Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - February 23, 2014, Winnipeg, Manitoba winnipegfreepress. com OUR WINNIPEG THIS CITY . OUR WEEKLY LOOK AT THE PULSE OF THE CITY A8 SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 23, 2014 LIVING IN WINNIPEG S ORRY, Bono, back of the bus. Irish rock band U2 played Winnipeg Stadium on June 9, 1997 as part of the group's world PopMart tour. On the morning of the show, U2 frontman Bono dropped by Ira's Deli, a breakfast and lunch charmer located in the basement of a century- old heritage building at 111 Lombard Ave. One of the servers recognized the singer and told his boss, Ira Brick, who in turn told his wife, Susan, it might be a nice gesture if they bumped Bono's order - a toasted breakfast bagel packed thick with egg, ham, cheddar cheese, tomato and lettuce - to the front of the queue. Susan's response? " Are you kidding me? He gets treated the same as everybody else." Good thing for Ira that Susan was less brusque 30 years ago, when he tapped her on the shoulder in the middle of a Greek and Roman history class at the University of Winnipeg to ask if she had a tissue. " I actually did that for 10 days in a row, until I finally worked up the nerve to ask what her name was," Ira says, noting he knew the two were " meant to be" moments after they began discussing something other than his sinuses. Ira and Susan got engaged in 1985. After exchanging vows 12 months later, they bid shalom to U of W and headed to Israel to live on a kibbutz for " however long." The Bricks remained abroad until Susan learned she was pregnant with their son, Jonathon. The couple returned to Winnipeg in 1988 - at which point Ira had some thinking to do. " I distinctly remember sitting on the floor of my kitchen, with my head between my knees, wondering how was I going to take care of my wife and this baby that was on the way. Then I thought, ' I could open a deli; that might work,' " says Ira, who discovered he had a knack for cooking during his time in Israel. Thing was, aside from a short stint in the dietary department at Victoria General Hospital, followed by part- time gigs at the Original Pancake House and Boston Pizza, the West Kildonan Collegiate grad had little experience in a commercial kitchen. Ira decided his best bet would be to get some hands- on training at the same sort of place he fancied operating. So he applied for a job at Garry's Deli in Garden City. He was honest with his employers, telling them he fully intended to strike out on his own in the near future. Ira didn't have to wait long. One day, a man came into Garry's to ask if the owners were interested in buying his existing business, Max's Country Deli on Inkster Boulevard. They weren't, but they told the fellow they knew somebody who might be. Ira and Susan took over Max's in 1989. They changed the name to Brogel's and put together a new menu that was heavy on the puns. Ira winces when his wife recalls her favourite - the Ike & Tuna Turner Sandwich. Business was OK until 1994, when a new Salisbury House opened up next door, followed quickly by a Subway, followed quickly by a McDonald's. " You can't imagine how difficult it was to go to my parents and tell them I didn't think we were going to make it," says Ira, the second oldest of five siblings. " But they were really supportive. They told me, ' We have this space downstairs - maybe we can do something there.' So there I was, about to turn 30, moving back into my parents' basement." ( Ira's parents are Fred and Cynthia Brick, owners of Brick Fine Furniture, which, until it relocated to 145 Market Ave. in 2009, occupied the space above what is now Ira's Deli.) It wasn't like Ira wasn't familiar with his new digs. When he was growing up on McAdam Avenue, he and his brother Robert treated the six- storey space like it was their personal playground, often playing " chicken" on the freight elevator - a game that involved hanging onto the lip of the lift by their fingertips and descending down, legs dangling in the open shaft, until their pluck ran out. For much of 1995, the Bricks spent their days on Inkster and their nights on Lombard, renovating the former storage area. They weren't sure how many people would venture in on opening day, but thanks to their mail carrier, they needn't have worried. " My mom told Harold, our mailman, that we were putting a restaurant downstairs, and for weeks he'd been telling everybody on his downtown route about us," Ira says. " We opened on a Monday, and by noon the place was packed. It actually got so busy that my mother had to come downstairs to help seat people." From the start, Ira has patterned his namesake locale after the North End icons of his youth - places like Simon's and Oscar's, where the owners used to consider it an affront if you had room for dessert after your meal. Which might explain Ira's Deli's New York Reuben - a triple- decker goliath that includes a quarter pound of corned beef, a quarter pound of pastrami, sauerkraut, Swiss cheese and a house Russian dressing wedged between three slices of bread. " I have a very strong idea about what constitutes deli and what doesn't. In this place I try to stay as true to that as possible," Ira says. " But at the same time, we don't live on an island. We've never served things like burgers, but we do do some cooking. Today's special, for example, was lasagna." If you haven't been to Ira's before and you wander in for breakfast or lunch, don't be surprised if Ira gives you an assignment on your way out. " I can't count how many times I've heard people come in for the first time, look around and say, ' Wow, what a hidden gem you've got here.' My response is always the same: ' If that's truly the way you feel, make it unhidden. Get out there and