Holiday In the Brewpub
On Sunday evening I received a call from my Dad, FaceTime of course (he’s never returning to single sensory phone conversations), which has left me feeling a residual warmth of holiday joy. He was sitting in the living room, lights dim behind him, with a wave of familiar music just audible. The voice of Nat King Cole is unmistakable, no matter how distorted, and is forever associated with Christmas for my family and I. O Tannenbaum was reaching its finish, which meant that my parents had called me just one track removed from The Christmas Song. While that’s my preferred song, I may not have been giving my Dad enough credit for his sense of timing. An ode to Christmas conifers of all kinds, including the one that was now on my phone, being decorated by the rest of my family.
Traditions have been facing adaptation, reimagination, and uprooting all throughout the year. It’s been difficult, but frequently rewarding. This year has forced the kind of reflection, and revaluation which births new experiences, and traditions; ones which we’ll be incorporating with the old in the future. Passed through my Dad, I’m prone to long fits of nostalgia, and knowing that I wouldn’t be decorating a tree with my family this year was upsetting. But, nostalgia is a far more powerful force than to only leave us longing.
Just seeing my family stringing lights, and treasured handmade ornaments, soundtracked by an album that gets dusted off once a year was enough to place me in years passed. I could feel my Dad’s hands under my arms as he lifted me close enough to place the star on the treetop. Sweet lemon, and warm icing sugar would drift through the kitchen as my Mom finished off the last of the holiday confections, made all the more special by their once annual appearance. I’m sure that I could even catch just the slightest passing trace of pine. The memories of lifelong traditions flooded back, all from a three minute video call.
These recreations are incomplete, sure, but they’re powerful nonetheless. Maybe it will be a tupperware of a family recipe dropped off at the porch, or a song looped a little too long in the apartment, but our nostalgic tokens have never been more important. Find them, lean on them, and allow them to transport you to the spaces we’ll be missing this holiday season.
With the chairs stacked, and the tables pushed aside for the past month, we’re having to engage in these same practices around the Brewpub. The Holiday season is my favourite time of year to be working at Eastbound, and I know Tara and Dave echo the sentiment. It’s when we can begin rolling out our own growing traditions; the ones that all of you have been so integral in creating. Those special beers and dishes that best resemble memories of long tables surrounded by our family and friends. Aromas and flavours which are specific enough to instantly fill you with the warmth of the season, while giving the space to let you drift to thoughts of your Grandmother’s unwritten recipes (the secrets of which she refuses to share).
It’s around this time of year that Tara looks forward to saving you all a few hours in the kitchen, so that you can best save your energy for whatever “the big one” looks like in your home. I personally enjoy meeting everyones’ family who have come to the city, reassuring parents that my knowing their children as regulars isn’t an indication of how much beer they’re drinking (replete with backpedaling). Just like you, Tara and the team in the kitchen have been adapting the traditions that we initially thought to be hard-set. What would have been Christmas Feastbound came and went with far fewer dishes, and empty bottles left astray (spare a few used to celebrate a shifts’ end), but brought Feastbound at Home. Not a precise recreation, but an adaptation brimming with the same love, and spirit of the in-person event.
This has been the foremost task for us: finding ways to adapt the experience of Eastbound to current circumstances. Throughout a year that has seen us expand our Retail, and Beer Shop to include Eastbound Market, introduce home delivery, and even have a street side patio, we’re looking to finish strong by providing the experiences that we can to spark your holiday memories, and fill your homes with love.
We know that nothing will perfectly replace being in the Brewpub on a cold, winter night. Having just brushed the snow off of your shoulders, before sidling up to the glow of the kitchen-bar, in search of the right balance of pints to make the walk home a little warmer, without being outright treacherous. Your friends and loved ones shuffled a little closer together, even though the cold has long since worn off. The music loud, and celebratory of well earned time off. But our sincerest hope is that you find the beer, meal, or combination of both that can immerse you in that memory, and put you right back into that seat. We’ll miss having you around for our long holiday nights, but that doesn’t mean you can’t have a little taste of Eastbound for yourself.
We wholeheartedly believe in the power of food and drink as a catalyst for new memories, and to immerse us in cherished ones; inviting them back for a visit. It’s why our Christmas Beer, no matter the year, can always take you to the table where you had the best Christmas cake of your life; and why Tara’s Christmas Feastbound always tastes like it was made by someone who loves you. Nostalgia doesn’t always require a major trigger, just enough to tip you back into those drowsy memories of time spent together. Time which we’ll have again soon.