Downtown restaurant closes doors for good

A sign posted on the door of Smoke's Poutinerie at 648 Queen Street East says the eatery is no longer open for business.

Smoke's Poutinerie, based in Toronto, launched in 2008 and the number of Smoke's locations grew dramatically.

There were more than 60 Smoke's locations across Canada and the U.S. (most of them in Ontario) when the local Smoke's restaurant opened in April 2014.

Smoke's is known for offering poutine, a Quebec dish traditionally consisting of fries and cheese curds covered with gravy, with a wide variety of toppings to choose from, along with zany poutine-eating promotional events.  

The sign posted on the Queen Street restaurant door reads "Dear customers, we are sad to announce that we are now permanently closed."

"We would like to thank our loyal customers for all your support.  It means the world to us."

"It's a tough market and it was a tough decision to make."

"Be strong. Poutine on."

Smoke's owner/operator Paul Fowler could not immediately be reached for comment.