By Amy Van Veen (The Cascade) – Email
Date Posted: September 20, 2011
Print Edition: September 14, 2011
33771 Gosling Way
Abbotsford, BC V2S 3V2
604.746.4048
Prices under $5.99
Hours: Monday to Saturday 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Sunday 10 a.m. to 2
Open since August 2010, Vern O’Neill’s Home Cooking has been catering to a wide variety of Fraser Valleyans. From junior high to high school, college students to employees of other eateries in town, Vern attracts people from all over with his reputation for good food, good prices and that delicious sweet potato bun.
After selling his business in Saint John about fifteen years ago, Vern felt it was time for a change. “I noticed I wasn’t as sharp as I had been so I decided that the best thing to do was to work again, but this time doing something I love to do. Since I like talking to people and cooking, this was perfect for me.”
From the first customer he had, his restaurant mantra has always been the same: “wholesome food that’s priced right and tastes delicious.” The foodie sceptics of the world may wonder if such a thing is even conceivably possible, but if they have to ask that question, they’ve obviously never been down Gosling Way.
While we live in a world that’s all about getting as much as possible for as little as possible, it seems rare that a restaurant owner wouldn’t be tempted to take the same quantity over quality approach that so many others do. Vern O’Neill’s food is quite simply “home cooking at its best.”
“I ensure fresh ingredients,” he notes, “because I buy my eggs from a local farmer and they are free range birds. The ham comes from Karl’s Meats, the local butcher, and I make my buns fresh daily. I don’t deal with food wholesalers because they can’t tell me what parts of the chicken is in their chicken salad. My chicken salad is made fresh by me and I only use the breasts.” As someone who has always been wary of how much of the chicken salad is actually chicken, this was music to my ears.
The bun, though; that sweet potato bun that is made fresh every morning came about as surprisingly as other miraculous discoveries like Teflon and penicillin. “I was messin’ around in the kitchen and it was born. I thought, ‘I wonder if this would make a good breakfast sandwich,’ and it turned out it was an all-day sandwich, which I get praised for every day by anyone new to the store. They are brought there by people who were new just the day before.”
Don’t think this ever-growing popularity will get to his head, though. Despite any difficulties that arise with a new restaurant or the accolades he receives, the love of cooking and the joy of talking with people will always remain at the heart of Vern’s Home Cooking.
When asked if he had anything to recommend to a student foodie, or even just a hungry student, Vern suggests “everything on my menu.” Every square inch of it is “good wholesome food priced right.” The prices remain under six dollars, far surpassing any fast food in both quality of ingredients and cost to students. “If you buy one hot meal, you can buy another at half price to take home for dinner. All hot meals are $5.99 and another can be purchased for $2.99.” (Yes. That means lasagne or jambalaya or anything else that may catch your eye on his special of the day menu.)
“My biggest seller is the O’Neill sandwich. The best on the mainland. One sweet potato roll, toasted with cooked black forest ham, a fresh cooked egg, a slice of cheese, and mayo for $3.99. Guaranteed to satisfy you like nothing you have eaten before.” Vern O’Neill is a man who speaks the truth, so this claim is to be taken very seriously.
The O’Neill sandwich elicited incredulousness with one just bite, and the last bite came all too quickly. He does offer the O’Neill with beef for those who aren’t a fan of the ham, but, as he’s sure to tell you, the saltiness of the ham so perfectly complements the sweetness of the bun, that it’s a shame to mess with a good thing.
Do yourself a favour. Take five minutes between classes to drive down to Gosling Way just northeast of South Fraser Way and Montrose Ave, have a take-out sandwich you’ll never forget and grab a couple of dinners to savour later. You will not regret the sandwich, nor will you regret the company.
Vern sums it up best: “I am most proud of the diverse range of customers I have and how much they make me feel as if I am doing something incredible. In my 31 year insurance career, I have never felt as good as this business makes me feel.”
