Buddy's

By Charles Sercombe
A couple of Sundays ago, Buddy’s Pizzeria hosted a fundraiser in honor of longtime employee Irv Sosnick.

It sounds funny to me to say that Irv was an employee. Anyone who ever met Irv knew he was much more than a mere employee. I met Irv years ago when I was in a rock and roll band that played in Hamtramck for what seemed like every weekend.

We thought he was Buddy’s. We greeted Irv as “Mr. Buddy.” He rolled with it and laughed and cracked jokes with us and sat us down. I don’t know what it was about Irv but he is the kind of person who was instantly likeable. It was like you had known him forever and he’d been your loyal pal for years.
Employee.

Hardly. Irv embodied the spirit of Buddy’s, or at least the spirit of that folksy, kind-of-like-being-in-your-family’s-basement-but-it’s-really-a-restaurant-kind-of-place.
I’m going to hijack my own column here for a moment and talk about something all bands should avoid doing.

Don’t eat pizza before a gig.

Maybe this was our own “Spinal Tap,” stupid rock and roller moment, or moments. We were called the “Hysteric Narcotics,” don’t ask me why, and we would arrive at Paycheck’s, Lili’s or the Hamtramck Pub ridiculously early to set up. Maybe around 6 or 7 in the evening. I think our lead singer always wanted to get there early – probably so he could get out of his house.

We would pile into our van, arrive, set up our gear and then head to Buddy’s (and sometimes to mix it up, the old Shield’s). Pizza and a couple of pitchers of beer would be consumed and someone would then pay the bill (wasn’t me, I had no money).

We would then head back to the bar and wait … and wait ... and wait ... for the first band, maybe there was another band, and then finally, we played. During the whole evening we would always wonder why we felt so tired. It wasn’t until years later I figured it out: eating pizza and drinking beer will make you sleepy, so very sleepy.

Sheesh, stupid. But we always played well, no one was the wiser and it was a huge amount of fun.
Back to Irv.

One thing led to another and after college I landed a job here at The Citizen. Over the years I got to know Irv pretty well and we would have long talks at the restaurant. Irv didn’t live in Hamtramck but he was very interested in the goings-on of the city and the political players.

He was also a member of the Hamtramck Rotary Club.

Irv opened up his restaurant to Hamtramck and Hamtramckans and I know he helped a lot of people, either by getting them jobs or giving them encouraging words. He really was a big-hearted guy.

It was amazing to see him work the room even when he was in his late 80s. Irv was trim, about 6 feet or taller, was balding with a shock of white hair on the sides, and wore thick black eyeglass frames. As time went by he stooped over a bit.

If he didn’t know you, he wasted no time making sure you were no longer a stranger. He started to slow down a bit in his last years and was even getting wobbly on his feet. Considering all the different levels and stairs in the place, I got concerned about him falling down.

All that walking – for 29 years! – sure did keep him in shape. I often wondered how many miles a day he walked in that place.

Irv also opened his – oops, not his — the restaurant to Detroit and allowed a number of fundraisers to be held there or he’d put the Buddy’s name on baseball T-shirts, and did anything to support the Detroit police and fire departments. There were dozens of photos in the place with Irv posing with this or that person, and most notably former Mayor Dennis Archer whom he admired greatly.

So, to honor Irv, the “1st Annual Irv Sosnick Memorial” was held on Sept. 21. Proceeds went to his favorite charities. A big thanks goes out to the Hamtramck Rotary Club for letting me know about this.

Too bad Irv couldn’t be there because there was an awful lot of love in the room that day. Irv died a few months ago at the age of 93. I didn’t hear about it until several weeks ago, and I was deeply saddened that I’d never get to see him again, even though he had retired to be with his ailing wife over a year ago.

Buddy’s is still one of my favorite places to eat, but it doesn’t seem the same. I know, that’s a cliché.

What’s important is that a lot people loved Irv and appreciated what he did for the community and especially how he always made you feel welcome and if you were in a funk, he sure knew how to turn that upside down.

So, Irv, may your spirit forever rock on.