After their cafe was destroyed in the war, Ukrainian couple opens pierogies shop in Strathroy, Ont.
CBC News | Posted: July 30, 2023 10:00 AM | Last Updated: July 30, 2023
Handmade traditional pierogies and cabbage rolls are on the menu at new shop
A Ukrainian couple in Strathroy, Ont., is celebrating a dream come true.
After their cafe back in Kyiv was destroyed in the war, they've just opened the doors to a new storefront at 46 Front Street, bringing the taste of home to their new community — traditional Ukrianian pierogies and cabbage rolls.
"We make pierogies every day, maybe around 1000 pieces per day," said Liudmyla Potomkina. "We found a great location and opened the store."
Liudmyla runs Wow Pierogies Ukraine in their community, west of London, with her husband, Anatolii. They also sell smoothies and freshly squeezed juices at the shop.
They first launched the business before Christmas, and have since watched it grow, from selling pierogies out of a freezer in nearby Muggs Coffeebar and Clayroom, to now having a place to call their own in Canada.
In Kyiv, she ran the cafe for more than a decade, and it was open when Russia invaded in February 2022.
"When the war began, we lost the business in Kyiv," she said.
Their family arrived in Canada in June 2022 when she was pregnant, she said, after being forced to leave their home in Ukraine behind. Her baby is now 11 months old.
It was always their dream to open a family business, she said.
"We changed our life. We found a new home. We found a new life, and we started also a new business here in Canada," she said.
Sweet and savoury
From double cheddar potato to sauerkraut or sweet cherry, they make pierogies in a variety of sweet and savoury flavours.
The most popular is bacon potato cheddar, she said. But her favourite is the cherry.
"Every morning on Sunday my family started breakfast with cherry pierogies. This is very delicious like a dessert with sour cream, brown sugar and jam," she said. It's become popular with some clients in Strathroy too.
"We have a pierogies for dinner. We have a pierogies for dessert," she said.
There is a secret to such delicious pierogies — and it comes from her family.
"My grandma taught me about this recipe," she said. "We are very happy because we have all the family recipes."
But there's another element, too.
"We use the best farm ingredients," she said, noting she works with local farmers to source organic vegetables and beef.