THE FAST FOOD SHACK IS  BACK!!!

FAST FOOD FLAVOURS AND STREET CART HITS FROM AROUND THE WORLD!

YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD PIZZERIA, BARBECUE SHACK,AND RUSTIC SANDWICH SHOP IS BACK!!

THE GRILL IS ON, THE OVENS ARE PUMPING, THE SAUCES ARE SIMMERING – AND HERE’S AN INVITATION TO COME SEE WHAT WE’VE DONE IN THE NEIGHBOURHOOD!

Dear Friend of GREAT Food!

I’m sure you’ve noticed that these days, the options to eat fast are slim – the national chains are slapping up stores and cookie-cutter sameness everywhere, peddling junk and pre-fab food backed by slick advertising campaigns that would have us all believe that the only way to eat when we’re pressed for time is processed sugar, fat, and chemical-laden filler passed off as ‘fresh’, ‘good for you’, or lifestyle ‘cool’.

Let’s face it.  Life most days is fast for all of us.  We’re all busy with work, school, kids, assignments, meetings, sports, family and social to-do’s and all the other things that keep us running every day, right?  And for the most part, there haven’t been many great options when it comes to eating and getting our hands on good food fast.

Now, I’m not very old, but I sure remember the good old days, before the Big Boys started plunking down factories and assembly lines disguised as restaurants in every city and town suburb in North America – slapping out bagged and microwaved food produced on assembly lines and calling it ‘good for us’.  I don’t need someone telling me that mass-produced processed food is the way to go, and I sure remember the days when there were independently owned restaurants and food shops in every neighbourhood.

Back then, you had passionate folks cooking with heart, passion, soul and skill, serving up their smokin’ family specialties and working hard to bring great food to our tables, working with other locals and small business suppliers in a spirit of community and tradition.

The truth is that if we look hard enough we can still find our local culinary soldiers  – removed from the marketing noise of the national chains and pouring heart, soul and real love into every fabulous ‘from-scratch’ sandwich, pizza, snack or feast coming out of the kitchen!

Please allow me to introduce myself.  A few years back, my wife and I decided to open our first restaurant together in downtown Sudbury. Our motives to open our downtown spot were clear to us, although we were told by some that it was a pipe-dream to believe that anyone would support a downtown restaurant, let alone a restaurant that wasn’t about to serve standard roadhouse fare. 

Maybe they didn’t understand that all we really wanted to do was create a unique, home-grown space for friends and family of all stripes to gather together in without attitude, inflated prices or pretense.  Where everybody could kick back, be cool, and relax in an easy (and certainly one-of-a-kind) space, enjoying the kind of great family food we grew up eating but just wasn’t available elsewhere in an easy, casual and fun format!

It was also really important for us to create something that travelers coming to our city would find unique and immensely enjoyable – as we truly believed (and still do!) that our downtown needs to be exciting, fun and attractive to both locals and visitors alike, for many reasons. After all, downtown IS the heart of our city, and since we believe that downtown belongs to the entire community, well, we gotta show some pride of ownership, right?

Well, Friend, here’s what happened. With the support of our community, our dedicated staff and a lot of hard work and determination, our dream has survived and we’re still kickin’ it larger than ever in downtown Sudbury!

Our RESPECT IS BURNING SUPPERCLUB GRILL at 82 Durham Street today brings us thrills on a daily basis, knowing that so many friends, neighbours and world travellers – young and old -  love the Italian home-style cooking we’re dedicated to, and the off-beat environment we’ve created to serve it up in!

So what does all of this have to do with YOU?

Well, I’m proud to let you know that we’ve rolled out another local food concept, and the song remains the same! Please let me explain…

A couple of years back our guests at Respect is Burning Supperclub were asking us if there was any way we could put together a place for those times when we’re all in a hurry – whether for a quick grab n’ go lunch or a great hot meal to pick up on the way home or on the way to a party! Something simple, friendly, satisfying and guaranteed delicious…

Explosive flavours, no doubt!  Like Respect is Burning Supperclub, but different…..

