Wendy and Glen Leitch of Patricia St. Deli. Terence J. Fougere/The Griff.

Glen and Wendy Leitch, owners of the Patricia Street Deli, discuss their move to Edmonton and moving on after tragedy.

After years of working as a sales representative for a food distribution company, owner Glen Leitch wanted something for himself. “I was a travelling sales rep for a food distributor, and I just wanted to do something for myself, and I just woke up one day and decided I’m gonna buy a small deli.” With years of experience, Glen felt ready to start his own business and serve his community. Along for the ride was his wife, Wendy Leitch. And now they are joined by their children and grandchildren. 

Tragedy struck when the Jasper fires destroyed the Patricia Street Deli, a community landmark that brought together residents of Jasper and visitors alike. When the fires struck, its residents were unsure of the town’s fate and whether they could continue living there. 

Now, almost two years since the fires, the deli has reopened in the province’s capital. The deli has opened two locations since their relocation, one in downtown Edmonton and a smaller stall in the home of the Griffins. 

Just weeks before the evacuation, Glen and Wendy celebrated their restaurant’s 20th anniversary on July 6, 2024. The milestone was a remarkable feat for this local restaurant that had stood strong for over two decades, built on hard work, resilience, and success. 

However, on July 24 of that year, the fires in Jasper had become too dangerous for residents to remain, and they were told they would have to evacuate the area. 

“When the fire did hit us on July 22nd, and they told all the firefighters, men and women, to leave Jasper on the 24th. That evening, we thought we would lose the entire town. We did in fact not know for a number of months whether we’d be able to go back, but we decided early on, that we were not there in Jasper anymore; that our time there was done,” Glen recalls. 

Wendy adds that, “we knew that both of us couldn’t start all over again, and had it not been for our two children, we wouldn’t be opening here.”  

Glen and Wendy’s family has played a massive role in helping the Patricia Street Deli become what it is today. When tragedy struck, they weren’t sure what the future held. However, their kids stepped in and reassured them that the fire was not the end. Wendy has high hopes for her children, believing their future looks bright and that they will soon take charge. 

No matter where our location is. Patricia Street Deli will always be Patricia Street Deli,”

Wendy Leitch, owner of Patricia St. Deli.

“We’re excited to be partnered with them and doing this, but we’re grateful that they’re doing a lot of the work.” Glen adds that they are incredibly proud of both their children and their granddaughter, Jenna, who started working at the deli when she was 13 years old and is now the general manager. “We’re very proud of the team, and the future is very much on their aspirations. We just support them and walk that journey with them,” says Glen. This is a family of resilience that has strived to do what they do best: making great food. 

“When Dustin and Jaimie were fourteen, they were working together in different restaurants growing up, and their dream was to own a restaurant together. And that dream has come to pass, and we’re very, very proud of them,” says Glen. Wendy adds that, “Glen and I bring wisdom and experience of working in the restaurant business, and they bring so much vitality, and the tech stuff. They both are very different and very gifted within themselves, and coming together with us, it’s a solid team.”

MacEwan University has consistently changed and experimented with the restaurants they bring onto campus.  The Patricia Street Deli is the newest of these installments, arriving for the second semester of the 2025-26 academic year. Located inside Building 6, this new restaurant offers students a variety of meals and drinks, along with a warm welcome. 

“The kids and Wendy, and I, we really have aspirations of being in Grant MacEwan full-time, having a full-time location there. That sentiment is from the organization there. Eventually, they want to see us there full-time,” said Glen. He added that nothing is set in stone, and a decision on the deli’s future on campus will be made later. Positive feedback from the MacEwan community can help inform a possible decision. “There’s been an expression from a couple of people that would love to have us full-time, but there’s nothing for sure. That takes a lot of planning on the part of the University to figure that out,” says Wendy.

Wendy and Glen have considered expanding their business into students’ lives for quite some time, and the opportunity to share their passions with students across many Edmonton institutions. “We would love to be in post-secondary, U of A, Grant MacEwan,” says Wendy. 

When it comes to the menu, Patricia Street Deli offers a variety of options to entice anyone’s appetite. For students in the trenches of exam season, it’s important to have breakfast and eat right. “We provide a very healthy menu, fresh buns and fresh vegetables, and we make our sauces in-house, and we cook the chicken, roast beef, and turkey in-house,” says Wendy. And what goes great with breakfast? Cookies that have been on the menu for over two decades, that are being served right now within MacEwan – you can thank Glen’s mother for that.  

When it comes to the new restaurant located on 111 St, it has always been Wendy’s dream to have more open space, especially given how much room they have now. “A gluten-free sandwich bar, and two nice big easy chairs with a fireplace,” Glen says. With the bigger space, it can now have more than before: “Our little wee shop in Jasper was 580 square feet, and we’ve grown overnight, it seems, to 2800 square feet.” This new place can seat up to forty people, and Wendy adds that new entertainment in the future is a possibility they are looking into. “We’re hoping to have live music once a month. When we opened, we had some local musicians come in and perform, and in February, we’re having a friend of ours from Jasper who’s a musician, he’s coming out to perform. And we hope to have lots of locals from Edmonton joining us, and I hope that it will be at least once a month.” Just like in Jasper, the environment is still as warm and welcoming, giving everyone that sense of family and belonging. 

After settling in Edmonton, are the Leitch’s considering further Alberta expansion? Wendy offers thoughtful reassurance about expanding. “That will mainly be the decision of the other two owners, our children, Dustin Florence and Jamie Kreklewetz,” says Wendy. Dustin and Jamie have extensive experience working alongside their parents and have developed many skills that can help them take on the mantle of this family legacy. They have been looking into new systems to improve and innovate for the future. “They plan to grow the business, and they’re setting up systems so that there’s that possibility. You’ve gotta have everything in place before you start looking at expanding,” says Wendy. 

Since Patricia Street Deli is no longer in Jasper, do they plan to rebrand and change the name to something local to Edmonton? Wendy and Glen were quick to state that the name is here to stay. “No, not ever, every shop we open. No matter where our location is. Patricia’s Street Deli will always be Patricia’s Street Deli, and all those who have been to Jasper know Patricia Street and that there was a Patricia’s Street Deli there.”