tell somebody.' " Ira's Deli is open from 7 a. m. to 2 p. m., Monday to Friday. david. sanderson@ freepress. mb. ca T HE Millennium Library is home to thousands of stories. The stories on the bookshelves, yes, but the stories of the people that peruse them, too. To some, the library is a source of research - students plunked down at tables for hours, surrounded by empty drink containers and messy binders, the products of steadfast instructors who insist secondary research include more than just online sources. To others, the library is a place to connect, to go online and communicate with someone far away. Or a place to learn more of your past - to dig up rolls of microfilm and spend an afternoon quietly whirring through roll after roll, hoping to fill in the blanks of a longstanding family mystery. In the seven years I worked there, I met families, couples, and individuals - people new to Winnipeg or Canada altogether. To them, the library is a first step to a new life. They left the building with bundles of books on learning a new language, and some found familiarity on the second floor, where rows of non- English books stood next to music, movies and magazines. While the library is a place to find warmth and comfort to some, others see it as a dump or an eyesore - an incarnation of Winnipeg's troubles, plagued by unsavoury characters and increasingly obsolete technology. A waste of tax dollars, maybe. Of course, our best places are seldom without conflict. Not all of the library's stories were happy ones. But bearing witness to these conflicts gives us a greater understanding of the community, and the city as a whole. While my life went through the regular tumults of early adulthood, the library remained my constant. In those seven years, I moved a handful of times. I started school, finished school and then started school again. Relationships came and went. Even though it, too, was constantly changing and no two days were the same, I knew I could rely on the library to always welcome me back. It was a comfort. I made friends there - not only my co- workers, but our regulars. I never got tired of climbing those stairs to the fourth floor, taking in the view of sunshine spilling out over the park and the city beyond. My heart pounded with exertion when I got to the top, and I recognized mine was only one of many stories the library would hold that day. The Millennium Library is many things. It's a place to learn - about ourselves, our city and our place in it. It's not one thing to any one person. I'm grateful for the small part I got to play in its story. Laina Hughes writes a monthly column about Winnipeg in the Uniter. Her book, Wolseley Stories, is available at McNally Robinson Booksellers and your local library. By Laina Hughes Stacked with stories Library about people as much as pages By David Sanderson Labour of love Couple has worked hard to make deli the real deal By Maureen Scurfield Ethnic delights on Ellice West End strip offers food, fashion from around the world P ICK a culture, any culture, and you can find it on Ellice Avenue in Winnipeg's West End. On a strip near the otherworldly Hindu Society building, glowing in blue light, are many ethnic restaurants and stores. They will open your mind and your heart to things you never knew about. Come with me on a little tour, made on a chilly night, and feel the warmth of three special spots. SELAM CANADA ( 714 Ellice): From the outside of this Ethiopian corner store, you see signs advertising food, imports and ways to send money around the world by RIA or Western Union. Inside, many other surprises await. Love Ethiopian food? Who knew you could pop in and buy fresh injera in Winnipeg, made every day? Injera is a large pizza- shaped flatbread you top with scoops of many foods - not easy for a novice to make. It's a romantic way to eat. You break bread with a sweetheart, relative or friend and use scoops instead of cutlery. Charming! Selam ( translation: peace) also has a licensed back kitchen, where co- owner/ manager Genet Gebreyesus prepares many foods such as deep- fried bread, freshcooked and frozen chicken and beef stews for quick dinners at home, and large orders of Ethiopian food for catering. Near the front counter is the colourful Ethiopian clothing section. You can buy decorated velvet clothes for your wedding after- party, or loosely woven cotton dresses and scarves for a holiday sunspot. " My family sends the handmade clothing. They do all the shopping for me," says Gebreyesus. In addition to bags of fresh spices such as chili and paprika, she sells brightlycoloured " grass" coffee mats, earthenware coffee pots and cups for the daily Ethiopian coffee ceremony - served on the floor, with friends on little seats around you, like a picnic. She pulls on a fancy dress and sets it up for me to see. The coffee is strong, " like espresso," so one tiny cup has enough kick to get you through the early morning or a mid- afternoon lag. The smell is rich and invigorating. It's customary for Ethiopians to roast their coffee beans on the spot. " It only takes 10 minutes," says Gebreyesus. You can buy the raw coffee beans and the long- handled metal roasting pan to pop in your oven. Then you grind and mix it in the coffee pot - as fresh as coffee can get. Selam also runs a catering business for weddings and birthdays and family gettogethers. In two weeks they're adding a new element: Selam hair salon. Gebreyesus has been in Canada for 12 years after living in several troubled areas of the world, and she says " I love Winnipeg." She says she feels safe in the West End, and in Canada generally. " Everybody is fighting in the world now, but I love Winnipeg because you can live your life in peace here. You can work hard and nobody bothers