
I still stand by the poutine.
If you’ve got an Ottawa kid like me and a French Canadian local like Don both independently ending up at Silversmith — and both agreeing it’s worth returning for — that’s not marketing. That’s quality.
And, let’s be honest, quantity too.
If you’re looking for a small way to treat yourself before the rush of Christmas dinners and family gatherings, this might be your sign.
What This Says About Local Influence
This story isn’t really about Silversmith — it’s about how influence actually works in a town like Niagara-on-the-Lake.
Local businesses don’t need louder marketing. They need the right people hearing about them in the right way, from a source they trust.
That’s what we’re building at NOTL News.
When it works, it looks like this:
→ readers discovering a place
→ acting on a recommendation
→ businesses noticing real people walk through the door
and those stories overlapping in the community.
Especially this time of year, when people are more intentional about where they spend their time and money, that trust matters.
Looking Ahead
As we head into Christmas week — and start looking toward a new year — we’re excited to invest even more of our effort into helping local, independent businesses grow through storytelling that feels genuine, not transactional.
If you’re a business owner in Niagara-on-the-Lake (or the surrounding area) and you’ve ever wondered whether NOTL News could help tell your story, we’d love to start that conversation.
You can learn more, or simply introduce yourself, by clicking the link below. 👇
No pressure. No hard sell. Just a starting point.
Sometimes, all it takes is one honest recommendation — or a well-timed poutine before Christmas — to set something bigger in motion.
— Matt
Editor, NOTL News