THE WAKKER WEEKLY
Issue #1526 – Posted on: 27-April-2020
BUSHWAKKER NEWS
We have now experienced two very fine Saturday afternoons where we had a chance to reconnect with some of our many Bushwakker beer fans in a safe environment! Opening for a few hours to make Bushwakker offsale available has proven to be a big hit! So we’ll keep the smiles coming and will be open this Saturday, April 25th from noon until 4:00 PM with a fully stocked Bushwakker offsale cooler. No cash please. No growler fills. As part of our social distancing measures, customers will be required to enter the brewpub from the north entrance of the building and then exit through our front doors after replenishing their Bushwakker beer supply. We look forward to seeing you…from a two meter distance of course!
Big shout out to the Regina Warehouse District BID and Outlaw Trail Spirits who have worked with Rebellion Brewing, Bandits Distillery, Dan Chamberlain Construction, Brianna Coffin Designs, Moose Jaw Pharmasave and Terry Palaschak to create Hooligan’s Hand Wash Sanitizer. A bottle was recently delivered to us to help keep our customers and staff safe. Thank you to all of those who worked tirelessly on this very worthwhile local project!
Two litre bottles of Bushwakker Chico IPA and Dungarvon Irish Red Ale are now available for home delivery with the help of fellow Regina craft brewers, Pile O’ Bones Brewing. To place your order, just visit www.saskbeerdelivery.ca
We have received many inquiries regarding the status of our kitchen service. Given the fact that we offer “scratch-style” cuisine, it is particularly challenging to re-open our entire kitchen without the required level of sales to support such a move. Nevertheless, we plan to slowly re-open the food side of our brewpub and hope to make a limited number of our food menu items available for pick up on Friday, May 1st from 4:00 PM to 7:00 PM as well as on Saturday, May 2nd from Noon until 6:00 PM. Customers can simply call us at 306-359-7276 to place food orders. We will monitor your response and will expand hours of service if there appears to be a demand. Our first limited takeout weekend menu offers are as follows:
BUSHWAKKER TAKEOUT LIMITED MENU
Friday, May 1st: Kitchen open 4:00 PM – 7:00 PM
Saturday, May 2nd: Kitchen open Noon – 6:00 PM
Phone: 306-359-7276
SIGNATURE FISH AND CHIPS $20.95
Stubblejumper Pilsener battered cod fillets, served with handcut fries and fresh tartar sauce.
GOURMET PIZZAS
Prepared with our own handmade herbed pizza crust. No substitutions please. Sorry no gluten-free crust at this time.
POP’S ORIGINAL $16.95
Pepperoni, mushroom, green olive and banana pepper.
PRAIRIE $15.95
Saskatchewan’s favourite pepperoni, mushroom and bacon.
SANDWICHES*
REUBEN 4OZ-$16.95 | 8OZ-$20.95
The original gasthaus sandwich: smoked beef and sauerkraut with melted Swiss cheese on marble rye. Served with grainy mustard on the side.
BEEF DIP $14.95
Shaved roast beef piled high on an artisan bun, served au jus. Add mushrooms or Swiss $2.00 extra.
CHI-CHI $15.95
Seasoned chicken breast, bacon, lettuce, tomato, cheddar cheese, red onion and roasted garlic aioli on a ciabatta bun.
CLASSIC BURGERS*
Choose from beef or bison patties made on premises or charbroiled chicken breast.
WAKKER $16.95
Topped with cheddar cheese and bacon with lettuce, tomato and onion.
MUSHROOM & SWISS $16.95
Topped with sautéed mushroom and finished with melted Swiss cheese with lettuce, tomato, and onion.
*All sandwiches and burgers are served with a side of handcut fries or Ceasar salad. Gluten-free bun $2.00.
CHICKEN FINGERS $15.50
Tender pieces of breaded chicken with our honey dill dip. Served with your choice of handcut fries or Caesar salad.
CAESAR SALAD $12.95
Crisp romaine lettuce tossed with our special dressing, topped with croutons and parmesan cheese.
Add a charbroiled chicken breast for $5.00.
FAMOUS HANDCUT BUSHWAKKER FRIES $7.95 GRAVY $3.00
Your input is certainly welcomed at this exciting period. Let us know by getting in touch with our GM at kelly@bushwakker.com
Our number-one selling Bushwakker Fish & Chips makes a triumphant return with the launch of our first weekend takeout menu on May 1st and 2nd.
As we complete our fifth week of business disruption due to the pandemic, we find there is more and more regular activity going on in The Bushwakker despite our doors being locked. Bushwakker head brewer, Michael Gaetz, has been busy keeping Regina’s six SLGA supplied with various Bushwakker beers (the Quance Street store has a particularly large Bushwakker beer selection) as well is packaging product for our own offsale cooler. Chef Mike is now communicating with his suppliers and some of his kitchen team on how to safely and efficiently re-open the kitchen for Friday and Saturday takeout next weekend.
