Where to take Mahfouz?
Matt Harrison
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Jamie Garner's one-of-a-kind café
photo: Ben Welland
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Ottawa's lack of inspiration inspires a new kind of café
The writer credited for helping to modernize Arabic literature as well as the recipient of the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1998, Naguib Mahfouz wrote much of his works at a small café in Khan el-Khalili, Cairo's most famous market. Finding El-Fishawi Café, or "Café of Mirrors," is a journey to the centre of a maze; centuries rush by as one travels through the market's labyrinth of stone. An unmarked alleyway suddenly becomes crowded with rows of tables and benches occupied by people sipping Turkish coffee and taking long, languid pulls from Egyptian water pipes, scenes which are reflected over and over again in the café's long row of mirrors. People aren't just drawn into El-Fishawi because of its fame or antiquity, but also because its personality - its uniqueness - enriches every patron who takes a pause in its virtual tapestry - patrons like Mahfouz.Now consider Ottawa. Having returned recently from a trip to Egypt, I wondered what café in this city has a similar personality, a similar uniqueness.
Sadly, the truth is that there aren't many. Since the beginning of the new millennium Ottawa's independent coffeehouses have been taken over by generic, cookie-cutter coffee chains. Even Bridgehead, a welcome alternative to the city's glut of Starbucks and Second Cups, all look, taste and sound roughly the same. So where's a guy like Mahfouz to go? How about Aunt Olive's?
"Ottawa is totally desperate for something like this. People are always moaning about how boring and conservative this
city is, and yet few people are taking the steps to do anything about it," says Jamie Garner, a 30-something mother, cook, waitress and seamstress who recently opened a one-of-a-kind café in Centretown.Located on Gilmour between Elgin and Metcalfe, Aunt Olive's might almost be missed if it weren't for women's panties hanging on the door. Garner admits that many of her new patrons discovered the place by accident.
"I have to usually suss out the customer before they come in because they usually stand frozen in the doorway with a quizzical look on their face. Most people don't grasp the concept right away," she laughs.
So what is Aunt Olive's? A café? A vintage thrift shop? A clothing store?
Porcelain puppies; mismatched tables, chairs and lamps with menus inside Harlequin romance novel covers; a worn but very comfortable-looking sofa; and modular ashtrays invite the customer to sit down to a cup of tea or coffee and a selection of home-cooked meals prepared daily by Garner - sandwich creations like prosciutto, pear and brie; or marinated eggplant with cucumbers, tomato and Dijon; quiches; Mediterranean and gnocchi apps; and soups that are always vegetarian.
But the jungle of clothing hanging in the back - jewellery, shoes, coats, dresses, belts and other vintage clothing (including men's clothes) reworked by Garner herself - beckons you to explore Aunt Olive's further.
Despite the confusion for some, Aunt Olive's combination of café and vintage clothing store has attracted a surprising amount of activity in the few months it's been open - there's even a Facebook group dedicated to the store. Without signage or advertising, the attention has come purely from word of mouth. "It only proves the people are desperate for places like this," she notes.
Starting up something as unique as Aunt Olive's wasn't as expensive as one might imagine. "That table was free, this table came from the garbage, I got my sinks at some salvage place in Hull, and I got an Ikea counter for $100 in the as-is section," she says.
"I encourage more people to do this. I'll come to your store; I'll eat your food and wear your clothes. I wouldn't consider it competition at all. The more the merrier," she adds laughing.
Aunt Olive's is located at 209 Gilmour (at Elgin), open 11 to 5 from Sunday to Tuesday, and 11 to 8 every other day, (613) 899-7719.
I made a note of the address of Aunt Olive's so that the next time i swing into town I do not have to resort to my spider-sense ( by the way how atrocious was the third installment..I mean by the time that Tobey Maguire cried for the third time I was also in tears ..for having wasted money on that overlong crap!...anyhow...) to find anything other that a SecondStarVanCoffeeHorton place in support of a local brew. It certainly sounds intriguing.
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Reuven De Souza
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{24 votes}
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Do you think if the Arab women were allowed to get an education that perhaps they would allow a book like this to be taught in the classroom? Why not? something to be proud of their culture. Not for men who makes laws to chop off your hand because you stole a piece of fruit. Serial Killers yes...fruit No. That is the difference between being a racist and culturalist.
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Ger Madden
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{2 votes}
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There's too much commercialism in the majority of café chains these days. I'm looking forward to checking out Aunt Olive's and relaxing over a cup of coffee in a relaxing atmosphere. Don't know about Cairo but, the description reminds me of a couple of great Montreal cafés such as Esperanza (sadly, no more) and others on Mt. Royal in the Plateau. Thanks for bringing it to my attention!
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Su Hi
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{5 votes}
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I don't know where you can realistically see a comparison between the old quarter of Cairo, its hidden cafes and a tucked away Ottawacafe. If the author likes to dream and imagine similar atmospheres, I should only hope the dream lasts. Cairo is a city of contradictions captured in Mafouz's tales and Ottawa doesn't come close. Will the mismatching of cafe decor, a worn retro look with hanging lingerie be the answer? Cafes such as this adorned Mount royal east of Papineau and may continue to do so but then again the some plateau cafe names are associated with friperie deals and bangles. But that is the plateau. I hope that Aunt Olive can resist contemporary pressures and keep the venue as is for those wanting a relaxing spot for the muse and wanting an alternative niche.
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Martin Dansky
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{6 votes}
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The term 'café' has lost all meaning today. Once upon a time it represented something special, a strange sort of relaxing ideal that you only glimpsed in the movies or novels, a place of mystery and retreat where you can be yourself and gather your thoughts. Today coffee houses and eateries slap on the word to give their place a sense of mystique. Hell, McDonald's has the McCafé. That ought to tell you something. Aunt Olive's sounds like just the sort of sweet spot to take back that word. I suppose that now that the Xpress has written this big article on it that it'll experience an unwanted rush of new curious patrons but hopefully even that won't dull this place's apparent charms.
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Pedro Eggers
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{4 votes}
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