Thursday, January 27, 2011
Manny Mellios of Hemingway's Catering (onsite)
The Mellios family started the journey to owning Hemingway's Catering in 1955 when Manny's father immigrated to Canada from Greece and became a dishwasher at a Montreal restaurant. Over the next few years he moved to Toronto to take cooking courses and then back to Montreal where he opened several restaurants. After growing up in the restaurants their father owned, both Manny and his brother started working full-time in the restaurant business after completing their studies. His brother in 1982 and Manny in 1986.
In 1982 Hemingway's was opened in Ottawa and in 1989 it was bought by the Mellios family. Over the years the business has grown and given back to the community. The three main charities that are close to their hearts are CHEO, the Canadian Cancer Society and the Heart & Stroke Foundation. For the last 12 years Hemingway's has fed the volunteers for the CHEO Telethon. They also cater many government events (they are security cleared) and have catered for the Tulip Festival.
At last week's onsite (held at the Cock 'n Bull Pub on Richmond Road), Manny shared with members the history of both Hemingway's and the Cock 'n Bull. He introduced us to some of his long-tome employees as well as his father Steve who started both businesses. Manny discussed the many services that Hemingway's can provide including linens, tableware and bar service (they take care of all permits required) just to name a few.
Every dish prepared passes through the hands of an owner at one point in time or another during its trip to an event and 90% of events are attended by one of the owners. Manny explained that they feel it is important to have the owners onsite so he or his brother can usually be found onsite running the event unless it is a smaller event that does not require onsite preparation. Although they have extremely competent and dedicated staff, Manny and his brother feel that having an owner onsite allows them to handle any issues that may arise so that their staff can focus on service and turning out a great event.
As always members were treated to a wonderful meal including steak, baked potato and stir fried vegetables.
To find out more about Hemingway's Catering and how they can make your next party or event a great one, contact Manny at (613) 596-1610 or manny@cocknbullpub.com.
