They wanted little fanfare; all they wanted was to focus on making sure the last meal they served customers was the same quality meal they have come to expect over the last six decades.
Graystones, an iconic fixture on Aurora’s culinary scene for 56 years, famed for its schnitzel and other Austrian-inspired delights, closed its doors for the last time on Dec. 12 after the Wiedemann family decided to retire.
On the one hand, the family felt it was time. On the other, it was a decision that might have been spurred by the difficulties experienced by all restaurants as a result of COVID-19. Regardless of the reasons, it was a “bittersweet” decision.
“We really enjoyed working and we have wonderful customers,” says the family of the restaurant that was founded in 1967 by Max and Anita Wiedemann, whose children carried on their legacy. “We have customers who brought their toddlers in, those toddlers became adults and brought their children in, we have customers who are third generation coming in here; it’s cute when they say things like, ‘My granddaughter wanted to come to The Graystones for their birthday dinner,’ and you can’t get a higher compliment than a child saying they want to come to your restaurant!”
Graystones began life not as a restaurant with fare inspired by the family’s Austrian roots. Rather, it was a rather more traditional diner that initially saw big clientele from the student body of nearby Dr. G.W. Williams Secondary School, which often come in for a burger and fries. It was a simple menu geared more towards Canadian tastes, but this shifted over the years.
They added an outdoor beer garden – a first for Aurora – and they have the distinction of being one of the first local restaurants to receive a cocktail licence. Another first was the installation of the first colour TV at a local restaurant so regular patrons could watch hockey games in all their technicolour glory.
Needless to say, Graystones has grown along with the community it has called home.
“You couldn’t serve alcohol without a 50-cent sandwich on the menu,” they recall. “On Sunday, you had to have a dollar meal or you weren’t allowed a beer. Laws have changed and we have gone through a few transitions.”
Graystones was also famed locally for having one of the first outdoor beer gardens in York Region. Very popular at the time, it was a seasonal venture, and the owners ultimately decided to expand their dining room with a focus on indoor dining.
Another focus was its transformation into a nightspot.
They introduced a disco in the 1970s, which proved popular with students at Seneca College’s King campus. As tastes changed, so did this space, and by the 1990s they had retooled their dance club space for the 30+ crowd.
“It was quite successful,” they say. “People came for a bite to eat and then go dancing.”
While the dance club brought in more business and new clientele, this venture was always secondary to the food.
From its inception, “homemade comfort food” was always the focus.
“We started first with the wiener schnitzel and then introduced others,” they say of the shift away from diner fare to what ultimately became one of their most popular signature items. “We always had our regular menu, but introduced a new dish to our customers [gradually] so they knew what it was. In the early 1980s, there wasn’t such a variety of different restaurants as there are now. When we said ‘wiener’ they assumed it was a hot dog, but nowadays everyone knows what it is.
“It has been through customers’ comments that we narrowed down the menu. If someone said it was ‘OK’ it went off the menu. If someone said they really enjoyed it, then it stayed. You just have to watch people as to whether they like something or not. You always give the best you can.”
And that was very much the focus in their final week.
“When COVID came, we never anticipated it would take so long. We were closed for about six or seven months, then we tried to reopen with just take-out and that took off. We kept our same menu, we just adjusted a couple of things in how we presented it to our customers. When we announced our retirement, all of a sudden we got swamped. We have even had customers coming in with tears in their eyes.
“Most of our customers were like our extended family. We have had customers who celebrated birthdays, anniversaries, and family gatherings with us every year. All we want to do is make sure the last person gets the same good meal as the first person did. We also hope we gave some people happy memories and mini-vacations over the years as we always say a nice dinner out is a mini-vacation.”
Brock Weir is a federally funded Local Journalism Initiative reporter at The Auroran
