Eight Days to 850 Seats at Expo 67

“On April 28, 1967, Expo opens its doors: 300,000 Montrealers and impatient tourists storm the site, armed with their “passport” complete with photo and souvenir pages. Over the next 184 days, more than fifty million visitors will pass through the turnstiles of Terre des Hommes. The crowds are so large that the food services “crack” and quickly become saturated. In insufficient numbers, the restaurants and snack bars are packed at all times. At mealtimes, people wait in line for between half an hour and an hour before being served. People grumble, discontent grows. It is an unforgivable logistical problem for an event of this scale. This is something that threatens to tarnish Expo’s shine. A solution must be found, and quickly, the organizers are aware of this. In desperation, Lucien Saulnier, Jean Drapeau’s right-hand man, contacts several companies that, at first glance, seem capable of quickly resolving the crisis on Notre-Dame Island. St-Hubert Bar-B-Q is one of them. The order is ambitious: serve 20,000 meals per day! René Léger remains unfazed: “I can do it without any problem and… within ten days!” This kind of gamble is right up his alley. When the opportunity to surpass himself arises, the water polo champion surfaces again with his slightly provocative drive to win. He also knows he can rely on a solid team. Had he not built it himself, in that combative spirit? Amazed by such flair, Mr. Saulnier grants the concession to the president of St-Hubert. Certainly, time is of the essence. Summer will soon be here, and the return of warm weather will only increase the flow of visitors. From then on, the situation could quickly become unmanageable. This time, René Léger is in a position of strength. This allows him to secure much more advantageous installation conditions than originally. In exchange, St-Hubert Bar-B-Q commits to building another restaurant—this one with two hundred and fifty seats—on the La Ronde site, behind the Aquarium. It will, moreover, be Jean-Pierre who manages it.”

“In the meantime, what an adventure! The agreement barely reached, all the trades are on site from day one of construction. Ironically, the rotisserie was chosen to be set up under the thematic pavilion “Man and His Work”… One could not have imagined better omens. The men work in shifts 24 hours a day in order to achieve the Expo’s feat: to set up in eight days a rotisserie with eight hundred and fifty seats with counter service, equipped with a full kitchen. On the ninth day, chicken is served. René Léger won his bet.”