Mashud Rolled It

When returning to Toronto, I'm always excited to immediately visit my regular food joints. It seems a bit silly since I'm away for only a few weeks. But this time, there was a big change. I went to get a roti at Vena's last week but noticed that the store was closed. Perhaps the owner was on an extended holiday break. Given the current COVID situation, I might too. No matter: I got my fix at Caribbean Queen. Her veggie roti was better in some ways since she'll use whatever was available that day so every visit was different. On the other hand, she recently switched from a delicate dhal puri shell to a thick, heavy, and doughy replacement that was definitely sub-par.

I tried Vena's again this week but it was still closed. Then I noticed a letter newly taped to the window. A local resident wrote that the owner of Vena's Mashud Siddique had passed away. It was quite a shock. I suspected that these affordable, mom-and-pop shops were likely to go (the owners of Pam's Roti have also been absent though their diner is still open), but I expected a retirement not a sudden death.

I consider myself Vena's most loyal customer. Some Torontonians may have sampled their food back in 1991 when they first opened on Queen St. But I doubt any have made it a weekly ritual like I have since 2003. I've been to the Bloordale location since the titular Vena herself still had her regular shift. I've never tipped though because I figured that the thousands of dollars I've spent outweighed any $2 pourboir done a handful of times. But with these tough conditions for local businesses, I had planned to kick in a few hundred dollars. I was rushing to wrap things up before my vacation to Ottawa so I missed my visit in late November. "OK," I thought, "instead of a Christmas present I'll make it a New Year's gift". I've expressed my appreciation to Mr. Siddique before but I really wanted to offer a more pragmatic thank-you. But now, a few weeks has turned a small delay into a lost chance.