A “Cosy” Character on Front Street

The Story of Louis Tsichlas

There was a man in Belleville who – despite his small stature – had the biggest heart of anyone I have ever had the pleasure of meeting. He greeted everyone that came into his restaurant with a warm welcome, a hearty handshake and a big smile! We knew him as Louis (Lou) Tsichlas and it is truly a pleasure and an honour to share a bit of his story with you.

Louis Emmanuel Tsichlas was born in July 1921 to Emmanuel and Julia Tsichlas who came from an island in Greece called Chios, situated in the Northern Aegean Sea. Louis was born in Alexandria, Egypt but moved with his family to Chios after his father finished working on construction sites in Egypt including the Suez Canal project.

Louis would tell the story of jumping off a Greek merchant ship in Halifax after World War II in 1945. He made his way to Quebec where he worked as a short order cook for his friend Bill Fortis at a restaurant attached to the Montreal Wax Museum. Bill introduced Louis to his sister, Stamos Fortis, who although was still living in Greece agreed to come to Montreal on a ship to meet (and eventually marry) the dashing young Louis Tsichlas in 1949.

The Diana Grill

In 1951, Lou bought the Diana Grill at 185 Front Street, near where Century Place is now located. Competition was tough with 9 Greek restaurants lining downtown Front Street but under Lou’s leadership, the upscale diner quickly evolved into a popular 24-hour restaurant, seating 100 customers at a time.

This is when I, as a little 8 year old girl, met Louis Tsichlas for the very first time. My mom, Hazel Guthrie, was a recently divorced mother of two and was hired by Louis. She soon became one of Diana Grill’s close knit family of servers. He would insist that my 4-year-old brother and I sit down for many late lunches with Mom and act like we are doing him a favour as he scurried around us saying “Eat! Eat! I cook too much food today.”

This family-friendly diner also catered to business people, summer tourists and an evening crowd coming for dinner before dances at the Army, Navy and Veterans Hall.

The Diana Grill was destroyed by a devastating fire and was demolished in the late 1950s and Lou moved his business a block North to a historic limestone building at 207 Front Street.

The Cosy Grill

The iconic 1832 building in the Downtown District was soon to be the home of athletes, politicians, celebrities, business people as well as a long lunchtime lineup of regular customers flocking to Lou’s new restaurant: The Cosy Grill.

Opening day quite literally started out with a blast when Lou ignited the pilot light in his new oven and the built up gas fumes blew open the doors! The explosion sent him flying six feet across the floor, his face as black as coal but he picked himself up. cleaned up in the bathroom and opened the doors to The Cosy Grill just a couple of hours later than expected.

Lou always greeted the customers at the front door with a pat on the back, a warm handshake and a reminder that ‘there’s room in the back’ just in case the lunch crowd thought the place was too full. Every time we entered the restaurant he would say in his charming accent, “Sit! Sit! How your Mama?”

Mano, Lou’s son, would tell the story of a police officer working night duty saying how surprised he was to see Lou leaving the restaurant at 2 a.m. and returning to work at 5:30 a.m. – cheerfully whistling!

Lou had some guests in high places including celebrities such as Pierre Trudeau, Bobby Hull, Walter Gretsky and Miss Canada. Not to mention local politicians like Mayor George Zegouras, Alderman Stu Meeks and Quinte MPP Hugh O’Neil all dropping by his restaurant for a meal or a coffee.

Growing up in downtown Belleville means The Diana Grill, The Cosy Grill and the Tsichlas’ became family to me. The Cosy is aptly named because of the comfortable homey feeling that would come over us as we entered the diner, put a dime in the tabletop juke box, hum along to a song, take a sip of the freshly brewed coffee and visit with Lou, Mano, Len, Stamos, George and a host of other quirky downtown characters. Sometimes we would talk but sometimes, we would just… sit.

My friendship with Louis and his wife, Stamo, began in 1951 at The Diana Grill, continued to The Cosy Grill and his kindness is still fresh in my mind today. He provided a job for my mom, lunches and chocolate milk for my brother and I, pop and lifesavers to my kids and chocolate bars to my grandkids. He was also known to hand out soup and crackers from time to time to locals who just needed some help. I am blessed to have shared five generations and 55 years of memories with this amazing man.

Lou sold the business in 1990 to his son, Mano Tsichlas and son-in-law, Len Kirk, but he would still come into the store regularly to have a coffee, visit with old friends, defend his beloved Montreal Canadiens wins and losses at great length and just check on ‘the boys’.

Lou was once quoted in The Intelligencer saying,  “I like people. I like kids. The Cosy is my home.”

 

Louis Emmanuel Tsichlas

1921- 2006

‘May your memory be eternal my wonderful larger than life friend’

 

Sharing Belleville Memories from the Cosy Grill

‘Ah, breakfast at The Cozy while dropping a dime in the table side Jukebox. Great memories. Hot chicken sandwich or the hot hamburger for lunch, sometimes on the same day! Never matched, never equaled.’

‘They sponsored our minor softball team for years in the late 60s. We won a few city championships and our team pictures were hung up behind the counter. I remember going there for celebration meals and always great food!’

‘Louis used to sponsor a minor softball team in the 60s named Cozy Grill Phillies. My Dad coached one of the champion teams and my brother played on it. Team pictures hung on the wall by the cash register for years.’

‘I remember sitting in the back booth with Louis and my Dad while they discussed the menu. Louis always gave me a big bowl of the soup of the day and packages of soda biscuits, whether I wanted it or not.’

‘I remember those days! My mouth still salivates when I think of a Cosy Burger covered in BBQ Sauce.’

‘Loved the food. Hot Hamburg Sandwich smothered in gravy and great fries too.’

‘My Nana would take me there when we had a girls shopping day! Louis would bring me to the candy counter and let me pick out my favourite chocolate bar. He was the sweetest man.’

‘Club house, veal cutlets, fries… We loved it as kids, teenagers and adults taking our kids and Louis still handed out treat choices for the kids. And the Juke boxes. We made them sing. Awesome people!’

‘I went there at age 14 to buy some fries for a snack after school and was embarrassed to be a nickel short. “Pay me next time,” Lou said.’

A Story From “The Four Long Haired Hippies at the Front Table”

I always thought Lou was a good guy. As an adult I would pop in for breakfast and especially lunch at least two to three times per week. Service was quick, and Lou was always smiling. But my favourite interaction with Lou was when I was a long haired teenager.

My friends and I never had a lot of money, but we would pop into The Cozy for lunch and play the little jukeboxes at the table and eat. There was usually four of us and we would order fries and gravy – the best fries and gravy I have ever had. But we would only order one plate of fries for four people. Lou would stare but even though we would stay there for one to two hours, he would let us get away with it.

Finally after about the 5th visit, Lou came over and complained that “this is a business, you can’t sit here for hours sharing one plate of fries and my good customers can’t sit.” He really looked sincere. When I told him that was all we could really afford he said, “Okay, I make a deal. Come here, get two fries and I get you drinks. No more than one hour.”

We said yes, he smiled and left and brought us four cokes for free. He believed we did not have lots of money, so he had some sympathy for us. When we came the next time, a back table was free, we ordered two fries and gravy and there was peace at The Cosy. He was a good and funny man. One part of the deal – though he never said it – was that we sit at the table at the back.

We would usually sit up front near the windows. We suspected that he did not want four long-haired hippies sitting at the front of the restaurant and scaring customers away. He never said it, but we believe that is what sealed the deal. Who knew that out of our group of four friends one would become a lawyer, one an engineer, one an architect and the other a contractor. Not bad for four downtown hippies that could not afford lunch. We liked and respected Lou a lot.