You see, Respect is Burning Supperclub truly is a lifestyle sort of restaurant for many folks – we’ve combined easy, friendly service with an atmosphere of groovy tunes, no pretence,  cool artwork and always great Italian comfort food.  Our guests are fantastic and we see them often – weekly for some, and even more often for others – whether simply popping in for a clay oven baked REAL ITALIAN PIZZA and a glass of wine with friends – or for a more classic meal of savoury fresh pasta and succulent Tuscan Grill Platter .

However, we kept hearing over and over that there are days and some nights when the time to linger and sit, interact with a server and hang out in a dining room just isn’t there. That our guests felt gypped a lot of days when they were short of the luxury of free time, and were left only with the prospect of eating processed, artificially flavoured mash  – when all they really wanted was a spot for those hurried days where great food could be had fast -  in and out – with no compromise on MASSIVE flavour!

Time is getting so tight that most days there just isn’t time to cook at home anymore, and it’s certainly not always fun to cook when you’re entertaining guests in your own home……

And we agreed!  And hence, the ‘New Project’ - VESPA KITCHENGRILL! But….where would we find our inspirations?

It had to be something new, but at the same time something old – ‘new’ as in fresh to the current local foodscape…something original, something FUN and accessible to everyone, young and old….  ‘Old’ as in immensely satisfying, rooted in the traditions of both street and countryside – paying homage to and working to preserve a tradition of simple, honest, quality convenience food made by real people from your neighbourhood.  With great HOT food for any chow-down – whether feeding your family (and avoiding the kitchen) on a Wednesday night, or grabbing a pack on the way to the job site, or killing the munchies on a Saturday afternoon!   Hmmmmmmm…and so, we started thinking…….

In our travels, we love discovering great food – Italy, Canada, the United States, Mexico, Europe, wherever.  In a lot of cases, the best and most fun experiences of eating have come from diners, counter-service and street carts!

In fact, we’ve found that way more often than not, the memorable meals we’ve had have been from unpretentious speedy formats with no table service at all but with a focus on putting BIG, honest flavours and fresh food in hand FAST – whether to quickly fuel us up for the next adventure or to put on our own table in a hotel, hostel, park bench, or rented pad..

Here’s just a few of the killer street and country FAST classics we’ve fallen in love with….

• In Tuscany and Umbria (in central Italy) the greatness of the roadside BBQ’d PORCHETTA TRUCK is undeniable – the lineups are always around the block for this DYNAMITE spiced and BBQ’d pork roast laced with sea salt, herbs and garlic pulled apart and piled high street side on a hearty roll or grilled flatbread, with a fragrant sauce, some extra-virgin olive oil and perhaps some marinated, spiced mushrooms.  WOW!!!!

• In New York City, we’ve found food hawkers on the streets keeping on with the old traditions, serving fantastic family recipe MEATBALL PANINI– BIG, warm sandwiches stuffed with a magical filling of savoury slow-cooked beef and pork meatballs studded with fresh garlic and layered with fresh, soft mozzarella and rustic tomato sugo…I’d always kick this already beautiful package up another notch with a hit of hot pepper antipasto topping it all off!

• In New Jersey, the GRILLED ITALIAN STEAK SANDWICH creates line-ups of feverish cops, firefighters, construction workers, mobsters and athletes pretty much every working day and night.  This major league sandwich really gets to the core of American Italian comfort food with an overdose of flavour, incredible toppings and momma-style love on a bun!!

• In the Southern United States, we fell in love with traditional American Barbecue….it’s truly next to impossible to beat a KANSAS CITY BBQ PULLED PORK SANDWICH!! We’ve taken this southern tradition, mashed it with a Tuscan twist and kicked that American classic up ten notches - these tail-gate beauties will knock your socks off anytime!!!

• In Puerto Vallarta, Mexico (our home away from home!) we’ve frequented downtown streetcarts and had amazingly satisfying tacos of ‘carne asada’ – slices of grilled marinated steak fillets – or even rustic BBQ’d chicken on soft flatbread with savoury salsa).  And then, the BBQ shops – man, you can smell those coal-grilling crispy skinned chickens a mile away, studded with garlic and a bit of chili heat.  This is nothing like the bland versions being peddled in our grocery stores back home and really puts the bird back where it belongs as a worthy player in our rustic culinary paradise!!!

