George Politis retires after 33 years at The Duke on Queen Street East

By ALAN SHACKLETON

George Politis wrapped up his 33 years of owning The Duke tavern at Queen Street East and Leslie Street with a retirement party.

Pretty much the whole neighbourhood along with friends and supporters from across the city turned out for the event on a sunny late October afternoon at the tavern.

Both Politis and The Duke are now to be considered East Toronto legends.

Politis came to Canada from Greece at the age of 16. He was familiar with the hospitality business before as his father had owned a restaurant/bar in Sparta where he’d worked while growing up. Politis also worked for many years in the construction business in Canada prior to 1992, when he became the owner of what was then called The Duke of York Hotel and tavern.

The building’s history goes back to the 1870s when it first opened as a stagecoach stop known as The Morin House on the route in and out of Toronto. At that time, the stretch of Queen Street East that the building is on was called Kingston Road.
During its many years of operation, the tavern has had a reputation varying from respectable to notorious.

When Politis took ownership, the Duke of York tavern and hotel was definitely in one of its “notorious” modes with a heavy influence of rough characters making up the clientele.

Politis knew that was not a recipe for long term success. If the business was going to survive and start attracting customers from the neighbourhood, some changes were going to need to be made.

“It had a rep,” said Politis in an interview with Beach Metro Community News during his retirement celebration. “But we had to be a little bit careful as we just couldn’t say to people ‘You’re out of here.’ We had to do it little by little, you know what I mean.”

One of the ways The Duke made the space more appealing to neighbourhood residents, and less attractive for those looking to cause trouble or carry on dubious behaviour, was by changing the music and entertainment being presented.

“I love music, but I also did kind of change the music and bring in more live music,” said Politis. “There was a time, you know, when we could have made a lot more money just bringing in a DJ but it was something that had to be done.”

For some of the customers who had frequented the tavern before Politis took ownership, The Duke became not their scene anymore and they made the choice themselves to go elsewhere as opposed to being specifically told they were not welcome.

Along with supporting numerous local musicians, The Duke also became a fairly regular spot for Robbie Lane to perform. A Canadian music legend since the 1960s, his band Robbie Lane and The Disciples served as Ronnie Hawkins back-up band and then went to have a number of hits of their own. Lane was among the many guests at Politis’ retirement party at The Duke.

Also attending the retirement party was Toronto-Danforth Councillor Paula Fletcher who made a presentation congratulating Politis not only on his retirement but for the numerous contributions he has made to the community.

“I want to pay tribute to your many years of wonderful work here and making this a home for everybody,” said Fletcher to Politis.

“We all feel at home when we’re at The Duke … I’m looking up on the boards and seeing all the wonderful people that have been here – community members, artists,” she said.

“George we are so happy to have known you and so happy that you have done such great things for the community …George is well known as a kind and generous person in this community. Such a big heart. The biggest heart ever.”

Politis said that even though he is retiring, The Duke remains in good hands as ownership has passed to long-time staffers Stephen Silliker and Gwynne Moore.

“Things will still be good here,” he said.

Politis also wanted to thank The Duke’s many local customers over the last several decades for their support.

“I love my customers. My customers are not just my customers, they are my friends. The majority of them are.”

And his recent retirement celebration was one more reason for those customers and friends to gather at The Duke.

“This is a good excuse to have a party,” he said.