Totul a inceput cand Partidul Tinerilor Turci au pornit Genocidul impotriva armenilor. Supravietuitorii famililor Sarkisian si Macighian, negustori de cafea din vechiul imperiu, iau calea pribegiei si ajung in Romania unde la Ramnicu-Valcea respectiv, Bucuresti pun bazele a doua magazine de “Coloniale” cum se numeau la vremea respectiva (aprox. anul 1912).
ENGLISH VERSION BELOW
Cafea “La Elefant” in Rm. Valcea a inceput intr-un chiosc de lemn de cativa metri patrati. Nici Kerop Sarkisian si nici sotia Serpuhi nu stiau o boaba romaneste. Dar vecinii romani si noii prietenii l-au ajutat sa intocmeasca formalitatile de lansare a businessului.
Abia s-au pus pe picioare si in 1915 avand experienta nefasta a pericolului armatei otomane care a intrat in Romania aliata, la izbucnirea primului razboi mondial Kerop si Serpuhi cu copilul de 4 ani, Ervant se refugiaza in Caucaz, la Nahicevan. Acolo deschid o ceainarie ce a mers destul de bine pana la revolutia din Octombrie 1917. Odata cu instalarea comunistilor, pleaca din nou, lasand in cimitirul local trei copii ucisi de febra tifoida. Cu Ervant care implinise 7 ani si Mardiros (nascut la Nahicevan in 1917 ) Kerop si Serpuhi au luat ce puteau duce in spinare si revin la Rm.Valcea in vechiul chiosc pastrat intact de primar (multe multumiri romanilor ce i-au ajutat si au dovedit solidaritate fata de ei).
Cumpatati cu cheltuielile,au reusit sa supravietuiasca si sa stranga suficienti bani pentru cumpararea unei pravalii pe strada General Praporgescu, in care au ramas pana in 1952 cand regimul comunist i-a gonit pierzand tot ce agonisisera. Ervant a terminat liceul, a venit la Bucuresti la facultatea de farmacie pe care a terminat-o si in 1937 deschide “Drogheria REGALA” la Valcea, alaturi de pravalia tatalui sau.
Hazar Macighian cu sotia Caiane au fugit si ei de asasinii turci si s-au refugiat la Bucuresti. “Cafea Ceylon” s-a infiintat pe Calea Grivitei (departe …la nr.225) in curtea casei, unde Hazar aducea in spate sacii cu cafea, unul cate unul din Gara de Nord. Prin 1924-25, dupa ce a strans ban cu ban, a inchiriat un magazin “in zona buna”, pe Str.Brezoianu, loc in care clientela formata din ziaristii dela redactia “Universul”, actori si cantareti renumiti, politicieni de vaza ai vremii cumparau cafea de cea mai buna calitate.
Fiica lor, Nousha de 19 ani, l-a cunoscut pe valceanul Ervant Sarkisian, s-au placut si in 1938 s-au casatorit. Un an mai tarziu se nastea micul Sarkis. In 1940 a venit mobilizarea si Ervant pleaca pe front in Rusia. Sarkis si Drogheria “Regala” au ramas pe seama tinerei mame ce, lipsita de experienta, se lupta cu noile conditii. La sfarsitul razboiului Ervant se intoarce, cu ajutorul lui Dumnezeu, dar in 1949 vine nationalizarea farmaciilor si comunistii pun lanturile pe usa.
Era in prag de Sf.Pasti si Drogheria avea de ridicat marfa sosita la gara. Regimul comunist i-a obligat sa achite din buzunar costul marfii pe care a trecut-o apoi in patrimoniul statului, ca dealtfel si noua bicicleta a micului Sarkis aflata in spatele magazinului. “De acum toate astea sunt bunurile poporului” au fost vorbele reprezentantului clasei muncitoare. El n-a uitat nici acum cat a plans, in zadar, dupa ea.