• As a young chef, I fell in love with the incredible flavours of East Indian cooking years ago, and had the great fortune of spending kitchen time with my mother in-law and my wife’s grandmom….I’ll never forget my first time experience with a hand-rolled BBQ’d kebab naan!  These savoury and spiced ‘sausage’ street-food classics on pillowy soft coal-grilled warm flatbread are an absolute flavour explosion and are incredibly addictive!

• In the ancient streets of Ancona (on the east coast of Italy) where the absolute best fresh pasta artists can be found on the streets in the form of older Italian ladies whacking and rolling fresh linguine noodles by hand, dropping the delicious pasta ribbons into boiling water for 2 minutes and then into a large paper cup with a crown of tomato and bacon sauce and a shot of fresh Parmigiano cheese – ready to be walked away and inhaled by crowds of hungry tourists, students and working folk alike!!!!

• In the Eternal City of Rome, where you can’t help but feel connected to the streets –surrounded by ancient ruins in an an ultra modern city where food, fashion and history rule all! Here, the pizzas are to die for! Italian bakers sell whole pies or foot long slices  of REAL ROMAN ITALIAN PIZZA –a crisp and golden crust with a heavenly chew crowned with a few extremely complimentary toppings, San Marzano tomato sauce, and fresh herbs.    It’s the real thing, and a far cry from the so-so stuff that the chains are serving up over here (and with a glass of rustic red wine, it’s HEAVEN, hot or cold!).

• In Des Moines, Iowa, the reigning champion of all hot sandwiches is without a doubt the CRISPY PORK SANDWICH! Butchershop-fresh fillets of pork tenderloin are pounded into HUGE cutlets, marinated for a day in buttermilk and spices and coated with cheese, herbs and breadcrumbs.  Panfried to a golden crisp crust, the massive resulting cutlet is so big (and so unbelievably good!) it can’t be contained by the chewy bakery-fresh bun. This is one of our all-time favourites, and done up with fresh tomato sauce, marinated mushrooms and crisp n’ spicy Giardiniera it’s pure foodie/munchie NIRVANA!

• The windy city of Chicago is a venerable food mecca all on it’s own!!!! It’s truly worth a whirlwind trip just to visit the great diners, ethnic sandwich shops, BBQ chicken shacks and hot dog joints smattered all over town) is a food mecca all on it’s own! The legendary Chicago-style Hot Dog is a tradition that every Chi-Town native would gladly go to war defending – and this is a constant thing, seeing that most major cities in the USA have their own regional hot dog pride and joy (more on those dogs later!).

• The humble potato, of course, is the basis for the world’s most popular street food ever – the Noble French Fry!! Although this worldwide gem actually began in Belgium, there are versions worldwide that differ from land to land…and we love ‘em all!! In Amsterdam, we were blown away by the ‘patate shacks’ everywhere that specialized in fantastic fries served up with your choice of over 25 sauces…and just wait till you’ve seen what we’ve done with this street food classic!!!!

• Ah, what can anyone say about the proud culinary street traditions of Quebec?  The question, rather, is where does one begin? Canada’s closest last standing European totem, Quebec carries a culinary hammer heavier than most, and the evidence is everywhere…from the multitude of killer Smoked Meat shops to incredible local bakeries, pastry shops, rotisseries and five-star restaurants to Quebec’s beloved POUTINE STANDS where fresh cut and crisp fried potatoes are perfectly seasoned and then topped with the house cheeses and killer gravy, or anything from duck foie gras to peppercorn sauce or savoury Bolognese gravy!

• In San Daniele, Italy PROSCIUTTO HAM is king of all sliced meats. Street vendors use a special clamp and knife to carve this salt cured, semi-dry meat and serve it up folded in barely-crisp, soft grilled flatbread with fresh mozzarella, ripe red tomatoes and a light, simple condiment sauce – anything from some good quality extra-virgin olive oil to basil pesto or a bit of fresh mayonnaise.

• In central Italy, BBQ’d garlicky steak cutlets are folded with prosciutto, grilled mushrooms, tomato sauce and mild fresh cheese for the hungry urban crowd who just won’t accept the ‘new’ fast food.  This ‘Steak Saltimbocca’ sandwich is the height of old-meets-new…and our version at VESPA KITCHENGRILL version will leave you weak-kneed and coming back for more!

