Oct. 22, 2008 - Issue #679: Good Enough After All
The Pepin Family
Block 1912's family of owners are the hands-on type
The Pepin family took over the business from another family not quite two years ago, and they like to say that it was kept in the family—just passed down. The relationship is kind of complicated and had my head spinning even on the third run-through, but it basically boils down to this: Peter Pepin’s best friend is the brother of the original owner, and Peter’s wife is the original owner’s second cousin. There was no master plan; it more or less just happened.
As Pepin tells the story, he had retired from teaching just a few years before and was becoming a bit of a perfectionist—you could often find him putzing away in his beautiful garden or scrubbing his scrupulously clean garage floor (yet again), one he swears that you could eat off of. But the day his wife came home and found him diligently absorbed in the monumental task of washing some rocks by the house, they took it as a sign. Obviously, someone needed something a bit more challenging to occupy his time with.
It was right around this time that Block 1912 went up for sale and, consequently, Pepin stopped washing rocks.
The grey afternoon that I rushed in the door, Peter was at the helm. While all four members of the Pepin family own Block 1912, it is Peter and his two sons, Kaylan and Jorel, who look after the day-to-day operation of it. And by operation, I don’t mean hiring people to run it for them: they do have employees, but they roll up their sleeves and like to lead by example—I heard stories of washing floors, wiping tables and even cleaning bathrooms.
Peter says it just seems like a natural extension of what he retired from just a few years ago—teaching. Now he’s just teaching his employees. And before he went back to university to get his degree, he was involved in the restaurant business, so he wasn’t coming in completely unaware.
Originally from Montreal, he moved to Calgary when he was 20 and started working for White Spot, with the illustrious position of pot-washer. Perseverance paid off, and he was transferred to Edmonton where he worked up the ranks, cooking for six years and eventually managing. He also put in a stint as a chef at the Mayfair Golf & Country Club.
Those cooking skills he acquired are now being put to good use, although he readily admits that it’s not at home. But it is Peter himself who devises and whips up the daily soups (and everything else that is lacking in sugar) in Block 1912’s tiny, cubicle-sized kitchen, on his little two-burner stove. And it was with great delight that he treated me to a tour of this much-cherished cooking space.
He must have seen my eyes get a bit wider, for he quickly reassured me that all the sweet, decadent, sugary concoctions are created by their own baker—certified from NAIT—in a separate space in the basement.
And it was also with great delight that he gave me a tour of the rest of Block 1912, kind of like a proud papa. I saw the humongous 50-year-old paintings and the assorted sentimental knickknacks; I saw the mismatched tables, each with its own piece of history; I even saw the bathrooms, meticulously clean and tastefully decorated.
As we were surveying the tables, Peter launched into a description of the eclectic assortment of people that spend a piece of their day at the café—knitting groups, debate clubs, round table groups (that sit at square tables), seniors, mothers, high school kids, the list goes on.
Peter was definitely excited and passionate—something he wants to pass along to each and every one of his employees. That’s why he feels that this stint as owner of Block 1912 is just an extension of his teaching career. He’s still teaching—teaching enthusiasm and excitement, teaching great customer service, teaching how to love what you do. He’s just not teaching from a set of books or a rigid curriculum anymore, and it’s in a different environment.
As I was leaning on the counter, listening intently while Peter described in detail all their own touches that they had brought to Block 1912—like their big recycling push and the tweaking of the menu—20-year-old Kaylan wandered in. After dealing with a stack of dirty dishes that was sitting on the counter, he armed himself with a bottle of disinfectant and began wiping down assorted surfaces. It was interesting to see him just dive into the less glamorous side of running a restaurant.
Before I wandered back out into the cold drizzle, I sat down for a brief chat with Kaylan. I could tell he was antsy sitting there—his eyes kept darting back and forth, probably making mental notes of everything that needed to get done and how he was getting none of it accomplished at the moment.
I didn’t keep him long, but I did have one question I had neglected to ask Peter. Since this was a family business, not only owned by the family but run by the family, how did they all manage to get along—or did they? Lots of families have enough trouble maintaining some semblance of peace during the small amount of time they spend together at home, but when they actually work together, doesn’t it lead to inevitable strife?
Kaylan only had to think about it briefly before he answered. “At home, everyone has their own goals and agendas. When you work together, everyone is working toward the same goal.” It made total sense—and with that I let him get back to what he was having a hard time tearing himself away from: Block 1912.
So pop in to this cozy café and meet the Pepin family. You won’t see Peter washing any rocks, but you just might see him wiping down the counters. V
The Pepin Family
Owners, Block 1912
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