Free Times Café - Bringing Art, Music, Food and Culture to the Table

Published in Canada Food Service News

Where can you go to enjoy art exhibits, poetry readings, live music and authentic Jewish food? Simply walk down Toronto's trendy, culturally diverse College Street and you'll find Judy Pearly's Free Times Café. In an area where hot and happening restaurants have come and gone over the last two decades, this solo, female proprietor has managed to keep entertaining customers at Free Times Café for almost 24 years.

Her laid-back establishment brings art, food, music and culture to the table and gives customers plenty of reasons to come back. Inside the retro-style restaurant are comfortable booths with vintage furnishings, many which belonged to Judy's parents. Customers can relax in the homey atmosphere and view a colourful exhibit of art on the walls, showcasing the talents of students and community-based artists.

Meanwhile, the menu offers fun and multicultural choices. There's an eclectic mix of snacks and plates of home-made foods broken into cultural categories, Eh for Canadian, Oy for Jewish and Yofi for Middle Eastern menu selections. Items such as the vegetarian soup of the day are only 2.95, or a roast brisket of beef on rye with dill and choice of soup, coleslaw or fries costs 8.99. Plus, there are thrifty brunches and specials during the week. It's no wonder that the place draws students and grandparents alike from many ethnic backgrounds.

When it comes to live music and other events, the venue is equipped with a back room and a stage. It enables Free Times Café to provide live entertainment 7 days a week. This includes the Tuesday night open stage, a chance for aspiring singers, writers, stand-up comics and a variety of entertainers to get up and show their stuff in front of an audience. Other nights of the week there are singers and bands playing original Klezmer and Yiddish music, along with folk. Judy says she has now hosted 7,000 nights of music, more than 100 art exhibits and between 600 and 700 poetry readings. "So many people benefit from this business, not just the people who eat here, but poets, artists and musicians," says Judy. "It's more than just a restaurant, it's a cultural centre."

Artist Turned Restaurateur

It's no coincidence that Free Times Café welcomes creative talent and artsy types. The owner herself started out as an artist, not a chef. Judy didn't imagine that she would be running a restaurant, or that arts and food would be part of her future business. She graduated with a degree in fine arts from York University and taught art at the high school level. "I did this series of paintings and thought I could be an artist," says Judy. "But I didn't want to be a starving artist."

She did have another passion for cooking and eating. "I was brought up with a lot of food around," she says. The Toronto native, who grew up in a Jewish family near the Bathurst and Eglinton area, had lots of experience eating out at restaurants. Her father designed the menus. But she claims that going into the food industry was a total fluke. "One day my girlfriend said 'you love food, why don't you open a restaurant,'" says Judy. After a crack at the catering business, she bought a restaurant and opened Free Times Café on December 15, 1980.

Yet, her bold move from artist to restaurateur did not bring instant success. The food biz stirred up many challenges. "I've probably been bankrupt 3 times without being bankrupt," Judy says, "And I have had to work my way through all my problems." When she's asked what the toughest part has been, she replies, "It's overcoming your own negative attitude and staying positive."

Reinventing An Old Business

Even with a positive attitude, the restaurant owner has had to reinvent ways of attracting new customers. Judy was in business more than 10 years when she realized that her establishment should offer more Jewish food. She says, "I wanted more Jewish customers. I wanted to bring some Jewish into the place." When Judy's mother, Bella, passed away around the same time, it became even more important. She felt a strong desire to cook food the way she remembered it growing up.

Food that took Judy back to her childhood would have the same effect on customers. She started an authentic Jewish buffet brunch every Sunday at Free Times Café, called Bella Did You Eat Yet? The weekly event became hugely popular. Eight years later, the brunch is now legendary and crowded. So, if you're planning to go, call in advance to make reservations.

For 16.99 you can have all you can eat with traditional choices such as lox eggs & onions, salmon patties, or potato latkes, which are fried and can be dipped in sour cream or apple sauce. There are loads of salads, cheeses and sweets. Coffee and tea are also included in the sweet price.
It's great value for customers and very good for business. Judy says, "We can do more business in 4 hours on a busy Sunday brunch than all week in the back room." It also gives her great satisfaction to watch so many people eating! "I love seeing us go through tons of food," she says.

Judy Pearly continues to come up with new ideas and interesting ways to draw new clientele to Free Times Cafe. She says that the popular trend now is low fat foods. So, she's thinking about adding a new section to her menu called Judy's On A Diet. Judy laughs and says, "An old business has to keep reinventing itself."