DBIA Featured Post: Shish-Kabob Hut

Don Vassiliadis is a community minded man through and through. As the 2nd generation owner of the Shish-Kabob Hut, located at 220 King St. in downtown Peterborough, he realizes that in order for his business to continuously be successful he has to know the needs of the community and customers he is surrounded by daily.

The restaurant, which originally opened in 1976, has been in its current location since 1994. Its 19 year anniversary is being celebrated this month (August) and he is very proud of being in business this long. Unless you’re a city historian, you probably wouldn’t guess that the current location he's in was originally a car garage when first built.

Serving Greek food at its finest, the menu touches on many traditional favourites from various Souvlaki dishes to Shish-Kabob and Pita Bread platters covering a massive array of meat options. To cover a vegetarian customer base as well, they offer great soups and salads and many out-of-this-world cheese influenced choices. Dishes that are a can’t-miss are the Tigania (a spicy stir-fry masterpiece) and the Hot Peppers and Feta, which is requested more than most of the restaurants options.

Don and his excellent staff know that great food is only one part of the entire experience and they try to create an unforgettable experience from beginning to end. The atmosphere inside is very vibrant and will keep you on the edge of your seat as soon as you get seated!

The Shish-Kabob Hut has been involved in many community events such as the Taste of Downtown and more recently Rib Fest. Don and his crew brought a local flavour to the event, which was well received by lovers of local business. The restaurant was even featured on You Gotta Eat Here in an episode that is still in heavy rotation on Food Network Canada.

Out of the original restaurant business has spawned two other ventures: a catering company and a party rental business as well. In 2010, for example, the business was responsible for catering the Dragon Boat Festival Gala and it also catered the Chiefs of Police Dinner when it was hosted in Peterborough earlier this year.

Always wanting to learn more about his community has kept Don very busy outside of its operating hours. He has been involved with the DBIA Marketing Committee, was the Chair of the United Way, and has also worked with Showplace and Crime Stoppers in various capacities.

One of Don’s favourite activities outside of the restaurant are the cooking classes he has offered to those who might never get the experience of one, as well as working with the YWCA’s Nourish Peterborough.

Don is truly entrenched in downtown Peterborough and wants to see success in every facet. His personality is unmatched and his dedication shines through in his restaurant. If you haven’t been inside its walls, we suggest you experience it as soon as possible!

For more on Shisk-Kabob Hut (220 King St.), go to:
Website: Skhpeterborough.com
Twitter: @skhptbo
FB: Shish-Kabob Facebook page

For more on Downtown Peterborough and the Downtown Business Improvement Area (DBIA), click here.

—By Aaron Elliott

Middle Eastern Restaurant Ariyana Opens In Peterborough

Peterborough now offers a taste of Afghanistan, as Ariyana has opened at 396 George St. (George & Hunter). Go check it out.

[pics via @maryammonsef]

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St. Louis Wings And Ribs Coming To Peterborough

A St. Louis Wings and Ribs franchise will be moving in beside the new Tim Hortons and Shoppers Drug Mart in the West end of Peterborough. Located at the Rockhaven Centre at 1875-1913 Lansdowne Street West, take a look at the Oshawa menu to see what this restaurant will offer. No word on when it's opening.

[Contributed by PtboCanada's Evan Holt]

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Spanky's Hosting Backyard Tent Party For Saint Patrick's Day

Spanky's have a special license for a party in their back parking lot on Saint Patrick's Day, where they will have a heated tent. There will be live music, Jonny Trash will be DJ-ing, people will be dancing, and Koski will be wearing his No. 34 toque.

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Watch This Interview With The Owner & Chef Of La Hacienda On Hunter St.

[Shari Darling on YouTube]

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Check Out Peterborough & The Kawarthas 2013 Experience Magazine

You can pick up your copy (or send one to a friend) of the 2013 Peterborough & The Kawarthas 2013 Experience Magazine. Available for free at the Visitor Centre, the mag showcases events, places and activities to take part in locally. It is a great publication to promote tourism here in the area.

[Contributed by PtboCanada's Evan Holt]

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61 Awesome Things About Peterborough In 2012

There was so much awesome about this city this year. In no particular order really, here's 61 of them (we had to cut if off somewhere)...

1. Peterborough Lakers winning the Mann Cup. Best in Canada baby!

2. Red Pashminas, which empower women locally and globally.

3. Trent's LipDub video, a great showcase for the university.

4. Doug Tilley's comedy, whether it's his "singing" or tweeting or... what's next Tilley?

5. Bandwagon episodes. Now in its 2nd season, which launched with Sloan.

6. Wild Rock celebrating 20 years in the downtown. And making the decision to stay in the downtown when they could have moved.

