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July 13, 2012
Solly’s celebrates its 18th
Leah Markovitch reflects on the bagelry’s impacts.
NICOLE NOZICK
Stepping through the door, the seductive aroma of fresh coffee and baked bread greets you. You become a part of the hustle and bustle of people and the low steady buzz of conversation. Mismatched chairs, colorful art on the walls and a background of music with a catchy beat add to the ambience, making customers feel welcome and at home. It’s an atmosphere that Solly’s Bagelry owner and co-founder Leah Markovitch has worked hard to create, and it is one of the many reasons that Solly’s is celebrating its 18th year in an industry in which longevity is a rare achievement.
Likened to “the little train that could” by its owner, Solly’s is a family business co-founded by Joe and Leah Markovitch in 1994. It has grown from one small store on Main Street to become a veritable Vancouver institution and an intrinsic part of this city’s cultural and foodie landscape, with three locations: Main Street, West Broadway and 7th Avenue.
“In those early days, we knew very little about baking, we had never been in the food business,” shared Markovitch, who is now the bagelry’s sole owner, in an interview with the Jewish Independent. “But, it was the ’90s and bagels were very fashionable, in, bagels were in vogue, and we were looking for new business opportunities. We took a chance on Main Street.... All that was there at the time were pawnshops and a couple of antique stores. The Grind was already there, it was the only coffee shop.... We did market research in the area ... spoke with a lot of people who lived and worked in the area, asked them what they wanted, what they needed.... And that’s how we decided to open a little bagel café – just bagels and a couple of sandwiches, maybe some pastries, what did we know about food?... Joe turned to me and asked, ‘Can you make a bagel?’ and me, I’m a true optimist and also I’m a real Sagittarius to boot, said, ‘Yeah!’ And that’s how we decided it would be a bagel shop.”
She also shared, “The first thing I did was to call my mother and ask her how to make a bagel.... Then, the second thing I did was sign up for a baking class at Vancouver Community College ... after the first couple of classes, I remember the instructor gave me a hard time, he was complaining about the ‘inconsistent size and shape’ of the bagels I made and warning me that no one would ever want to buy my bagels. Isn’t that strange now, funny how things start.”
As it would turn out, Solly’s distinctive bagels have become renowned and are much in demand, as are the bagelry’s signature cinnamon buns, knishes and rugelach, and much of its other fare.
Markovitch originally hails from Edmonton. As a young girl, she first experienced baking by watching and working with her grandmother in her grandmother’s kitchen. And it was from her baba that Markovitch got the ta’am, flavor, and love for East European Jewish cooking and tradition. Many of Solly’s baked goods and soups stem from original recipes, handed down from previous generations – and not only from within her own family.
“Many of our recipes come from families who didn’t want their family recipes to be lost,” explained Markovitch. “For example, our delicious apple cake recipe was entrusted to us from the Feldman family; it was originally Gina Feldman’s recipe.”
This sense of tradition is an intrinsic part of what Solly’s represents.
“In Edmonton, I grew up surrounded by the warmth of family and extended community,” Markovitch recounted. “It seemed like everyone was an uncle, aunt or cousin. I was brought up with a very strong sense of Judaism, of Zionism.... Yiddishkeit ... the music, the food, the traditions got into my soul at an early age and stayed with me; it’s a vital part of who I am, what I am. I’ve tried to create that same heimish, homey, welcome feeling at Solly’s. It’s all part of it, from choosing the background music, to the food, the atmosphere, colors, mismatched furniture, chairs – Solly’s is an extension of who I am ... it’s an expression of my Yiddishkeit.... It’s just like my home, my family kitchen, where everyone is warmly welcomed. I want everyone who comes to a Solly’s store to feel as if they’re family coming home.”
And it’s a large, extended family that Markovitch wants to welcome. “For many non-Jewish people,” she noted, “Solly’s is their first and only connection to Judaism, Jewish food, holidays and traditions.... I want it to be a very positive experience – a warm, welcoming atmosphere that reaches across all cultures.”
Markovitch said that one of the things she loves most, for example, is when construction workers “come walking into the 7th Avenue store and wait in line for a knish or a bagel with lox and cream cheese. It’s become a very common thing.”
“We took traditional Jewish foods that had been kept quietly cloistered within a few small Jewish bakeries and moved them into the mainstream of Vancouver life, putting Jewish food on the map,” said Markovitch in a press release issued earlier this year to mark Solly’s 18th anniversary. “We are proudly Jewish and proclaim it throughout our stores. By doing so, we have made Jewish holidays and festivals, like the Jewish New Year, Chanukah, Purim, Passover, as well as the weekly Jewish Sabbath, part of the vernacular embraced by the many cultures that constitute Greater Vancouver.”
In addition to its restaurants, explains the release, “Solly’s wholesale and catering divisions have been supplying institutions such as schools, restaurants, community centres, summer day and overnight camps, community and service clubs.” As well, since its inception, the bagelry has supported a diverse range of causes, including events like the Chutzpah! festival and the Vancouver Jewish Film Festival, as well as organizations such as Battered Women’s Support Services and Jewish Women International-B.C.’s ASTEH (Alternative Short-Term Emergency Housing).
As Markovitch looks ahead to the next 18 years, she shared some of her wishes for Solly’s growth. “It is my dream that Solly’s becomes as well known in B.C. as White Spot is,” she said. “Of course, an expansion down the West Coast would also be a dream come true.... I’d love to bring that New York feeling to Vancouver – having a bagel stand on every street corner.”
Markovitch reflected on the significance of the chai year.
“My youngest child turns 18 this year,” said the mother of three. “I’ve watched with delight as he’s grown from a child into an adult. Much the same, Solly’s becomes an adult this year.... Just like my teenage son, we’ve experienced growing pains, made some mistakes along the way, learned what it is to become mature.... Just as an adult looks ahead and plans their future, we have a strategic plan in place, we ask ourselves questions about how we want to grow, what our role is in the community, what do we want to change and what not.”
She concluded, “I believe in old-fashioned values, traditional values.... I want to maintain those values at Solly’s but, in the modern world of Twitter, Facebook, technology, it’s not easy. One of our challenges will be to stay true to the old values and move forward in a high-tech world. It’s a daunting task, but it is possible as long as we keep a sense of humor, and always remain authentic and true to the spirit of traditional Jewish values.”
Nicole Nozick is a Vancouver freelance writer and director of the Cherie Smith JCCGV Jewish Book Festival.
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