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Interview with Jenny Siormanolakis
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/museumdescription19635
- Repository
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Date
- [1960-2023] (interview content), interviewed 26 Jul. 2023
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Village Museum fonds
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 2 sound recordings (wav) (87 min.) + 1 sound recording (mp3) (86 min., 51 sec.)
- Scope and Content
- Item consists of a recording of an oral history interview with Jenny (Eugenia) Siormanolakis conducted by Burnaby Village Museum Registrar, James Binks on July 26 2023. 00:00-12:02 Interview opens with introductions. Jenny Siormanolakis shares details about her parents Eugene and Europe Siormanola…
- Repository
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby Village Museum fonds
- Series
- Museum Oral Histories series
- Subseries
- Many Voices Project Interviews subseries
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 2 sound recordings (wav) (87 min.) + 1 sound recording (mp3) (86 min., 51 sec.)
- Material Details
- Interviewer: James Binks Interviewee: Jenny (Eugenia) Siormanolakis Location of Interview: Prado Cafe, 4321 Still Creek Dr., Burnaby Interview Date: July 26, 2023 Total Number of tracks: 2 Total Length of all Tracks: 01:26:60 Digital master recordings (wav) were recorded onto two separate audio tracks, edited and merged together and converted to mp3 for access on Heritage Burnaby Ambient sound from cafe in background of interview
- Scope and Content
- Item consists of a recording of an oral history interview with Jenny (Eugenia) Siormanolakis conducted by Burnaby Village Museum Registrar, James Binks on July 26 2023. 00:00-12:02 Interview opens with introductions. Jenny Siormanolakis shares details about her parents Eugene and Europe Siormanolakis who were both born in Greece and immigrated to Vancouver. Jenny provides details about the history of Romana Pizza restaurant including; the restaurant partners, the various locations, her father’s work ethics of running the restaurant and the staff who worked there. Jenny provides details about her father's life, his ancestral background and family relations which lead him to immigrate to Vancouver. Jenny shares childhood memories of helping out in her parents’ restaurant and later working there. 12:03 – 26:41 Jenny describes various food dishes that have been on the menu of Romana Pizza and Steak House and Romana Pizza, how they've evolved over time, how her father learned to cook traditional Greek food and develop his own recipes and where he sourced his restaurant food supplies. Jenny conveys how they used social media to advertise the restaurant, describes the election pizza poll that Romana Pizza held during the federal and provincial elections and a baby poll that was held at the restaurant to guess the weight of her and her sister’s babies. 26:42 – 31:47 Jenny talks about her marriage and recollects how she got married in a civil ceremony at Romana Pizza. Jenny talks about her family life while her family was running the restaurant, their decision to sell the restaurant and describes the last days of running the restaurant. 31:48 – 46:33 Jenny conveys the background story of her business “Granpa J’s”. Jenny describes how her uncle Jimmy Voulides, created his own seasoning salt product and after he died in 2003, Jenny and her sister Nora purchased the business. Jenny describes how they developed their business, created new products, their struggles and how they became successful. Jenny describes how their products have been developed from family recipes and recalls how the actor Ryan Reynold’s helped their products become even more successful overnight. 46:34 – 55:38 Jenny talks about different community festivals and events that she’s been involved with including; Greek Day on Broadway (Vancouver) and the Hats Off Day event in North Burnaby. Jenny shares the background history of Greek Day in Vancouver and information about other Greek community events. Jenny talks about the importance of bringing the community together and the importance of knowing the history of your ancestors and where they came from. 55:39 - 1:04:35 Jenny talks about her involvement with the Greek community newspaper “Gnome” and provides details about; the former creator and editor Kostas Karatsikis, the newspaper's content, it's importance in the Greek community and the distribution. Jenny describes some of the articles that she’s written for the Gnome newspaper. 1:04:36 - 1:14:12 Jenny describes some pivotal moments that occurred over the years at Romana Pizza including; placing second in the Vancouver Sun newspaper contest for Best Pizza (1986) and having members of the Vancouver Canucks hockey team frequent their restaurant. Jenny conveys how the restaurant benefited from having a website and using social media as a marketing tools. 1:14:13 - 1:22:42 Jenny talks about her involvement with Kolanki Group West, Euro Find foods and her passion for Greek food and other European foods. Jenny describes some traditional Greek recipes, family recipes, talks about marketing Grandpa J's products and reflects on the menu of Romana Pizza. 1:22:43 - 1:26:51 Jenny reflects on the role of the Greek community, how food plays a roll, the future of the Greek community in Vancouver and Burnaby and the importance of engaging the younger generation. In closing Jenny provides a quote from an article that she wrote “Forgive the mistakes of the past, let it go and realize that we are all equals...”.