you." INDIA PALACE ( 770 Ellice): With neon lights and a big sign advertising their famous samosas, the India Palace restaurant beckons on a cold winter night. Chef Ashwani Nagpal and his wife, Saroj, hold court in the warmth of their popular Eastern palace. A large elephant painted on the wall many years ago by a talented 16- year- old artist kicks up a cloud of painted dust on what looks like a hot Indian day, and makes people smile as they pull off wool hats, gloves and heavy coats. Ashwani and Saroj come from the Delhi area of India. They married in 1983 on Christmas Day in India, then Ashwani returned to Canada, where he had moved in 1979. Saroj, a clothing designer, followed in 1984. Since then, they have owned a clothing store ( Tops) and the Bombay restaurant on Ellice between Sherbrook and Maryland streets. In 1992, they moved out of a strip mall on Marion Street and transformed a laundromat on Ellice Avenue, still their primary location. " We sold the satellite on Marion after two years. Now, Ashwani is the head chef and staff trainer, and often the delivery guy in the big van for catering jobs," Saroj says. " I am trained to be the manager, waitress, everything. I can do each and every field, and I am the troubleshooter." " But," she adds, " My husband is amazing at putting out food. He can do a catering job for 200 to 400 people in just four hours." Together with staff, they do large, fancy Indian weddings, pointing out that for a long time, they were the only people in that market in Winnipeg. Taste for Indian food has spread over the years. " Now little kids are having catering for their birthday parties, and they love it," Saroj says. " We are starting on the third generation of customers now." " People open the door for delivery," says Ashwani, " and if it is me they start laughing, because they remember me. I was the only one doing deliveries of Indian food 25 years ago." Downtown, they do office deliveries for luncheons, business meetings and groups working late. They now have an additional kitchen for catering and luncheons downtown at their Waves restaurant and meeting rooms, located at 330 Kennedy St., in the hotel where Lo Pub used to be. Everyone notices the big sign on the front advertising their famous takeout treats. Samosas and sweets are big sellers for takeout. Among diners, some people order off the menu, but most head straight to the buffet - known for being tasty and inexpensive - to heap food on their plates. PHO KIM TUONG ( 856 Ellice): This restaurant featuring Vietnamese/ Chinese cuisine, nestled beside the Hindu Society Temple, is a favourite for film stars and celebrities who come to town. You never know who will be sitting at the back table wearing sunglasses. Not that Winnipeggers would bother them. What a happy, noisy, atmosphere! " I like working here with my family," says manager Melanie La. " See, that's my mom over there, sitting with those people. My sister works here, too." And many other relatives, it turns out. " Where else can you find a place where eight people in a family can work together?" says La. Just then, La's mother, Kiet Tran, comes flying down the aisle towards us. She's outgoing, funny and affectionate. " I love people!" she says, giving me an unexpected squeeze. " That's my mom!" says her daughter, shaking her head and smiling. " She can speak Vietnamese, Mandarin, Cantonese and Cambodian, and she thinks she can speak English." Mom takes off again and settles into a booth up front with two blue collar workers, who estimate they come in three times a week for hot soup and other dishes. While many customers are drawn in for pho soups, the menu is great fun and offers all kinds of delights, such as unusual sweet vegetables that aren't easy to identify ( it becomes a game at some tables), all kinds of noodles, meat with delicious spices, spring rolls and crazy side dishes. " Some people come every day, and we get the kids from General Wolfe School across the way," says La. The front cash area lights up with bright yellow blossoms, a crazy fish with a ball in its mouth, and a shiny golden Buddha watching, laughing. But some people's favourite room at Pho is the bathroom area, with a hut built around the doors to the loos that has a pointy roof on top. " It's a Vietnamese- style roof which is made of straw to let the breeze in," says La. Inside are more sprays of pink blossoms at the sinks - and an ultra- modern hand dryer that will blow you halfway across the room. East meets West. And booths? We all know Winnipeggers love booths. This long restaurant has about a dozen booths for four down the sides, tables for eight, and round tables at the back that can pack in 10 people for a feast and conversation. It's a very friendly place. Where else would people walk customers to the outside door, open it and say " Have a safe drive home!" Maureen Scurfield is an urban explorer, roving the city of Winnipeg, in touch with other peoples' roots. MAUREEN SCURFIELD / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Genet Gebreyesus MAUREEN SCURFIELD / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Ashwani Nagpal and his wife, Saroj Nagpal MAUREEN SCURFIELD / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS TREVOR HAGAN / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Laina Hughes at the Millennium Library downtown. TREVOR HAGAN / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS FILES PHOTOS BY JOE BRYKSA / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Susan and Ira Brick show off some of the dishes they offer at Ira's Deli, including their signature New York Reuben sandwich ( left) and a bagel with cream cheese and lox. Melanie La ( left) and her mother, Kiet Tran, both work at Pho Kim Tuong, along with several other relatives. ;