New Year’s is a cliche and a half which doesn’t make the reflection aspect any less important. Looking back on the last year of my life I see the obvious enormous changes. A year ago I was managing someone else’s restaurant although by this time last year I had a fully formed idea that my calling was Deli. I took that idea and formed a plan towards its realisation. Being broke I had to keep it simple.
Plan A – Street Food Stall
This seemed to me to be the best possibility although I laugh to think how disastrous it would have been. Thank God the politicians at City Hall got involved and totally screwed up the simplest idea of diversifying Toronto’s street food. Instead of being ready to meet my timetable to launch in May 2008, these cats won’t be ready for at least another year because they attach public policy goals to what should be a simple supply/demand exercise (with the obvious health considerations). Seeing these delays coming a mile away I formed another plan, aptly named Plan B.
Plan B – Toronto’s Tiniest Takeout
When my friend Jennifer Italiano opened “Live”, her revolutionary and delicious raw/organic resto, she did it in the littlest possible space on Dupont near Spadina. Whilst managing a spot not far away I watched the current tenant’s business go south and I knew I’d have a crack at the space sooner or later. I figured if it helped Jennifer launch her business it was certainly good enough for me. Of course french fries weren’t part of Jennifer’s raw food revolution and she wasn’t smoking briskets by the score. I thought I could simply make fries the old fashioned way: in a basket dunked in a pot of oil on a stovetop until Ezra of beloved Ezra’s Pound asked me a profound question. ”Are you fucking nuts,” he said “you’re going to hurt yourself if you get busy and you will get busy.” Call it low self esteem or poor planning but I never figured this little business would take off so fast. Ezra knew different and quickly convinced me to look elsewhere. That’s when I told him about the opportunity at the Monarch Tavern which soon became known as Plan C.
Plan C – The Monarch
The very same afternoon Ezra put the kibosh on Plan B I called Louis Cristello, one of the owners of the Monarch (as well as an owner of the Brunswick Pump, The Banknote and Southside Louis’) to discuss the availability of his kitchen. I knew that a full kitchen existed there because I’ve been a customer for many years, bringing my sandwiches sausage and olives up from San Francisco to watch Leaf games. I remembered a Greek couple that last used the facilities around the time the Leaf’s last made the playoffs and also that they disappeared within a few months. The bartender at the time told me that the tenant was not paying rent but when they asked him to cover his share of the utilities he refused and walked away. Then and there, three years ago, I filed away knowledge that would change my life, knowledge that will be forever known as Plan C.
Louis and I met and quickly made an agreement for a one year lease. I’m pretty sure he and his partners Larry and James thought I was nuts. Who would want to come to the Monarch, a long forgotten corner for Toronto’s working class drinkers for Jewish Deli? How would anyone find me tucked in the back of a bar on the second floor of a bar two blocks from any walk-by traffic? Some might call it dank or even a dive bar but I’ve always liked the room. It has tradition, style and history. Like the Leafs themselves it has been the scene for deep and long-term frustration. But if you look in the cracks in the upholstery or under the ancient marble tables or even deep in the souls of the regulars like Eddy, Rich, Craig, Joe or John you might just find some hope. Maybe this year it’ll be different. Maybe this year we’ll win a few games. Maybe we’ll make the playoffs and bring back some pride to the place.
I think the sentence “You know The Monarch has the best (insert any noun here)” has probably never been uttered – until recently. Now we have Toronto’s Best Smoked Meat Sandwich (according to Now Magazine) and Toronto’s best Knish (according to me) and Toronto’s best poutine (also according to me).
I’m proud of what we’ve started and am committed to seeing this through. Clearly I haven’t done it alone and I take great pride in giving credit where its due. The last year has seen the realisation of a lifelong dream and the coming year, God willing, will see that dream flourish and grow. When I look into my crystal ball I see chopped liver and kishka and if I squint really hard I see a guy in a blue and white jersey hoisting a silver cup over his head. A boy can dream, can’t he? After all, without our dreams, where would we be? Go Leafs Go!
Best wishes to all for a year where our cups overflow with good fortune, health and peace.
