Kevin Kowalczyk knows fish and chips. For more than a decade he managed one of Toronto’s most legendary fish and chip shops, Penrose, which operated on Mount Pleasant Road for 64 years. In August 2014 Kevin and his wife decided to start Sea Witch Fish & Chips, in their own St. Clair West neighbourhood.
Since opening, the couple has been working long hours but their hard work has paid off. Both Sea Witch’s business and reviews are excellent. Between his history with Penrose and his wife’s background running a pub, Kevin calls the old-time fish and chip venture “the logical next step.”
“Running a bar is a different game after having kids,” says Kevin while overseeing the deep fryer in his cozy St. Clair West restaurant. That’s the reason why the neighbourhood that the family calls home beckoned. “We live in Hillcrest, and doing business here sort of gives me that small-town feel,” he says. “The good thing is after closing, when the work is done, I can be home in 10 minutes watching Sunday Night Football.”