The Knotty Pine is much more than just a great spot for breakfast
At little more than 5 feet, Toula Kourtis walks around the Knotty Pine with a hot coffee pot in hand and an infectious smile. She chats with customers, serves breakfast right off the grill and tops off plain white mugs.
Toula is 81 years old. She’s been commuting to this diner at 295 Auburn Street in Newton, Massachusetts — with its familiar wood paneling — from her home in West Roxbury since she purchased the restaurant in 1987.
“I always knew I wanted to be an entrepreneur,” she tells me. For personal reasons, she became the breadwinner for her small family — caring for her husband, two boys and a girl. “I went looking for a place to own and found the Knotty Pine right away.”
Like countless others, I found the Knotty Pine when my children were young, and we had just moved to town. It seemed like the perfect place for little ones. A place where you were bound to bump into other neighborhood dads.
I quickly learned that this small diner is as well known for its breakfast as it is for the sports talk. For years now, I’ve come here to listen to fans emote, opine, pontificate, argue and debate. I watch them as they shake their heads or wave their hands and make epic points or speak profound truths about the games the night before.
Better than talk radio and warm as a family reunion, The Knotty Pine is where real fans go to eat breakfast.
Toula’s two sons Bill and Nick own and operate The Knotty today. They are the hard-working engine that makes the establishment hum. I asked Bill how it came to be a hive for sports talk.
“I think people just heard me and my brother talking about the games, and they just sort of joined in,” he replied.
All these years later, with my kids now out of college, I still find myself heading to The Knotty after a big win or crucial game. I’m also partial to the potatoes — I have no idea what they put in them or how they get them so crispy on the outside and soft and fluffy inside, but I know it’s an art.
So it was Monday morning after a thrilling Red Sox win and sweep of the Yankees. Many of us have understandably moved on from the Sox this year. World Cup Soccer has stolen our hearts with its tireless athletes and all the singing fans, I suppose. The Sox with a losing record just don’t stack up.
Until last night.
Watching Sonny Gray go seven innings with a no hitter, had me on the edge of my seat. I had a shared sense of real disappointment when the Yankee’s Amed Rosario hit a single in the eighth. But when the Sox rallied to win in the 10th, I was cheering as though it were 2004.
Here at The Knotty I’m perched beside Cheryl Kosmo, a longtime Sox fan, Fenway tour guide and season ticket holder.
“Sweeping the Yankees reminds you how fun it is when they are winning,” she says, smiling. “The Knotty is just a truly local place where you can stay longer and get your sports talk fix.”
Folks like Cheryl are part of the fabric of this place; they are the draw — like the potatoes or the omelet that looks as though it should feed a small family — or neighborhood. They are also fans of MassLive and our great reporters like Sean McAdam, Chris Cotillo and Chris Smith. How could I not love this crowd.
For the past few days, I’ve been thinking about what to write for my column before July, 4th. I’ve been watching documentaries about George Washington, listening to political podcasts and even re-familiarizing myself with the Federalist Papers.
I wanted to remind myself of the original impulses and virtues that animated our country from the get-go. In turn, I wanted to recall for readers what ties us together at our roots.
But then it hit me. The Knotty Pine — its patrons and its owners — represent so much of what actually makes us great. It is as much a community center as it is a breakfast spot. In its own small way, it’s a thumping heartbeat of an ever-resilient American Dream.
Maybe not the dream we were sold in fairy tales, but a dream come true, nonetheless.
“I’ll keep working here because I have the energy,” says Toula. “I’m 81 — almost 82.” And win or lose, we’ll keep coming back for another delicious breakfast.
Have a great weekend and Happy Birthday, America!
