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Leeson puts the ‘deli’ in delightful with Broadway reopening

After many hours of hard work, Broadway Deli has reopened under the management of chef Tyler Leeson.
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Brenda Scott and Tyler Leeson show off the Broadway Deli pigs new look after a busy first day at the Broadway Deli. Leeson took over the lease at the deli at the beginning of May and recently re-opened after closing for minor renovations. Jillian Trainor/Arrow Lakes News

After many hours of hard work, Broadway Deli has reopened under the management of chef Tyler Leeson.

Leeson took over the lease at the deli at the beginning of May, spending a good portion of the month making some minor renovations and tweaks to help make it his own.

One thing that’s changed at the deli is the timing for breakfast and lunch. Under the previous owners, breakfast was all day. Now it ends at 11 a.m.

“It’s been so busy at breakfast time that I haven’t really had the time to do everything that I want in the right time, so I’m kind of scrambling a little bit when we do the changeover from breakfast to lunch,” Leeson said. “I want to be able to put my effort into breakfast, and then put my effort into lunch.”

The deli now also has a selection of desserts, made by Brenda Scott, Leeson’s former co-worker from the Kingfisher Restaurant at Halcyon Hot Springs.

When he took over, he didn’t intend to take anyone from Kingfisher with him. He said he doesn’t like “stealing staff ” because it’s not really his thing and he thinks it’s bad form.

Because they worked so well together at Halcyon Hot Springs, he got the feeling she wouldn’t stay there very long after he had left. When he asked her to come with him on this new adventure, Scott was all for it.

“We have two different skill sets,” he said. “Brenda is a fantastic baker, and a great cook as well, but she has baking skills that I don’t have, and we compliment each other really well.”

Leeson hasn’t really had much time to go on social media since the opening, but he’s heard a positive reaction from the community.

“There’s been lots of local support, which is really nice,” he said. “It’s pretty heart-warming, I think I was in tears three times on the first day. People were bringing me cards and balloons, and flowers, there were lots of smiling faces too.”

Though the deli has just reopened, Leeson already has plans for things he would like to see happen long-term, including rebuilding the patio to include a small stage, and turning the empty lot behind it into a curing and smoking area so he can make his own sausages and cured meats.

No matter what things at the deli might change, it’s a change that’s going to happen naturally.

“It’s going to have to evolve into whatever it will evolve into,” Leeson concluded. “It depends on what people like, and what we like doing, and it will continue to grow forever, or at least as long as I’m here, which is hopefully a very long time.”