- History
- Interviewee biography: Eugenia "Jenny" Siormanolakis is the daughter of Eugene and Europe Siormanolakis. Jenny’s father, Eugene Siormanolakis immigrated to Canada from Greece in the late 1960’s and her mother Europe Siormanolakis immigrated in 1973. In April 1973, her father and five partners opened the restaurant “Romana Pizza and Steak House” (later renamed "Romana Pizza") located at 4660 Hastings Street in the Burnaby Heights neighbourhood. Jenny and her sister Eleanora Iliakis spent much of their childhood in the family owned restaurant and also worked at the restaurant as they become older. Jenny’s parents continued to own and operate the restaurant until 2014 when they decided to retire from the business. In 2004, an opportunity arose for Jenny and her sister Eleanora to buy their recently deceased uncle’s business Grandpa J’s Seasoning Inc. They launched their business of “Grandpa J’s” seasoning first selling to local restaurants and eventually adapted their product line to include other Greek seasoning products which they developed from their own recipes. They expanded their clientele to include retail outlets and in 2020, they got a boost to their sales when actor Ryan Reynolds promoted their seasoing product "Vancity Grind" on Instagram. Since launching their business they have been featured in many culinary and business publications and were nominated in 2022 as finalists for Product of the Year by BC Food and Beverage. Jenny is extremely passionate about food, her Greek heritage and is an advocate for food security for children and seniors and mental health. Interviewer biography: James Binks has lived in the Lower Mainland since 2009 after relocating from Ontario. James holds a Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology from the University of British Columbia, where he conducted researched on heritage, environment, and globalization in India, Nepal, and Italy. At Burnaby Village Museum, James contributed to the exhibit “Truths Not Often Told: Being South Asian in Burnaby”.
- Creator
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Subjects
- Buildings - Commercial - Restaurants
- Businesses
- Elections
- Foods
- Migration
- Occupations - Entrepreneurs
- Persons - Greek Canadians
- Names
- Gnome Publications
- Iliakis, Eleonara Siormanolakis
- Karatsikis, Kostas "George"
- Siormanolakis, Eugenia "Jenny"
- Nikolaidis, "Eleni"
- Nikolaidis, Stelios
- Romana Pizza
- Siormanolakis, Eugene
- Siormanolakis, Europe
- Voulides, Demetrios "Jimmy"
- Responsibility
- Binks, James
- Geographic Access
- Hastings Street
- Street Address
- 4660 Hastings Street
- Accession Code
- BV023.16.13
- Access Restriction
- No restrictions
- Reproduction Restriction
- No known restrictions
- Date
- [1960-2023] (interview content), interviewed 26 Jul. 2023
- Media Type
- Sound Recording
- Historic Neighbourhood
- Vancouver Heights (Historic Neighbourhood)
- Planning Study Area
- Burnaby Heights Area
- Notes
- Title based on contents of item
- Transcription available on Heritage Burnaby
Documents
Audio Tracks
Interview with Jenny Siormanolakis, [1960-2023] (interview content), interviewed 26 Jul. 2023
Interview with Jenny Siormanolakis, [1960-2023] (interview content), interviewed 26 Jul. 2023
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/media/hpo/_Data/_BVM_Sound_Recordings/Oral_Histories/2023_0016_0013_003.mp3![Food Bank donation in Burnaby Heights, [2000] thumbnail](/media/hpo/_Data/_Archives_Images/_Unrestricted/535/535-1600.jpg?width=280)
Food Bank donation in Burnaby Heights
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/archivedescription95742
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- [2000]
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby NewsLeader photograph collection
- Description Level
- Item
- Physical Description
- 1 photograph (tiff) : col.
- Scope and Content
- Photograph of an employee from the Greater Vancouver Food Bank receiving a donation. The employee carries a Food Bank cardboard box while three other women stand in the background on Hastings Street, showing an open box of food donations.
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- [2000]
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby NewsLeader photograph collection
- Physical Description
- 1 photograph (tiff) : col.
- Description Level
- Item
- Record No.
- 535-1600
- Access Restriction
- No restrictions
- Reproduction Restriction
- No restrictions
- Accession Number
- 2018-12
- Scope and Content
- Photograph of an employee from the Greater Vancouver Food Bank receiving a donation. The employee carries a Food Bank cardboard box while three other women stand in the background on Hastings Street, showing an open box of food donations.
- Subjects
- Organizations - Charities
- Media Type
- Photograph
- Photographer
- Bartel, Mario
- Notes
- Title based on caption
- Collected by editorial for use in a December 2000 issue of the Burnaby NewsLeader
- Caption from metadata: "Heather Streiner, of the Greater Vancouver Food Bank, receives a donation from Mary Jane Moore, of the Burnaby NewsLeader, Susan Rouse of The Heights Merchants Association, and Joanne Jamieson, of Chevron. The canned goods were collected by merchants in the Heights business district."
- Geographic Access
- Hastings Street
- Historic Neighbourhood
- Vancouver Heights (Historic Neighbourhood)
- Planning Study Area
- Burnaby Heights Area
Images
![Food Bank donation in Burnaby Heights, [2000] thumbnail](/media/hpo/_Data/_Archives_Images/_Unrestricted/535/535-1600.jpg)
Burnaby Heights "panhandling meter"
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/archivedescription97994
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- [2000]
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby NewsLeader photograph collection
- Description Level
- File
- Physical Description
- 2 photographs (tiff) : col.
