THE WAKKER WEEKLY
Issue #1590 – Posted on: 19-July-2021
Phase Three of the Saskatchewan Re-Opening Roadmap Plan is now underway! We are now operating at normal capacity so there is plenty of seating available and plenty of room to spread out for those who are more comfortable keeping some distance from others. Some of our customers have been wearing masks and others have not. Our staff will continue to wear masks for the time being. Hand sanitizer is available and enhanced table cleaning protocols are continuing. We have resumed booking our two banquet rooms (the main floor Arizona Room and the basement Clubroom) for private parties. Although we are excited to bring back our events, we will not be actively booking any live music groups or plan any big events just yet. Things are definitely moving in the right direction but we want to ensure everything continues to evolve in a positive manner. Reservations and takeout service will continue to be provided. If you wish to bring in a larger group, please call ahead at 306-359-7276 so we can designate the adequate space needed to avoid wait times and congestion in our front lobby. The situation is looking good folks! Keep up the good work and thanks for your support!
BREWERY “HOP”PENINGS! Bushwakker Head brewer, Michael Gaetz, reports our new Mexican Lime Radler and even a few two litre bottles of Sarsaparilla are currently available in our offsale cooler. Our new Mango Radler is also on tap and in our offsale cooler and will be followed by our Pink Guavabuster Ale. Summer Wheat will be back and a brand new Blood Orange Wheat Beer too! There are also many other beers available including a West Coast IPA, Irish Red Ale, Brown, Blonde, Pilsener, Vienna, Pale Ale and a Porter. Growler fills and keg fills are also available!
Bushwakker is celebrating 30 years of craft brewing in Regina! Our brewery has seen multiple expansions and improvements over the years but plenty of muscle and know how is still required to create our award-winning Bushwakker brews. If you’ve ever been curious about our brewing process, be sure to check out this video at https://www.facebook.com/TheBushwakker/videos/147384974039727
We are very proud to be Saskatchewan’s Craft Beer Pioneer! Call 306-359-7276 to reserve a table.
Our GUEST TAP is once again flowing! We are currently pouring the SUN SEEKER HAZY IPA from Saskatoon’s Paddock Wood Brewing. Next up is the OAT SESSION ALE from Black Bridge Brewing in Swift Current. This will be followed by a HOPPY BELGIAN WIT from 9 Mile Legacy Brewing.
In addition to taking our beer home in glass bottles and 2 litre jugs direct from our pub, you can find a varying selection of 650 ml bottles of Bushwakker beer in ALL SIX REGINA SLGA stores.
Our July PREMIUM WINE FEATURES are the CONO SUR organic wines from Chile. The red is a Cabernet Carmenere Syrah. The white is a Sauvignon Blanc. Both are $7.95 for a glass and $21.95 for a half litre.
This Weekend’s Special Dining Feature on July 16th and 17th is a SMOKED BEEF BUN for $19.95. Our Saturday CLASSIC STEAK & A PINT SPECIAL will also be available. Our Monday and Wednesday WINGS & A PINT SPECIAL and Tuesday PIZZA & A PINT SPECIAL are also a great value deal.
We are excited to be into Phase Three of the Saskatchewan Re-Opening Roadmap Plan. Greater seating capacity and the return to normal hours of operation means we are looking for more experienced cooks and serving staff. Stop by and see us with your resume today or apply at
https://bushwakker.com/apply/
Our newly updated EXOTIC GUEST BEER & CIDER MENU is now ready. Enjoy a nice selection of classic beer styles as well as some brand new offerings. To view the complete selection visit https://bushwakker.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/BW_Import-Beer-Tent_55x55_June2021.pdf
Lots of folks have been jumping on the Hop Circuit this summer to visit Regina’s six participating craft breweries! Take a hike or hop on a bike and collect your stamps to claim your free Experience Regina glass!
Our new Bushwakker Online Ordering Page is now live on our website! You can order everything from our food menu as well as our Bushwakker brews and even select the time you’d like to pick up your order. Visit https://bushwakker.com/shop-2021/ and give it a try! Of course, you can continue to place your orders by calling us at 306-359-7276. We still love to hear your friendly voices. Thanks for your support everyone!
BUSHWAKKER “PHASE THREE NEW NORMAL” NOTES
We are now open regular hours. We are open Monday – Thursday from 11:00 AM – midnight. The kitchen closes at 10:30 PM and last call is at11:15 PM. On Fridays and Saturdays we are open from 11:00 AM until 1:00 AM. The kitchen is open until 11:30 PM and last call will be at 12:15 AM. We will open on Sundays in September. We are very appreciative of the considerable increase in the number of our takeout food orders. Call us at 306-359-7276 or visit our online ordering page at https://bushwakker.com/shop-2021/
Reservations are accepted and encouraged. We accept a limited number of reservations as late as 6:00 PM from Monday to Saturday. Call us at 306-359-7276 to secure your table. We are now also able to accommodate larger groups. Our two banquet rooms are also available for private parties. Call Kelly at 306-359-7276 to book either our main floor Arizona Room or basement Clubroom. Full seating at the bar has also resumed.
Please continue to practice safe health measures. Remain connected to one another and to us! In addition to this weekly newsletter, we are very active on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Check-in with us often as we navigate these continually evolving times together. Try to support local businesses whenever possible. Be vigilant in your resolve to protect yourselves which in turn will protect others.