Constatand ca n-are sanse sa-si recapete pravalia, Ervant a plecat la Bucuresti si s-a angajat la o drogherie de stat pe str.Carol. Sotia Nousha l-a urmat la scurt timp si s-a angajat si ea la o alta drogherie de stat, pe strada Academiei. Cafea “Ceylon” trece in patrimoniul clasei muncitoare si Hazar este aruncat in strada starnind revolta celor din redactia “Universul”. Cafeaua era insa parte din cromozomii familiei. Ervant renunta la pozitia de diriginte al drogheriei si se angajeaza la un magazin ce prajea cafea vizavi de cinema Capitol pe blvd Elisabeta. Ajunge sef de magazin iar Nousha abandoneaza serviciul la drogheria de stat de pe str.Academiei si se angajeaza la acelasi magazin.
In 1952 Sarkis-Mirel se inscrie la Liceul Spiru Haret din Bucuresti. Dupa absolvire incearca sa intre la Medicina dar “originea nesanatoasa” ca fiu de chiabur il impiedica si in 1961 se hotaraste sa ia de unul singur drumul libertatii, lasand in urma toata familia. Ajunge un an mai tarziu in America si isi satisface stagiul militar in domeniul medical cel pe care il iubea atat de mult.
Dupa armata, Sarkis, isi castiga o paine incepand ca spalator de vase intr-un restaurant din Los Angeles,vinde aspiratoare din casa in casa pana cand norocul ii surade. Avand un talent deosebit in arta formarii colorantilor pentru mase plastice, talent descoperit accidental ajunge unul dintre putinii specialisti in domeniu din toata California.
Dar dragostea de Romania, de limba tarii in care s-a nascut si tot ce are mai bun tara natala il face sa ceara angajarea la postul de radio “Vocea Americii” din Washington D.C. Dupa examene dure este acceptat si in 1970 incepe noua cariera de ziarist. In acelasi an este trimis ca ghid la Bucuresti la primul targ international.
Apreciat de superiori este trimis si la a doua editie unde revine cu intreaga familie-sotia Haiganus, copiii, Richard si Anoush, parintii Ervant si Nousha. A urmat o lunga pauza, ani in care s-a concentrat pe informarea corecta a romanilor care il ascultau la Vocea Americii pe TRAIAN VALCEANU, pseudonim pe care l-a ales in amintirea locurilor iubite ale copilariei. Revine in Romania ca trimis special in 1985 si 1987. Evenimentele din Decembrie 1989 il prind la datorie in redactie unde lucreaza practic zi si noapte pregatind programele speciale cu stiri calde si comentarii la tema.
Nici nu s-au limpezit bine apele si soseste in tara, in Februarie 1990, sa vada cu ochii lui roadele evenimentelor din Decembrie. Intelegand ca lumea duce dorul dupa niste bucate gustoase impreuna cu mama lui, Nousha, pun bazele restaurantului terasa OK -DELI deschis in Aprilie 1992. pe str. Serban Petrescu nr. 34, langa sala Floreasca, in Bucuresti, ce era cunoscut mai mult ca “La Armeanca”. Loc de intalnire, la vremea aceea, pentru artisti, oameni de litere, politicieni si nu numai “OK-Deli” devine un reper discret.
In 1997 “cromozomii de cafea” din sange, striga si il imping pe Sarkis sa deschida un “magazin de prajit cafea” pe str. Radu Beller. Aduce cele mai bune si moderne utilaje de prajit si macinat cafea, necunoscute pana atunci in Romania.
