Restaurant Goofy | Live on Putin

Julian B. Gautier
Local Journalism Initiative

Goofy owner Carl Boldak went on to describe the success of this family business in the heart of the Almaty landscape for 41 years. Despite the epidemic, the restaurant continues to attract customers with its legendary cuisine.

According to Carl Boldak, Goofy’s success depends on three main factors. “The company is built on one family, determined to be good, good and successful. Our employees are the pillars of our company. In fact, we have our valued clients,” he explained.

Some of them are long-term regulars, they are from scratch. Others came from all over Quebec. For the latter, goofy is a must in their stay.

Adaptation

However, the epidemic forced the company to adopt the same as thousands of other restaurants across the country. Since 1979, the restaurant has always been open 24 hours, seven days a week. The schedule is always the same.

“Last March, there weren’t many customers. It’s deserted on Avenue du Pont‌. We had to close for a month. Before the epidemic, it never happened, not even for five minutes or reconstructions! We were always open. We realized there was none, so we had to keep a night watchman until the locks were put on, ”Carl Boldak stressed.

He adds: “If we don’t have Putin, we will probably close. Currently, between 150 and 200 services are provided per day. 85% of our orders are putin’s, invoice at least one ”.

2021, the year of hope

However, Takeout and Poutins are extra revenue for Goofy. The absence and confinement of the dining room represents a 75% loss to the company.

“Another of our great strengths is the daily menus. However, with Telework, people are much less in the city than before. People are not in the offices, they are at home,” he said.

A big contrast to 2019, which is the most lucrative in Goofy history. Despite everything, Carl Boldak confirms that he does not need to go ahead with any layoffs, re-hiring some staff part-time.

He starts the new year with a good dose of positivism. The design of the outdoor terrace and the inclusion of new dishes in the menu is especially planned.

Beautiful lessons with humility

Carl Boldak was shocked when he received an official notice from someone other than the Walt Disney Company three years ago. The restaurant, which has always had a goofy character as its symbol, has come very close to changing its name.

Fortunately for the company, it has entered into a friendly agreement with the American company, thereby keeping its name. However, it had to cross over to its brand image.

But why did you choose the cartoon character as the symbol? Carl Boldak explains: “It was fashionable at the time to use popular cartoon characters as a restaurant name. No problem. With the Internet, Walt Disney became aware of the restaurant. They sent us an official notice ordering the removal of the name and logo ”.

The Goofy character image is copyrighted, but not the name. Alma Restaurant is the only restaurant in Quebec that has registered an appeal. “We have reached an agreement that we have the sole right to use the name Goofy in Quebec. This has made it possible to avoid prosecution and legal battles,” he said.

Yves Boldak Saga

In 2012, the restaurant made headlines, but for the wrong reasons. It was revealed during the day that the then health minister Yves Boldak was a shareholder in the restaurant.

“When my brother got into politics, people used to call us junk food even though we had daily menus. We were criticized for being near schools పాఠశాల Two girls even went unpaid and published their bill on Facebook, falsely claiming that the state subsidized us and that they had the right to do so. I’m not happy with that. I decided to buy all the shares to prevent this kind of thing from happening again, ”recalled Carl Boldak.

Rumors

Rumor has it in Alma recently that Goofy will be bought by another restaurant chain. Carl Boldack however wants to reject it. No question of sale.

At least not for now. He plans to retire in five years, but the legacy is already established as his mother, son, daughter, his cousin and wife are still behind the Goofy counter. The Boldak family wants to take the boat as far as possible.