- Scope and Content
- File contains photographs of Mark, a panhandler, on Hastings Street by a "panhandling meter" installed by the City of Burnaby. The meter reads: "This is not a parking meter / Spare change for social change."
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- [2000]
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby NewsLeader photograph collection
- Physical Description
- 2 photographs (tiff) : col.
- Description Level
- File
- Record No.
- 535-3098
- Access Restriction
- No restrictions
- Reproduction Restriction
- No restrictions
- Accession Number
- 2018-12
- Scope and Content
- File contains photographs of Mark, a panhandler, on Hastings Street by a "panhandling meter" installed by the City of Burnaby. The meter reads: "This is not a parking meter / Spare change for social change."
- Media Type
- Photograph
- Photographer
- Bartel, Mario
- Notes
- Title based on caption
- Collected by editorial for use in a February 2000 issue of the Burnaby NewsLeader
- Caption from metadata for 535-3098-1: "Mark says he panhandles along Hastings St. when he's hungry and can't afford food. He says the new meters haven't affected his take."
- Caption from metadata for 535-3098-2: "The new spare change meters haven't disuaded panhandlers, like Mark, from setting up shop along Hastings St. He says he panhandles when he needs money for food."
- Geographic Access
- Hastings Street
- Carleton Avenue
- Historic Neighbourhood
- Vancouver Heights (Historic Neighbourhood)
- Planning Study Area
- Burnaby Heights Area
Images
![Hats Off Day, [2001] thumbnail](/media/hpo/_Data/_Archives_Images/_Unrestricted/535/535-3391-5.jpg?width=280)
Hats Off Day
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/archivedescription98381
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- [2001]
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby NewsLeader photograph collection
- Description Level
- File
- Physical Description
- 10 photographs (tiff) : col.
- Scope and Content
- File contains photographs of the 2001 Hats Off Day parade and event in the Burnaby Heights neighbourhood. Photographs depict performers (including clowns, a town crier, a fire juggler, and tap dancers) in the parade; children and adults enjoying the parade and events; and business owners and volunt…
- Repository
- City of Burnaby Archives
- Date
- [2001]
- Collection/Fonds
- Burnaby NewsLeader photograph collection
- Physical Description
- 10 photographs (tiff) : col.
- Description Level
- File
- Record No.
- 535-3391
- Access Restriction
- No restrictions
- Reproduction Restriction
- No restrictions
- Accession Number
- 2018-12
- Scope and Content
- File contains photographs of the 2001 Hats Off Day parade and event in the Burnaby Heights neighbourhood. Photographs depict performers (including clowns, a town crier, a fire juggler, and tap dancers) in the parade; children and adults enjoying the parade and events; and business owners and volunteers prepping food and dealing with the rainy weather.
- Subjects
- Events
- Events - Parades
- Geographic Features - Neighbourhoods
- Performances
- Persons - Children
- Persons - Crowds
- Media Type
- Photograph
- Notes
- Title based on caption
- Collected by editorial for use in a June 2001 issue of the Burnaby NewsLeader
- Caption from metadata for 535-3391-1: "Kelvin Yee drains the rainwater from the awning in front of the New Rainbow Cafe."
- Caption from metadata for 535-3391-2: "It's hard to stay a happy clown when you're trying to pedal your decorated bike in a rainstorm, as Corey Barker, 8, discovered at Saturday's Hats Off Day parade."
- Caption from metadata for 535-3391-3: "Even the town crier struggled to stay dry during one of the many downpours that rained on Saturday's Hats Off Day parade."
- Caption from metadata for 535-3391-4: "A member of the Confederation Tap Dancers tries to dance up some sunshine at Saturday's Hats Off Day parade."
- Caption from metadata for 535-3391-5: "Devin Schellenberg amazes and delights spectators with his fire juggling at Saturday's Hats Off Day festival."
- Caption from metadata for 535-3391-6: "Ashley Boston, 4, plays in the soap bubbles that appeared at the Heights Fountain Square during Saturday's Hats Off Day festival on Hastings St."
- Caption from metadata for 535-3391-7: "The Hats Off Day parade is all about hats."
- Caption from metadata for 535-3391-8: "Stuart Wells enjoys a salmon kabob outside the Pear Tree Restaurant, some of diverse food being offered by restaurants and delis along Hastings St. as part of Hats Off Day."
- Caption from metadata for 535-3391-9: "George Kopf and Cynthia Chow, of the Footlight Theatre Company, fuel up at the Lions Club pancake breakfast before marching in Saturday's Hats Off Day parade. Kirk Dickson is flipping the pancakes."
- Caption from metadata for 535-3391-10: "Yusef Sulayman, 5, and his sister, Sevda, 6, try to stay dry as they watch Saturday's Hats Off Day parade."
- Geographic Access
- Hastings Street
- Historic Neighbourhood
- Vancouver Heights (Historic Neighbourhood)
- Planning Study Area
- Burnaby Heights Area
Images
![Hats Off Day, [2001] thumbnail](/media/hpo/_Data/_Archives_Images/_Unrestricted/535/535-3391-5.jpg)