Interesant de remarcat ca niciun angrosist respectabil din Occident nu era dispusa sa-i vanda cafea desi achita totul cu CASH. S-a lamurit de ce cand firma, de traditie ( 1903-anul infintarii), din Hamburg i-a explicat ca in Romania se cere numai cafea de calitate proasta si nu exista suficiente tone de vanzare. Sarkis i-a explicat angrosistului ca doreste sa cumpere numai cafea de prima calitate. Atunci – zambeste angrosistul – avem destula. Cate tone vrei? Patronii Sarkis si Nousha profita de faptul ca un angajat, Mihai, baiat tanar si cu creierul limpede, doreste sa invete si ii transmit acestuia cunostiintele necesare primilor pasi iar ca sa fie totul complet il aduce pe Magardici “Michi” Nersessian, fiul lui Baruir (o “legenda” armeneasca si un foarte bun roman) proprietarul firmei cu acelasi nume din New-York, pentru desavarsirea stiintei de a praji cafea in “traditie armeneasca”. De atunci “Sarkis Cafe” incearca sa se mentina ca o alternativa a produselor de calitate indoielnica si supermarketizate din acest domeniu. INSISTAND CA SORTURILE DE CAFEA VANDUTE IN MAGAZIN SA FIE DE PRIMA CALITATE SI NUMAI DE PRIMA CALITATE.
Informatii furnizate de dl. Mihai Honciuc – detinatorul magazinului de cafea – Sarkis Cafe – Piata Gemenii
ENGLISH VERSION
It all started when the Young Turks Party started the Genocide against the Armenians. The survivors of the Sarkisian and Macighian families, coffee merchants from the old empire, took the path of wandering and arrived in Romania, where in Ramnicu-Valcea, respectively, Bucharest they set up two “Colonial” shops, as they were called at the time (approx. 1912). “La Elefant” cafe in Rm. Valcea started in a wooden kiosk of several square meters. Neither Kerop Sarkisian nor his wife Serpuhi knew a Romanian grain. But his Romanian neighbors and new friends helped him prepare the formalities for launching the business. They barely got back on their feet and in 1915, having the unfortunate experience of the danger of the Ottoman army that entered allied Romania, at the outbreak of the first world war, Kerop and Serpuhi with their 4-year-old child, Ervant took refuge in the Caucasus, in Nahicevan. There they opened a tea shop that went quite well until the revolution of October 1917. With the installation of the communists, they left again, leaving three children killed by typhoid fever in the local cemetery. With Ervant who had turned 7 years old and Mardiros (born in Nahicevan in 1917) Kerop and Serpuhi took what they could carry and returned to Rm. Valcea in the old kiosk kept intact by the mayor (many thanks to the Romanians who helped them and proved solidarity towards them).
Coping with the expenses, they managed to survive and raise enough money to buy a property on General Praporgescu Street, where they stayed until 1952 when the communist regime chased them away, losing everything they had worked for. Ervant finished high school, came to Bucharest to the faculty of pharmacy, which he finished and in 1937 opened “Drogheria REGALA” in Valcea, next to his father’s shop. Hazar Macighian and his wife Caiane also fled from the Turkish assassins and took refuge in Bucharest. “Cafea Ceylon” was established on Calea Grivitei (far away…at no. 225) in the yard of the house, where Hazar brought back bags of coffee, one by one, from the North Station. In 1924-25, after saving money, he rented a shop “in the good area”, on Str. Brezoianu, a place where the clientele consisted of journalists from the “Universul” editorial office, famous actors and singers, prominent politicians back in the day they bought the best quality coffee. Their daughter, 19-year-old Nousha, met Ervant Sarkisian from Valcean, they liked each other and in 1938 they got married. A year later little Sarkis was born. In 1940, mobilization came and Ervant went to the front in Russia. Sarkis and Drogheria “Regala” were left to the young mother who, lacking experience, was struggling with the new conditions. At the end of the war Ervant returns, with God’s help, but in 1949 comes the nationalization of the pharmacies and the communists put the chains on the door.
