June 9, 1944, Winnipeg Tribune
METRO reports that another Winnipeg institution is closing its doors. C. Kelekis' will soon join Shanghai and Wagon Wheel Lunch on the list of generations-old family-run restaurants that have closed in the 2010s.
If you're a fan of the nips and chips, you better get down there by January 30, 2013.
August 22, 1957, Winnipeg Free Press
Chris Kelekis was born in Turkey to Greek parents and came to Winnipeg in 1917 at the age of 28.
In 1931, Kelekis began selling chips from a converted Model-T Ford and in the mid-1940s the family, wife Magdalene, six daughters and one son, opened a opened a pair of restaurants. The first was at Main Street and Flora Avenue on June 10, 1944. In March 1945, Sophie Kelekis paid $1,687 for a lot at Main Street and Aberdeen Avenue on which they built the other.
The restaurants were nearly identical in appearance, offering only a small take out area and counter service.
In 1955, the family decided to concentrate at one location and expanded the Aberdeen location to include a dining room.
Chris Kelekis died on August 21, 1957 at the age of 68. Though all of his children worked at the restaurant at some point, it was his daughter Mary, (credited as the spark behind the creation of Folklorama), that took the reigns.
Related:
Kelekis says goodbye... Winnipeg Free Press
Last call for Winnipeg's iconic Kelekis' Diner Globe and Mail
Some Kelekis ads from their first years in business!
August 4, 1945, Winnipeg Free Press
October 13, 1945, Winnipeg Free Press
September 15, 1945, Winnipeg Free Press
September 29, 1945, Winnipeg Free Press
September 29, 1945, Winnipeg Free Press
November 12, 1955, Winnipeg Free Press
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