7. PMZ, Peterborough's TMZ celebrating local "celebrities".

8. I'd Rather Be In Peterborough tees. Community spirit.

9. Spanky's annual ping pong tourney for Movember. Spanky's offering a place to play ping pong in town.

"Call Me Maybe" 10. The city rallying behind a teenager's right to play basketball on his own driveway.

11. Philanthropy month in Peterborough showcasing all the people doing good in the community. #bethechangeptbo

12. The new downtown nightclub ARIA, which rivals Toronto's finest.

13. St. Peter's high school students dressing as superheroes during Head of the Trent regatta.

14. Peterborough Cycling Summit. Bike this city. Let's make it as bike friendly as possible.

15. Elton John concert, the one where he actually played Peterborough—not his cancelled one.

GPA EDC's Dan Taylor at Creative Cocktail16. The Peterborough Calendar Girls naked truth campaign raising awareness about the affordable housing shortage here.

17. Breakfast Television broadcasting live from Peterborough. Great coup for our city.

18. Carrie Underwood and Mike Fisher at Gerti's. (We don't believe they had the polo sandwich, but it's excellent.)

19. Carly Rae Jepsen at Musicfest. Peterborough singing "Call Me Maybe".

20. Final photo of PCVS students and staff together. This city will never forget the impact this school had, and its legacy.

21. A canoe portage in downtown Peterborough.

22. The Taste of Downtown. So much great food down there. And great folk.

23. The Dragon Boat festival.

24. The Hootenanny on Hunter. It's a hoot.Mike Watt

25. The Gilmour Street Garage Sale. Epic as always.

26. Hunter Street, one of the best streets anywhere for food, drink, shops, live music, theatre, festivals, hot dogs, great vibe.

Rick Mercer at PCVS27. Maryam's Monsef's story about how a city and school saved her life.

28. Peterborough dog pictures.

29. Rick Mercer's Rant on PCVS.

30. Rick Mercer's visit to PCVS, in video and pictures.

31. Noah Leslie—aka @pennyboynoah, who raises money for the Salvation Army Toy Drive each year.

32. Pete Dalliday's unbelievable shot. Believe it.

33. Someone canoeing on a Peterborough street. Canoe Peterborough.

34. Koski.

35. The PeterTweeter awards. Twitter's where it's at. Amazing Twitter community in town. (Follow us here.)

36. Mike Watt's how-to plaid video. Hilarious.

37. Creative Cocktails—here's the one from Market Hall.

St. Peter's superheroes38. Jonny Trash DJing at Spanky's. Best DJ around.

39. The Peterborough web series Grimwell.

40. Petes Insider, giving us the inside goods on the Petes organization.

41. The excellent Canadian Canoe Museum. We're lucky to have it. And let's move it downtown by the waterfront.

42. Electric City Live, which covers the local music scene in Peterborough. Great name, great site.

43. The Art School of Peterborough. Creativity. Imagination.

44. Mike Judson, who went homeless on the streets of Peterborough for 48 hours to raise awareness about the problem here.

Silver Bean45. Peterborough Police for serving and protecting this community, and embracing social media by joining Twitter this year.

46. Rachel Seaman and Ashley Brzozowicz, who competed in the Olympics this summer (Ashley won a silver in her sport, rowing). The tees

47. Downtown Peterborough. Embrace it. Vital. Make it sustainable. Build a city from its core.

48. Silver Bean Café, beauty spot on the river.

49. Our friends at The Wolf and Kruz FM, huge supporters of Peterborough and us. And the always smiling Carol Edwards there, who lets us in through the out door.

50. Three Loonies, for Kawartha Food Share.

51. The return of the Wire Awards. Special night at Market Hall putting spotlight on amazing music scene in Peterborough—one of the best anywhere in Canada.

52. Gallery in the truck. A moving gallery. Great concept. Love it.

53. PtboFinds and PtboProps.

54. Kawartha Turtle Trauma Centre.

55. The DBIA's new website by BrandHealth. Excellent.

56. Lois Tuffin, the news diva of Peterborough and the Kawarthas. Never shy about expressing her opinion.

57. Fleming's Student Volunteering Club, students with a sense of community pride.

58. Funny hashtags. E.g. 6,000 people went without power for a couple hours, and #ptboblackout began trending on Twitter in Peterborough. Sample tweet: "I wonder how many babies will be conceived during this blackout #ptboblackout" 

59. John Leacy's mural art around town. Gabby's wall, Spanky's wall and more.

60. Natas Cafe, the epicentre for Peterborough's amazing people.

61. All our readers and followers on Twitter and Facebook. You rock.

Here's to a great 2013!