Please continue to practice your safe social distancing practices and remain connected to one another and to us! Yes, we do indeed miss you! Try to support local businesses whenever possible. Be vigilant in your resolve to protect yourselves which in turn will protect others. The more disciplined we are at being separated now, the sooner we will all be together again later!
LAST CHANCE! The annual Prairie Dog Magazine “Best of Food” Regina reader’s poll is back! Deadline to vote has been extended to April 28th! We are pleased to announce that you have nominated your Bushwakker in a record- breaking 23 categories in this year’s contest! Thank you for your incredible support! Those nomination categories include Regina’s Best: brewpub, pub, restaurant,pub server (both Cheryl and Rayna), nachos, appetizers, soup, salad, pub pizza, gourmet pizza, wings, dessert, business lunch, lunch restaurant, sandwich, local burger, chicken burger, veggie burger, local fries, restaurant for a first date, restaurant for a budget date, restaurant for a party AND restaurant for a fundraiser!
Visit the voting site at https://prairiedogmag.com/best-of-food-2020/#// before April 28th and turn those nominations into victories! If you vote in at least 20 categories, you have a chance to win a $500 prize package from the Prairie Dog.
How Sask. businesses are ‘navigating the unknown’ and adapting to stay afloat during COVID-19
From food and drink to working out, nearly everything has changed because of the pandemic.
By Alex Soloducha · CBC News
Glenn Valgardson, owner and GM of Pile O’ Bones Brewing Company, had to close his bar and restaurant on Saskatchewan Drive in Regina. He said it doesn’t qualify for government subsidies because it hasn’t been open more than a year. (Matthew Howard/CBC)
Saskatchewan has started talking about how to get some industries back in business, but many have had to adapt to continue operating in the age of COVID-19.
Some Regina businesses have taken a creative approach to safely reach customers and stay afloat.
Tim Schultz runs Local and Fresh and Local Market, which includes a hyper-local grocery store, eatery and event centre.
He stocks baked goods, meats and produce from greenhouses year round along with prepared foods like frozen pizzas from Ogema and homemade perogies.
Tim Schultz, co-owner and CEO of Local and Fresh, kneels in front of his brick and mortar location which opened in Regina’s warehouse district about a year ago. You can no longer go in and browse, but you can get an employee to shop for you and do pickup or delivery. (Matthew Howard/CBC)
You can no longer browse around, but you can go in and ask for items or get your grocery order delivered. Schultz already had the infrastructure set up, having started deliveries five years ago. Once he opened a brick and mortar location the delivery service wasn’t as popular, but demand has skyrocketed because of the coronavirus.
Right now is the time to just encourage each other and to just help each other get through this.– Tim Schultz, owner, Local and Fresh
Schultz said they’ve been at capacity many days, with up to five deliveries per hour from 7:30 a.m until 8 p.m.
He said he started his business because of his passion for the local economy and local producers. All of the products are grown or prepared in Saskatchewan or other parts of Western Canada.
Schultz said he’s been impressed with the community’s support for local businesses, including his own, during the pandemic. He encourages people to find out how companies have pivoted and keep doing what they can to support them.
“As a small business owner myself, every order that comes through is kind of like a pat on the back and an encouragement not only to us as the owners, but to our staff, that the community is just encouraging us to keep going,” Schultz said.
“Right now is the time to just encourage each other and to just help each other get through this.”
Restaurants update operations ‘just to survive’
Just two days after Premier Scott Moe called a provincial state of emergency on March 18, restaurants were required to halt dine-in service.
Most now offer takeout, delivery or curbside pickup.
ZamZam Wraps had to temporarily close its location in the Cornwall Centre, but has introduced special deals hoping to drum up business at their east location.
Manager Hussein Nahle said it’s also a way for them to make their food more affordable at a time when many people are facing financial hardship.
“We are navigating the unknown,” said Nahle. “So it’s very hard. We have to put in more plans just to survive.”
Quarantine happy hour
You can now also get beverages right to your door. Pile O’ Bones Brewing Co. has set up an online portal called Sask Beer Delivery.
The bar and restaurant attached to the brewery on Saskatchewan Drive in Regina had to close, so bartenders have become drivers.
Valgardson and his team created the online portal Sask Beer Delivery and is now delivering beverages from 14 other breweries, a number of distilleries, wineries and one kombucha company in Saskatoon and Regina. (Matthew Howard/CBC)
In Regina, they do up to 150 deliveries a day between the hours of 5 and 8 p.m. CST. The service is also going in Saskatoon.
