Downtown Holyoke has taken a large hit over the years. With the demise of Steiger’s and the move from downtown to strip malls, there seemed to be more boarded-up stores than open ones. While the growing Hispanic community has introduced some restaurants and markets — the San Juan Bakery, Cuba Supermarket and Fernandez Family Restaurant — one lunch place after another closed, most notably the Red Cat on High Street and the Artisan Cafe in Open Square. The downtown, in short, had a dearth of good local eateries.
Then I discovered Gramp’s (216 Lyman St., 534-1996, www.grampsholyoke.com). A Holyoke institution for 36 years, Gramp’s is remembered fondly by a generation that stopped by after church or Catholic school for soda, candy, ice cream and comic books. These days, the candy and comic books are gone, and in their place is a nostalgic spot for breakfast and lunch. The food is good, the service is friendly and there is always a parking space or two out front. What could be better?
The breakfast menu includes the usual omelets, eggs, waffles and pancakes, but interesting touches show up. There are sausages — chorizo, the Portuguese version, and kielbasa — as well as a bacon, cheese and tomato omelet. For lunch, you can get the familiar sandwiches, but a quick check of the specials includes homemade soups, hot dishes and Polish favorites. In fact, the menu devotes an entire page to Polish cuisine.
I started with the Polish Platter, figuring to try everything in one swoop. And a big swoop it was: three cheese pierogis, mashed potatoes sprinkled with some fresh snipped dill, bigos (a cabbage and kielbasa braise), a nice carrot and raisin salad with a couple of sliced cucumbers, a golumpki (stuffed cabbage) in a traditional light tomato sauce, and a link of grilled kielbasa. All for $9.25. I was hooked.
On another visit, the day’s special was homemade meat pierogis topped with onions and bacon. Apparently, that’s a traditional topping, but I hadn’t seen it before, and it’s a masterful touch. Plain pierogis call out for some kind of sauce or other extra. And what, except chocolate, is not enhanced by bacon? The dough is homemade and the meat filling is rich and flavorful.
Gramp’s is currently owned by Danuta and Krzysztof Wojcik. Each arrived in Boston in 1988 with just $10, all they were allowed to bring out of Poland. Both had been involved with the Solidarity movement and sought political asylum in the States. Mayor Ray Flynn helped them resettle in the Boston area, which is where they met. Kris had a degree from a culinary institute in Poland and had been cooking on passenger ships, so the move into restaurants was a natural. Kaz Zaluki, owner of the now-defunct Chopin Inn on Race Street in Holyoke, convinced them to move west to work for him, which they did. In 1994, Danuta opened a Polish delicatessen — called simply the Polish Deli — in the space next door to Gramp’s. In 2002, when owner Jim Hamel, whose family had run Gramp’s for 30-plus years, wanted to sell, Danuta sold the deli and bought Hamel’s business. She kept the name because, as she said, people know Gramp’s and why change something that works?
The green and white striped awning outside the restaurant is echoed inside by a smaller awning over what used to be the counter. With a stone arch leading to the back room, plenty of old wooden booths and flooring, and a large collection of vintage food tins, Coca-Cola paraphernalia and photos of some of the parties it’s catered, Gramp’s provides a trip back in time. The rear room was formerly a bakery, and both the oven and an old fire door remain. There is also an alleyway with tables and umbrellas for use in the warm months.
In addition to the Polish dishes on the menu, there are homemade specials, beef stroganoff or wiener schnitzel, and an array of soups. These include a bright-red Ukrainian beet borscht and a white borscht that begins with something like a rye sourdough starter and is filled with vegetables and kielbasa; it’s served with a piece of hard-boiled egg. There’s also a soup called chicken and pickles. “We make all our soups,” Danuta says, then adds, perhaps unnecessarily, “Chicken and pickles soup, you can’t buy that in a can.”
For dessert, there is ice cream plus daily specials. One day recently it was Black Forest Pie, a crust filled with a layer of dark chocolate and topped with cherry pie filling and whipped cream.
The deli is still next door and after lunch you might want to stop by for some baked goods or my personal favorite, natural fruit syrups. I mix the raspberry or cherry with sparkling water or pour them over ice cream. Danuta told me that you can add them to a fruit compote or mix them with hot water and sliced lemons and serve either hot or cold.
Breakfasts at Gramp’s range from $1.99 for an egg and toast to $6.95 for an onion, cheese and ham three-egg omelet. Lunch sandwiches are $3.75 for egg salad to $5.25 for roast beef. The Polish dishes are pricier, if three potato pancakes for $5.75 or two stuffed cabbage for $7.50 can be considered pricey. The restaurant doesn’t take credit cards.
Gramp’s is open from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesday to Friday and 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, with breakfast served until 11:30. It’s closed on Mondays.
Originally published Daily Hampshire Gazette, April 17, 2009.
