Just as last-minute preparations for lunch peak, a bell rings, everyone drops what they?re doing and assembles in the kitchen at Sokolowski?s University Inn for daily prayer.
Mary Balbier begins with the Sign of the Cross, then leads the crew in reciting the Lord?s Prayer, Hail Mary and Glory Be three times each, followed by the Morning Offering and Memorare, before invoking St. Michael the Archangel and listing any special intentions. Then it?s back to business as customers start streaming in for the lunch rush.
?It?s a daily ritual,? says Mary, who co-owns the restaurant with her brothers, Bernie and Mike Sokolowski. ?My mom started doing it every Tuesday years ago and we continue it every day. We also added more prayers.? One recent morning, the special intention was for a man who was killed when struck by a roller coaster at Cedar Point amusement park.
?Everyone stops what they?re doing and joins in the prayers,? she says. ?It?s a special time.? Even delivery drivers who come by during prayer time sometimes participate.
The whole Sokolowski family is spiritual, Mary says. ?We?re not embarrassed to profess our faith.? She points out the many religious pictures, statues and other items scattered around the landmark restaurant in Cleveland?s Tremont neighborhood. ?Father Jim O?Donnell of the Little Brothers and Sisters of the Holy Eucharist recently gave us this picture of Pope Francis. Many of our customers are Catholic, including quite a few priests and religious, many of whom are our dear friends.? A section of one dining room is known as the Pope?s Corner. It is decorated with symbols reflecting the family?s Polish heritage and the beloved Polish pope, St. John Paul II.
The family has deep roots in Tremont. Their grandparents began the business in 1923 as a bar. Their dad worked at the establishment and met their mom there. She was a nurse who moved to Cleveland and continued with her nursing career before joining the business. ?We were raised in the large apartment upstairs,? Mary says, adding the family belonged to nearby St. John Cantius Parish. ?We all attended St. John Cantius School, Cleveland Central Catholic High School and Otterbein College. Mike and I joined the business right after college. Bernie was a probation officer for a while and joined us after our dad died.?
Her parents expanded the business as a cafeteria-style restaurant, featuring many of her mother?s recipes. In addition to the many family members who help at the restaurant, there are a number of longtime employees, including one with 30 years? tenure.
Each day they mash 150-200 pounds of potatoes and prepare about 40 pounds of Salisbury steak, one of the most popular entrees. Other ethnic favorites like stuffed cabbage, Polish sausage, pierogis, homemade soups, pies and more also are featured menu items.
Because of its proximity to downtown Cleveland, it?s not unusual to see city workers, judges and lawyers mingling with neighborhood residents in the serving line and in the busy dining rooms of the 92-year-old establishment.
Family members and other employees work side by side, pitching in to prepare and serve food, help customers carry trays to their tables and to clean up after the restaurant closes. In addition to the three siblings, their children help out whenever possible.
Bernie, the oldest, and his wife, Mary, a nurse, belong to St. John Neuman Parish in Strongsville. The couple has four children, Bernie Jr., a graphic artist in Florida who does the restaurant?s website; Emily, a registered dietician, and her husband, Tim Gibbons, who also met at the restaurant and have two children; Diana, a teacher, and her husband, Rob Showalter; and Laura, a data analyst who lives in Chicago.
Mary also met her husband, Ron Balbier, an attorney, at the restaurant. They are St. John Cantius parishioners and have two children, Joseph, an attorney who plans to continue with the family business, and Catherine (Katie), a second-year pharmacy student who is married to Matthew Ellison, whom she met while attending Wheeling Jesuit University.
Mike and his wife, Pat, are parishioners at St. Angela in Fairview Park. They also have two children, George, who works for the Veterans Administration, and Sara, a senior at Ohio State University.
?Restaurant work is not easy. It?s long, hard and dirty, but you meet some marvelous people,? Mary says. ?We are called to serve God daily and a lot of ministries come from our business. You see people in need and gain an insight to help them. That?s how our mother was.?
She recounts the story of when Bernie?s son, Bernie Jr., was seriously injured in a cycling accident in Europe a few years ago. ?He was left for dead. So many people prayed for him that he had a miraculous healing through the hand of God. We?re convinced it was our mother wheeling and dealing with God,? she jokes, adding ?mom was so spiritual. She always prayed whenever we went anywhere.?
?You have to be thankful for what you have,? Mary says. ?We?re not millionaires, we work hard and the bills get paid. And God is at the center of it all.?
Story and photos by Carol Kovach
The above story can also be found in the e-version of Northeast Ohio Catholic>
