Iconic Thunderbird restaurant set to take flight once more

Ten months after closing its doors, an iconic Winnipeg restaurant is set to reopen this spring.

The Thunderbird Restaurant at 1970 McPhillips St. announced its return in a series of social media posts earlier this month, promising the same food and atmosphere it became known for after John Ginakes and his brothers, Jimmy and Perry, opened the doors in 1961.

A group of restaurateurs headed by Mahak Mahajan and former Johnny G’s owner John Giannakis is leasing the restaurant, said Peter Ginakes, John Ginakes’ son and a spokesperson for the family. John Ginakes, now an octogenarian, is also a shareholder in the enterprise.

One of the social media posts announcing the reopening garnered more than 240 comments, with many people expressing their appreciation for the restaurant and excitement at the thought of eating there again.

The feedback has been heartening, Peter Ginakes said on Friday.

“We served a lot of people over the (years),” he said. “There’s a lot of people that have memories of the place and I think that’s why it resonates that we’re bringing it back. People don’t like losing these things.”

“There’s a lot of people that have memories of the place and I think that’s why it resonates that we’re bringing it back. People don’t like losing these things.”

John operated the diner with his wife, Gloria, for decades. He was known for his signature Thunderburger, Greek salads and breakfast spreads.

Meanwhile, the restaurant’s towering, yellow-and-red, T-shaped signage became a local landmark.

John retired in 2013, and leased the space to tenants to keep the restaurant going. (The family kept possession of the building, which is now managed by Niata Enterprises, owned by Peter Ginakes.)

The tenants closed the restaurant last June for unspecified reasons. Ginakes said his family didn’t want to see the business end.

“We think that there (is) another chapter to be written about the Thunderbird.”

The family was approached by a number of people who were interested in taking over the restaurant, many of whom had one condition.

“A lot of them wouldn’t do it unless my dad was involved, unless he was there getting them back up and running and introducing them to the people that he knew and getting them on track with the same food that we used to put out,” Ginakes said. “So my dad, at 87, said yes.”

“It was a place where everybody was welcome. It didn’t matter if you’re wealthy, famous or an ordinary person.”

The new tenants are renovating the restaurant. John is assisting with the menu and teaching staff how to prepare the food.

“It’s going to be very similar to what we had it as,” Ginakes said. “It’s got a storied history, you know? … It was a place where everybody was welcome. It didn’t matter if you’re wealthy, famous or an ordinary person.”

The Thunderbird’s architecture, simple food and the memories people created there have made it a beloved diner, said Shaun Jeffrey, executive director and CEO of the Manitoba Restaurant & Foodservices Association.

“It’s absolutely amazing to see an icon like that reopen,” he said.

It’s positive news at a time when Canada’s restaurant industry is facing mounting financial pressure, Jeffrey added. “When local hospitality icons like the Giankes family reinitiate a restaurant like this, it does bring some great morale to the industry as a whole.”

The Thunderbird will reopen in three to four weeks, Ginakes said.

aaron.epp@freepress.mb.ca