Fay Bruney at Simply Irie
One of Calgary’s most popular and beloved Caribbean fusion restaurants, Simply Irie, like most restaurants during the last couple of years, has seen some hardship during the global pandemic. However, this past summer, a series of crimes against the restaurant added a traumatizing level of stress onto the situation.
As downtown Calgary’s only eatery offering Caribbean fusion cuisine inspired by the flavours of Dominica, Simply Irie has been a 17th Avenue staple since 2013. A family-run business, Fay Bruney and her husband, originally from Toronto, started the restaurant after spending some time in Calgary and missing the plethora of Caribbean food options in the Toronto region. With most of Calgary's Caribbean cuisine concentrated in the North East quadrant, the pair decided that they couldn’t be the only people craving a central location offering these flavours in Calgary.
With a strong background in customer service combined with her husband’s cooking skills, they considered it an opportunity to open a restaurant. After partnering with a Jamaican chef, they turned out to be right – as business started booming, Calgary’s lunchtime office crowd quickly took to the fast but hearty and tasty meals. Soon, with more late-night drinking establishments opening in the area, the weekend party crowd also started to take notice of Simply Irie, and before long, a late-night menu including Jerk pizza and wings saw lineups around the corner.
That was in the glory days, when Simply Irie called the corner of 17th Avenue and 14th Street home, long before the economic changes of a global pandemic took course and wiped out several businesses in the area. However, a decision made two years ago to move to a slightly more frequented location, right across from Western Canada High School on 6th Street, was initially great for business. Despite the effects of COVID-19 on the restaurant industry, Bruney was able to keep afloat. It was shortly after investing into a new patio during the height of the pandemic that the attacks on the business began. The recurring attacks and harassment seem to be targeted, and Bruney suspects there was a mix of racism and desperation that fueled them.
“There have been people calling and threatening us up until about three weeks ago,“ Bruney recalls. “But I don’t think all of the attacks were necessarily connected. It seems like there was some desperation involved too, like with people stealing the umbrellas. The pandemic has, of course, made people desperate, and I understand that. Luckily things have been improving for us and hopefully that continues."
The implementation of vaccine passports in Alberta has forced restaurants to make decisions often compromising business for the sake of safety of staff and patrons. This has resulted in some pushback from patrons. Though it has caused a bit of a hit to daily business, Simply Irie is currently only doing takeout service, eliminating any feelings of exclusion caused by vaccine mandates. With many regular customers – including folks from out of town that come in for the food, as well as members of the Calgary Stampeders – Bruney feels that it is important to always put her customers first, but also knows the importance of public safety.
“A lot of my customers are people that will call ahead in advance and ask for something special, and I’m more than happy to accommodate. We did a Jerk turkey on Thanksgiving. I’ve prepared many special meals for people with strict diets. And I love doing that. We always put our customers first. The pandemic has made it tough on everybody.”
Since September, with no dine-in service, business has dropped about 50%. Bruney says she would like to apply for more government funding support, but finds there are a lot of hoops that must be jumped through, or that the applications are not made very clear for those that have no experience with grant writing. And as an entrepreneur wearing more hats than ever after being forced to cut staff – cook, server, bookkeeper – she can barely find the time.
“There are not enough resources out there for small Black-owned businesses. It would be great if there was more support for small businesses, like if people were sourcing these grants and could help with the application process. We really could use that funding, and we qualify for it.”
In the meantime, Simply Irie is still open for business, whether you are looking to stop by and get a meal to-go, or prefer to get it delivered through SkipTheDishes. If you would like to support Fay and Simply Irie, the best way is to eat! You can also donate and share the GoFundMe that was set up earlier this year to help with the costs of damages that were incurred after the attacks on the restaurant. And if you've never tried the food at Simply Irie, I will personally say it's been my favourite restaurant in Calgary for nearly a decade. With new menu items including many vegan options and of course, classics like the delicious Jerk chicken or patties, there is definitely something for everyone.