It was on the eve of Easter and the grocery store had to pick up the goods that had arrived at the station. The communist regime forced them to pay out of pocket the cost of the goods, which then passed into the state’s heritage, as well as little Sarkis’s new bicycle located behind the store. “From now on, all these are the assets of the people” were the words of the representative of the working class. He has not forgotten even now how much he cried, in vain, for her. Realizing that he has no chance of regaining his dignity, Ervant left for Bucharest and got a job at a state drugstore on Carol Street. His wife Nousha followed shortly after and also got a job at another state drug store, on Academiei Street. “Ceylon” coffee passes into the heritage of the working class and Hazar is thrown into the street, sparking the revolt of the “Universul” editors. However, coffee was part of the family’s chromosomes. Ervant gives up his position as manager of the drugstore and works at a coffee roasting shop opposite the Capitol cinema on Elisabeta Blvd. The store manager arrives and Nousha abandons her job at the state drugstore on Academiei Street and works at the same store. In 1952, Sarkis-Mirel enrolled at Spiru Haret High School in Bucharest. After graduation, he tries to enter Medicine, but his “unhealthy origin” as the son of a bastard prevents him and in 1961 he decides to take the path of freedom by himself, leaving his whole family behind. He arrives in America a year later and completes his military internship in the medical field that he loved so much. After the army, Sarkis earns a living starting as a dishwasher in a restaurant in Los Angeles, selling vacuum cleaners from door to door until luck runs out. Having a special talent in the art of forming dyes for plastic masses, a talent discovered by accident, he becomes one of the few specialists in the field in all of California.
But his love for Romania, for the language of the country in which he was born and the best of his native country makes him ask for a job at the “Voice of America” radio station in Washington D.C. After tough exams, he is accepted and in 1970 he begins his new career as a journalist. In the same year, he is sent as a guide to Bucharest at the first international fair. Appreciated by his superiors, he is also sent to the second edition where he returns with the whole family – wife Haiganus, children, Richard and Anoush, parents Ervant and Nousha. A long break followed, years in which he focused on correctly informing the Romanians who listened to TRAIAN VALCEANU on Voice of America, a pseudonym he chose in memory of his beloved childhood places. He returned to Romania as a special envoy in 1985 and 1987. The events of December 1989 caught him on duty in the newsroom where he worked practically day and night preparing the special programs with hot news and comments on the topic. The waters did not clear up well and he arrived in the country in February 1990 to see with his own eyes the fruits of the events of December. Understanding that people are longing for some tasty dishes together with his mother, Nousha, they laid the foundations of the OK-DELI terrace restaurant opened in April 1992. on Serban Petrescu str. no. 34, near the Floreasca hall, in Bucharest, which was better known as “La Armeanca”. Meeting place, at that time, for artists, men of letters, politicians and not only “OK-Deli” becomes a discreet landmark. In 1997, the “coffee chromosomes” in the blood, shout and push Sarkis to open a “coffee roasting shop” on Radu Beller Street. It brings the best and most modern machines for roasting and grinding coffee, unknown until then in Romania.
It is interesting to note that no respectable wholesaler in the West was willing to sell him coffee even though he paid for everything in CASH. He found out why when the traditional company (founded in 1903) from Hamburg explained to him that in Romania only bad quality coffee is demanded and there are not enough tons for sale. Sarkis explained to the wholesaler that he only wanted to buy first quality coffee. Then – smiles the wholesaler – we have enough. How many tons do you want? The owners Sarkis and Nousha take advantage of the fact that an employee, Mihai, a young boy with a clear brain, wants to learn, and they give him the necessary knowledge for the first steps, and to make everything complete, they bring Magardici “Michi” Nersessian, the son of Baruir ( an Armenian “legend” and a very good Romanian) the owner of the company with the same name in New-York, for perfecting the science of roasting coffee in the “Armenian tradition”. Since then, “Sarkis Cafe” has been trying to maintain itself as an alternative to products of dubious quality and supermarket products in this field. INSISTING THAT THE SORTS OF COFFEE SOLD IN THE STORE BE OF FIRST QUALITY AND ONLY FIRST QUALITY. Information provided by Mr. Mihai Honciuc – owner of the coffee shop – Sarkis Cafe – Piata Gemenii
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