On top of that, Valgardson and others under the Craft Brewers Association have brewed a new beer, with plans to give 100 per cent of the proceeds from its sales to breweries directly affected by COVID-19.
“With all the breweries in the province of Saskatchewan we all have a very collaborative effort,” Valgardson said. “We’re very friendly with each other. It would kind of be like seeing your neighbour go bankrupt.
“You’d do anything to help them.”
Valgarsdson said 70 per cent of his business came from selling kegs wholesale to bars and restaurants. With those closed he said he’s had to lay off half his staff. He said he doesn’t qualify for government subsidies because the bar opened less than a year ago.
He said he’s sent letters to local government and the Prime Minister’s office and is waiting to hear back.
Turning to music in a difficult time
Since people are not supposed to leave their homes, many music teachers have switched to online lessons.
Music is a great stress reliever.– Matt Cudmore, performace director, School of Rock Regina
School of Rock Regina performance director Matt Cudmore said teachers can’t really jam with students because of the lag, but it’s been the perfect time to focus on music theory.
Students at School of Rock Regina are taking their time off from school to practice their instruments and connect via Zoom. (Facebook/School of Rock Regina)
With kids out of school, they have more time to practise. One of his guitar students learned an entire Alice In Chains album in a week.
“Music is a great stress reliever. Whenever I’m feeling angry or upset in any way that’s immediately what I’m going to do is play music,” said Cudmore. “Pretty much everyone’s at home right now with a bunch of time on their hands you know obviously you can binge watch some series on Netflix but why not pick up an instrument as well.”
At-home workout has whole new meaning
Exercise is another common stress reliever. All the gyms in the province are closed to the public now, but many are helping their clients work out at home.
Villains Strength & Conditioning teamed up with other local businesses right away to post free workouts online on multiple Facebook pages. It has also created an online virtual program, with live video workouts and free nutrition plans for members.
Villains Strength & Conditioning members are now working out live through an online video platform. The gym moved their membership online when their new location in Harbour Landing was mandated to temporarily close because of COVID-19. (Facebook/Villains Strength & Conditioning)
Manager Julie Baldock said it’s not a good time to focus on losing weight, but she is encouraging people to set a routine and keep up with physical activity.
“Working out isn’t always about getting those chiseled arms or those six packs. It’s often about just feeling good, honouring your body and your mental health,” Baldock said. “We wanted to try and reach out to as many people as we can and just say, this is something you can do in your house. Don’t worry. Don’t feel trapped. We got you.”
The gym opened its new location in Regina’s south end one week before it was forced to shut down. Owner Brendan Kozack said he’s taken a financial hit, but he’s more worried about what comes after the pandemic, with people having lost income and likely being uneasy in crowds.
Working out isn’t always about getting those chiseled arms or those six packs. It’s often about just feeling good, honouring your body and your mental health.– Julie Baldock, manager, Villains Strength & Conditioning
“What’s this going to look like three to six months immediately after we’re done this kind of quarantine phase and we’re kind of getting back into the swing of things and and businesses are kind of back open and stuff like that?” he said. “It’s going to be vastly different and we’re talking about people that got laid off and perhaps didn’t get hired back on. There’s going to be a large hit.”
Premier Scott Moe is expected to release details on reopening Saskatchewan later this week.
He said that plan will likely start with more businesses being deemed essential, but it might not happen for weeks or months.
TIME OUT
A man wakes up in the hospital, bandaged from head to foot. The doctor comes in and says, ‘Ah, I see you’ve regained consciousness. Now, you probably won’t remember, but you were in a pile-up on the freeway. You’re going to be okay, you’ll walk again and everything, but….. something happened. I’m trying to break this gently, but the fact is, your willy was chopped off in the wreck and we were unable to find it.’
The man groans, but the doctor goes on, ‘You’ve got $9,000 in insurance compensation coming and we have the technology now to build you a new willy that will work as well as your old one did – better in fact! But the thing is, it doesn’t come cheap. It’s $1,000 an inch.’
The man perks up at this. ‘So,’ the doctor says, ‘it’s for you to decide how many inches you want. But it’s something you’d better discuss with your wife. I mean, if you had a five inch one before, and you decide to go for a nine incher, she might be a bit put out. But if you had a nine inch one before, and you decide only to invest in a five incher this time, she might be disappointed. So it’s important that she plays a role in helping you make the decision.’
The man agrees to talk with his wife. The doctor comes back the next day. ‘So,’ says the doctor, ‘have you spoken with your wife?’
‘I have,’ says the man.
‘And has she helped you in making the decision?’
‘Yes, she has,’ says the man.
‘And what is it?’ asks the doctor.
‘We’re getting granite countertops.’