COVID-19: ‘Surreal’ Joy as Restaurants and Bars Reopen
“As long as your place of business, your customers, are comfortable and calm and cool, be happy.”
Zak Vescera – Saskatoon Star Phoenix
Bar Manager Grant Frew stands in Bushwakker brew pub on Dewdney Avenue in Regina, Saskatchewan. PHOTO BY BRANDON HARDER /Regina Leader-Post
Grant Frew felt goosebumps move up his forearm as the lunch hour approached.
“Weird,” “surreal,” “wonderful,” and “Christmas in July” were just a few of the words he used to describe Bushwakker Brewpub in Regina opening at full capacity for the first time in 16 months, one of scores across Saskatchewan welcoming back eager crowds as the final COVID-19 health measures ended.
“We knew Phase 3 was coming but I was thinking, okay, what’s the catch?” said Frew, Bushwakker’s bar manager, who has worked at the venue for 30 years.
All restaurants, bars and other such establishments can operate at full capacity, thanks to tumbling COVID-19 caseloads driven down by vaccinations.
In Saskatoon, PiNK Bar and Lounge managing partner Joseph Jackson said people began lining up at 11 p.m. on Saturday, an hour and a minute before restrictions ended. He said the return to the dance floor — closed since March 2020 — was “ceremonial,” and “like homecoming.”
“It was like The Wizard of Oz when the munchkins come out, you know what I mean?” Jackson said with a laugh. “Ding dong, the witch is dead.”
But the end of restrictions is not the end of the pandemic, physically or fiscally. Restaurants spent much of the past year and a half fighting to keep staff on the payroll amid continued limits on seating and hours. Now, the challenge is finding enough employees to meet the demands of a full-scale operation, Frew said.
“Trying to find serving staff and kitchen staff is almost impossible.”
Down the street, Rebellion Brewing President and CEO Mark Heise said the craft taproom was operating with a “skeleton crew” of staff, some of whom are re-learning how to do their old jobs as customers once again fill seats. Until recently, Rebellion was paying to store tables and chairs it couldn’t use. Now those are once again returning.
Businesses interviewed for this story all acknowledged that COVID-19 continues to circulate in Saskatchewan, particularly among the roughly 27 per cent of people ages 12 and up who remain unvaccinated. Many staff continue to wear masks on the job, and operators acknowledged some patrons may do the same when they aren’t eating or drinking.
“In the back of our mind, we’re still leery of what the variants may bring,” Frew said.
The Delta variant, in particular, is believed to spread much more readily than the original strains of COVID-19, including to people who are unvaccinated or only partially vaccinated. Saskatchewan’s government has urged people to get fully vaccinated as soon as possible to keep that strain in check. Business owners hope that will happen.
“There’s a really delicate balance to walk when you’re running a business,” Jackson said.
Heise said Rebellion’s taproom tends to attract a “cool” crowd that he thinks will stay responsible, though he makes no judgements about venues erupting into revelry.
“As long as your place of business, your customers, are comfortable and calm and cool, be happy. It’s okay to have a little bit of happiness in our life. Do I think this is all over and done with? No, I don’t think so,” Heise said.
Saskatchewan’s health ministry reported 19 new cases of COVID-19 on Monday and 21 recoveries, moving the number of active cases down to 397.
Fifty-seven people were in hospital with COVID-19, including nine in intensive care.
TIME OUT
So there was this man in Bulgaria who drove trains for a living. He loved his job. Driving a train had been his dream ever since he was a child. He loved to make the train go as fast as possible. Unfortunately, one day he was a little too reckless and caused a crash. He made it out, but a single person died. Well, needless to say, he went to court over this incident. He was found guilty, and was sentenced to death by electrocution. When the day of the execution came, he requested a single banana as his last meal. After eating the banana, he was strapped into the electric chair. The switch was flown, sparks flew, and smoke filled the air – but nothing happened. The man was perfectly fine.
Well, at the time, there was an old Bulgarian law that said a failed execution was a sign of divine intervention, so the man was allowed to go free. Somehow, he managed to get his old job back driving the train. Having not learned his lesson at all, he went right back to driving the train with reckless abandon. Once again, he caused a train to crash, this time killing two people. The trial went much the same as the first, resulting in a sentence of execution. For his final meal, the man requested two bananas. After eating the bananas, he was strapped into the electric chair. The switch was thrown, sparks flew, smoke filled the room – and the man was once again unharmed.
Well, this of course meant that he was free to go. And once again, he somehow managed to get his old job back. To what should have been the surprise of no one, he crashed yet another train and killed three people. And so he once again found himself being sentenced to death. On the day of his execution, he requested his final meal: three bananas.
“You know what? No,” said the executioner. “I’ve had it with you and your stupid bananas and walking out of here unharmed. I’m not giving you a thing to eat; we’re strapping you in and doing this now.” Well, it was against protocol, but the man was strapped in to the electric chair without a last meal. The switch was pulled, sparks flew, smoke filled the room – and the man was still unharmed. The executioner was speechless.
The man looked at the executioner and said, “Oh, the bananas had nothing to do with it. I’m just a bad conductor.”
