 Comfort food goes deeper than just providing the bare essential calories to survive - it can provide emotional and physical comfort, connect us to our family roots, and build communities and relationships. Comfort food is made with love, care, tradition, and time. But what if you can't find the foods that feel like what your grandmother would make, and bring back those warm family memories? For Marian, her sister, and their families of Balkan Girls Grill, the answer to this was a no brainer - you make those cherished family recipes and share them with your local communities. After moving to Central Elgin from Toronto over six years ago, Marian, her sister, and their families were embraced by their new communities, and they loved the slower, small-town pace. But there was one thing they truly missed - the ethnic food scene and ingredients readily available in Toronto. This missing gap in the market became especially evident during COVID-19, when the family found themselves craving the comfort of Balkan food, but were unable to find the ingredients to make any dishes locally. “While we were not born in the Balkans, our family was, so these are centuries-old family recipes that we’ve Canadian-ized a little,” Marian explained. "My brother-in-law used to work in the ethnic food industry so we could easily access ingredients, but when our spices were dwindling [after moving to Central Elgin], we noticed the missing gap in the local market.” What initially began as an act of love and search for ingredients to make childhood dishes for their family, turned into trying out a couple of pop-up markets in 2024 at Wildflowers Farm. Although Marian and her family all work full-time jobs, they felt that it was worth trying. Food is an act of love and care, so if they were able to make some people feel connected to their family, roots, and nostalgia, it was a worthwhile project. “Last summer we were like, you know what, let’s try a couple markets…just for pure exploration. The very first week we did a late night market at Wildflowers Farm, and it was wild,” Marian said with a big smile. “It was so busy and we had such a great time, and we were like you know what, yeah we could do this again.” After that, Balkan Girls Grill began to do once a month pop-ups to continue connecting with people and sharing their childhood foods with the local communities; and they began to build up a little following. “It’s been a more organic and slow kind of process,’ Marian explained. “We have little kids in our family and all work full time during the week, so it’s a lot. Balkan food is often barbecued, so it can be a bit seasonal.” They did some soups as well (and got noticed for them), but their main passion still comes from their seasonal grilled offerings.  This year Balkan Girls Grill has teamed up with Seed Confections Innovation Kitchen to offer ready-to-grill meal kits for pickup, as well as attending Caps Off Brewing on Saturday May 24, and the Wildflower’s Farm Market After Dark series again. All of their food (ready-to-grill and ready-to-eat) is homemade with love, often requiring multiple days of marinating and planning. The girls take full advantage of the incredible local farms and producers, and source local produce, meats, and ingredients whenever possible. Produce comes from Peters Produce, and Conquer Farms; meats come from Johnson Meats, and other ingredients like beer, hot sauce, maple syrup, and honey, all come from local farmers and producers (many which can also be found at the Horton Farmers’ Market). “We’re very lucky to have those resources at our disposal, especially coming from a metropolitan area,” Marian said with a proud smile. “It makes a huge difference, we’ve never had better tasting ingredients. We feel fortunate that we have access to local vendors and producers, and they have been so supportive and excited to partner with us”. In addition to filling in the market gap for Balkan foods, Marian and her family also want to create approachable ethnic foods for St. Thomas and Elgin County to try. The recipes all have some heritage woven into them; passed on from grandmothers, mothers, cousins, and other strong matriarchs from Southeastern Europe. Many dishes you have probably had or tried in passing; things like goulash, stews, grilled meats, and different burgers. “The food is comforting, hearty, and meat heavy. The whole process of making it and grilling it, it just feels like a hug you know?" said Marian. "We’re trying to share that vibe with people; bring something fresh and new, but not scary.” The idea for ready-to-grill kits comes from a similar philosophy, of making Balkan food that is simple and approachable; not to mention homemade with only the finest ingredients. “If we can help you get a meal, go home, and not have to worry about the preparation, marination, or fermentation, then we've taken something off your plate,” Marian said with a smile. “We are in love with what we are doing. My sister says the kitchen is her safe space for mindful meditation and I love that. We want to give people comfort in a meal, we want to give back love to the communities that have embraced us.” The entire family has said that moving to Central Elgin has been the best thing they’ve ever done, and that they (and their food) have been embraced and welcomed by their local communities, who have restored their faith in people. “We just want to hug you Central Elgin, because you hugged us," said Marian. "We want to give back to the community.” So far, Balkan Girls Grill has been openly embraced by their communities, and they have been able to provide their offering in a geographical area where the closest Balkan foods are in and around Woodstock, Kitchener, and Hamilton. Some of their favourite offerings include cevapi (skinless, hand rolled pork and beef sausages, barbequed and put into handmade flatbread with white onions and spreads), gibanica (savory cheese in phyllo pastry), fresh tomato and cucumber salads, kranske sausages, and Balkan burgers. “Really we’re just trying to break a barrier that people might have a preconceived notion of ethnic foods. Ethnic foods don’t have to be scary or intimidating. Our food isn’t scary, and we’re not scary. You’d never know it but we are actually quite shy!” Marian said with a laugh. We are so thankful to have incredible people like Marian and her family in St. Thomas and Elgin County, and even more grateful for their passion, care, and willingness to share their family traditions, recipes, love, and care, through fresh, delicious comfort food and ready-to-grill meal kits. Our community is truly amazing; from embracing change and new comers, to supporting small businesses and caring for our communities. Balkan Girls Grill is excited for their upcoming 2025 market and pop-up season, and we cannot wait to try some of their delicious foods and see their smiling faces. Be sure to follow Balkan Girls Grill for continued updates and information on additional markets and pop-ups! If you go
1 Comment
Balkan Girls Grill
5/27/2025 05:41:40 pm
Thank you for the lovely article and also for all the work you do to help small businesses. Many of you wear several hats, and you do it well! Leave a Reply. |