---------------

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Inside The New Kettle Drums Restaurant & Bar On Hunter Street

Peterborough has a new Italian restaurant on Hunter Street called Kettle Drums. It is owned by Reg Maranda and Cameron Green, who also own Reggie's Hot Grill in East City and El Camino's downtown (we spotlighted both back in 2010).

Friday night kicked off with a soft opening, while construction is completed on the side patio (which will seat 50) and a few more fine touches inside.

The soft opening gives the staff a chance to iron out the menu, and while not all the options will be available this weekend, there are still plenty of pizzas to try.

There is a very relaxed atmosphere inside, with lovely decor and wall art as well as a small patio out front that will seat 20. Quite a few patrons came to sample the food, and try the beer, cocktails, martinis and wine.

I had a brief moment to chat with Reg while he was zipping to-and-fro, and he mentioned that they were proud with what has come together. They had been working on the plan for this restaurant well before having to close their chip truck, and even snuck the famous Reggie Burger onto the menu.

Drop in this weekend and give one of their pizzas a try (gluten free crust available, too), and shortly thereafter the rest of the menu including the Crispy Sweet Potato Chips—which Reg confesses he likes even better than Reggie's Hotgrill's tasty Sweet Potato Fries.

[Contributed by PtboCanada's Evan Holt]

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The North End Of Peterborough Is Getting A Swiss Chalet

Famous rotisserie chicken restaurant Swiss Chalet is coming to the north end of Peterborough. The ground has been broken in the Sobey's parking lot right beside Wild Wing on Chemong, and there are job openings for Assistant Managers.

[Contributed by PtboCanada's Evan Holt]

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PTBOFoodie Review: Sam's Place Deli On Hunter

Sam's Place Deli
188 Hunter St. West, Peterborough, Ont.
Hours: Open 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. weekdays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturdays

It was just over a year and a half ago that Sam's Place Deli opened its doors and established itself as the new premier deli in town, and today that reputation is still holding as strong as ever. 

Owned and operated by Daniel Fitchko and Sam Sayer, with assistance from one of the Trasheteria's former managers Ted Whelpdale (pictured), Sam's Place has turned from the neighbourhood deli into one of Peterborough's favourite lunch destinations.  This was achieved through great food, amazing customer service, and a willingness to go a little farther to please their patrons.  

Upon entering, the restaurant's atmosphere provides the customer with a feeling of comfort. It is decorated with old and amusing framed posters, and in the front window hangs a stained glass pane which casts a beautiful light through the dining area. The highlight of the decor is the extensive collection of unique shaped salt and pepper shakers which line the counter, and are fascinating to look at while waiting for your sandwich. You won't have to admire for long though, as the cooks at Sam's Place will generally have your meal done in no time at all.

Sam's Place also decorates with one other thing that is important to Peterborough: news of the surrounding area. On your way in (or out) of Sam's, you can grab one of several pamphlets which discuss everything from local events to environment impact reports that are informative and great to read if you are passionate about the Peterborough and Kawartha area. Sam's Place is run by people who care about Peterborough, for people who care about what they eat in Peterborough.

The appeal of Sam's Place doesn't just come from its friendly atmosphere however, but from the staff's knowledge that the people of Peterborough want a fresh, fully house-prepared sandwich that meets almost any standard. 

There are a plethora of house sandwiches for any picky eater, from the massive BBQ Beef Brisket pulled to perfection, to the aptly named Piggy with all the fixings. The menu is spiced up even further by the daily addition of a special sandwich that is posted to their Twitter feed so that anyone can find out and go down to Hunter St. These specials are usually gone by early afternoon however, because of the increasing demand for their sandwiches, and their smart use of marketing strategies.  

Meals cost between $7 to $13, with the latter price including a freshly prepared side and beverage to go with your sandwich. The side dishes range from baked beans cooked down with meat, to a potato salad that had one patron so enthused he told his mother that it was better than hers and made her travel from Kingston to sample the truth.

Whichever way you go, you won't leave Sam's Place Deli unsatisfied or with an empty stomach.  

—reviewed by PtboCanada's food columnist Matt Ferguson

PtboCanada's new food reviewer Matthew Ferguson has a passion for food and cooking. Matt's worked at several establishments in town, both cooking and managing in kitchens, and now plans to insight Peterborough to have the same love for food that he does. Follow him on Twitter @PtboFoodie.

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