CANADA COURIER: The cook, the comic, the mother and her bingo buddies (06/15/97)

CANADA COURIER

by Christopher Guly

The cook, the comic, the mother and her bingo buddies

An estimated television viewing audience of half a million Canadians tunes in daily to watch Ken Kostick do what he himself watched as he grew up in Winnipeg's North End: prepare meals. Both his late father, Ed, and his 63-year-old mother, Helen (whose origins are English), spent a lot of time in the kitchen whipping up hearty meals.

Their influence whetted Mr. Kostick's career appetite to don his apron - though his menu these days is probably a bit more nutritious than some of the starchy dishes Mama made for him when he was a lad.

Still, Mrs. Kostick has made numerous guest appearances on her 44-year-old son's daily 30-minute program, "What's for Dinner?" - showing how to make holubtsi and pyrohy. In fact, the 63-year-old woman shares some of the show's weekly stack of mail that approaches the 3,000 letter mark.

Next March Mrs. Kostick plans to release her first cookbook, "Helen Kostick's Down Home Cooking," which is to feature recipes shared with her by some of her "bingo buddies" from the North End, where she still resides. At the same time, Mr. Kostick will release his third cookbook focusing on Mediterranean cuisine. Macmillan Canada, which published Mr. Kostick's other two - including this year's "Ken Kostick's Island Cookbook" - will release both Kostick books.

"We're going to duke it out next spring," jokes Mr. Kostick about competing with his mother over book sales. But the jab is mild compared to the playful insults he endures from his TV co-host, Mary Jo Eustace.

On almost every show, which airs three times a day on Global-TV and the specialty cable network, Life, Ms. Eustace, an actor and recording artist, takes jibes at her on-air TV mate. She calls him "girlie man"; Mr. Kostick is openly gay. And she calls him "little man"; Mr. Kostick is a few inches shorter than the 5-foot-9 Ms. Eustace. Mr. Kostick responds well, playing the foil to Ms. Eustace's comic turns. Their banter is completely unscripted and, if there are any repercussions to their on-air campiness, it's in some of the mail the show receives.

"Some people tell me to stop treating Ken so meanly," says Ms. Eustace, a former chef who's also working on her own cookbook, "By My Side," which will present recipes for, what else, side dishes.

In September, when "What's for Dinner" enters its third season, the two hosts promise television may never be the same. A sample: Ms. Eustace, dressed as Dorothy from the classic film, "The Wizard of Oz," kicks Mr. Kostick with her red pumps, telling him "This isn't Kansas." In another episode, they exchange wardrobes: Mr. Kostick wears Ms. Eustace's skirt and she wears his Levi's.

Of course, amid all this over-the-top schtick, the two are also offering viewers tips on how to make exciting and healthy meals. Some of the recipe hints come from the Kostick family home on Magnus Avenue in the North End. "I still do macaroni and cheese," says Mr. Kostick, who lives in Toronto's yuppie Beaches district.

Convincing people his palate is average, though, is another thing. Few, if any, of Mr. Kostick's friends invite him to dinner parties. "They usually take me to a restaurant because they worry that I might critique their meals," he says almost mournfully.

Wearing the cloak of celebrity makes going to these restaurants another matter. Constantly hounded by fans - one woman drove through a snowstorm just to meet Mr. Kostick in his log cabin hideaway at Winnipeg Beach north of his hometown - Canada's chief cook has to outmaneuver his TV following.

"I go to a handful of restaurants where no one will bother me," explains Mr. Kostick. "If somebody does come up to me, the people in the restaurant know me well enough to come up to them and tell them that I'm trying to enjoy my meal."

Should "What's for Dinner?" end up on U.S. television, which is Mr. Kostick's goal by year's end, he may have to concoct another strategy to maintain some semblance of anonymity off the TV set. That, however, could prove tougher than any flambé he's ever conjured in a kitchen.

"I'm very conscious of people's feelings and beliefs," says Mr. Kostick. "Ninety-nine percent of the people who come up to me are very nice - even if people come right up to my door. I think it's because I open myself to them and become their friend."

Regular viewers of his TV show know about his 32-year-old sister, Diane (some wonder when she's going to be married), his pair of boxers, Pearl and Ruby (who also receive mail) and, of course, his mother. "Fifty percent of our audience tune in just to be entertained," admits Mr. Kostick.

But while some may be splitting their sides when, following a commercial break, Mr. Kostick appears in the Scarlett O'Hara outfit Ms. Eustace was wearing earlier in the show, no doubt someone in North End Winnipeg is sitting there wondering when Mr. Kostick will offer a sequel to the Poached Salmon in Pineapple recipe. Maybe pineapple pyrohy?

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