A fond farewell
Iconic West Kildonan restaurant Blondie's closes doors
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This article was published 17/01/2022 (1644 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
It’s fair to say that Sandy Doyle has put her heart and soul into Blondie’s Burgers, and then some.
The 69-year-old owner of the iconic West Kildonan-based restaurant — which is located at 1969 Main St. near the southwest edge of Kildonan Park — closed her doors for the last time on Jan. 15, having spent more than three decades cooking for folks from, as it turned out by the end, all over the world.
“I’m closing because the past two years have really opened my eyes,” Doyle said, noting she first opened her doors on Sept. 4, 1990. “Life hasn’t been the same, and business hasn’t been the same. I wasn’t able to deal with my customers — who are like family — the same way when the restrictions when down to 25 and 50 per cent. This place is tiny, and things haven’t been the same. This is a really hard business, and I’ve devoted every minute of my life to it, so it’s time.”
As well as the exceptional circumstances created by the pandemic since March 2020, Doyle — who lives in West Kildonan — has lost her father and “badass” cat Machine Gun, who was 23, in recent times and these losses have also contributed to her decision to close the eatery and focus on the next chapter of her life.
At this stage, Doyle isn’t exactly sure what the future might entail, but she’d love to visit Ireland again — when travel restrictions allow. She’s also considering volunteering at an animal shelter, although the downside of that, she said, would be wanting to bring the animals home with her.
The interior of the restaurant is a bit like a time capsule, a homage to the different people and personalities who have visited through the years. Hundreds of photos of adorn the white-painted walls, serving as the most personal kind of wallpaper. These are accompanied by handwritten greetings and messages — in some cases, a simple signature or compliment about the food.
As well, there are lists of handwritten ‘rules’ to customers from management that bring a smile to one’s face.
Doyle isn’t sure when the emotion she feels about calling time on her culinary career will sink in.
“It hasn’t really hit me yet,” she said.
“Lots of people have been commenting on Facebook, and who knows? It must hit me when I hand the keys back, or it might hit me a week later. I know that when it does hit me, it’ll be really something. We have photos on the walls from everywhere, including Australia and the U.K., and I know it’s going to be difficult to say goodbye. We also have people driving in from Saskatchewan on Saturday, and one man will be flying in from Brandon, so we figure it’ll be costing him $300 for a burger.”
Blondie’s began life as a breakfast and lunch place, but for a number of reasons Doyle shifted to a burger-focused model and an afternoon and evening schedule.
Aside from burgers, the most recent menu also included hotdogs, sandwiches, salads and soups, variations of fries, and Doyle’s favourite milkshakes. Everything is made from scratch.
Then, there’s the legendary nine-pound burger, which she had to stop making recently because of the different elements involved, including the specialty buns. If anyone was able to get through all of it in less than two hours (and without visiting the washroom), they’d get it for free. History will show that only one person — a petite young woman, according to Doyle — completed the challenge.
“She was the only person to ever do it — and she did it in 45 minutes,” Doyle said.
As well as developing a local following through the years, the restaurant has also gained national and international attention, with Blondie’s being featured on shows such as You Gotta Eat Here and Get Stuffed, which further served to raise Doyle’s profile in food circles and on social media.
The native Carman, Man., said she had originally wanted to keep the restaurant open until the end of January, but brought the closing date forward because she didn’t want customers standing outside in the freezing cold for hours before she opened.
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