This all, my friend, is sheer cultural, culinary bliss in its humblest form -  my admiration for these soldiers of food tradition and our love for honest, simple food is a major inspiration for Mini and I as restaurant people because our food mission is and always will be REAL FOOD FOR REAL PEOPLE!

THE WAY SANDWICHES WERE MEANT TO BE...'NUFF SAID!

Now, I need to make sure we understand each other – and that I’m being clear. This is not highbrow food for snobs we’re talking about.  We’re talking about BIG, rolling flavours and authentic value (all of our meats besides Italian Prosciutto ham are marinated and BBQ’d, roasted or braised in-house, fresh!) – and that all starts with simple, top-notch natural products, every time.

In fact, we’ve gone through great lengths to ensure the authenticity and BIG rustic flavour of our Vespa Kitchen Grill Foods – including marinating, live fire and char-grilling, roasting and braising of all our fresh meats in-house!

Fresh Ontario pork, grain-fed chicken and triple AAA BBQ’d beef are the standard of the day at Vespa, and all of our are meats supplied by our local butchers in Sudbury! Fresh panini rolls from a fabulous local bakery with more than 70+ years of history in our city!  Sauces made from scratch using herbs, premium tomatoes, wines and extra-virgin olive oil.  And, the stuff we don’t make or find locally is all imported, natural and of the best quality available ethnic traditional preserves and toppings from faraway lands!

Generous portions and explosive, SOUL-FOOD flavours to-die-for? YOU BET, AND ABSOLUTELY!!!!

I know I’m stressing the point, but the sad truth is that this is simply not the norm these days, and we invite YOU to take a ride back with us. REAL food is where it’s at, and that’s where the Big Boys simply can’t compete – with their processed meats and frozen and factory-made sauces!

Look, it’s gotten so bad that most places can’t even cut fresh fries anymore – not to mention use a decent frying oil like pure canola instead of some trans-fat laden ‘fryer substitute’, as they call it…and all in the name of shortcuts and profit without soul.

And, speaking of that, our VESPA FRESH-CUT FRIES are GUARANTEED to re-confirm your faith in the humble potato!! We’ve taken another page out of our travels and re-created the type of crisp, golden shoe-string type fresh cut fries we’d encountered in coastal Europe, near the throngs of seafood fry shacks dotting the beachlines  – sprinkled with sea-salt and a killer (secret!) blend of aromatic herbs right from the old country (now, all we need is year-round hot weather in Sudbury to recreate what we saw in Italy – people of all ages in speed-os and bikinis lined up at their favourite fry stand, waiting for the next batch of chips n’ sea salt!).

The point really is we’d love to see you come by for a taste –we know you’re going to love our new menu and all of the latest options for your home or party!! Coal BBQ’d chicken, pork, sausages, pastas, meatballs, those incredible sandwiches we mentioned, hearty farmhouse-style soups, savoury fries, Tuscan baked beans,  salads and slaw, REAL Italian pizzas and all of our other offerings!

In fact, I really think that once you’ve tried our sandwiches (the Steak Saltimbocca is one of our all-time favourites – with grilled marinated steak, cured prosciutto ham, spiced mushrooms, fresh friulano cheese and san marzano tomato sauce!!!), you’ll agree with us that there really isn’t a need to eat factory food anymore when you’re pressed for time.

And, we know you’ll be able to taste the respect, love and tradition we’re putting into everything we cook – from scratch – every time.  Trust me, friend, it’s good to eat REAL, even if that means the occasional done-right basket of hot shoestring fries and sauce!

Come see us soon – we know you’ll enjoy our newest little food spot – and the explosive flavours of our VESPA KITCHEN authentic ‘GREAT FOOD, FAST AND FRESH!’ You’ll find us there, cooking and rockin’- of course – with real love! And, if you like what you find there, please pass the word on to your friends and family – and come back anytime! ;)

Cheers, best wishes, and EXCELSIOR!!!

Rob and Mini

FOUNDERS AND FOOD LOVERS / VESPA! KITCHEN GRILL