Jeff Manes: Highland man ‘linked’ to Polish deli-eatery

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Stan Stefanski, 43, of Highland, Ind., opened Big Frank’s Sausages, a Polish deli-restaurant, about seven months ago in the Roxana neighborhood of East Chicago, Ind. | Photo provided

Updated: March 13, 2012 8:02AM

“Kto pije i pali ten nie ma robali.” (The one who both smokes and drinks doesn’t get roundworms.)

— Polish proverb

I took Indianapolis Boulevard from Lowell to the Roxana neighborhood of East Chicago for my interview with Stan Stefanski, owner of Big Frank’s Sausage.

There were 39 stoplights. Beat me with a stick.

Stefanski, 43, is single and lives in the town where he grew up — Highland.

***

“I grew up the youngest out of six children,” Stefanski began. “We shared hand-me-down clothes and ate leftover food. We didn’t go out to eat. We led a simple life, but we were all happy.”

Was Mama Stefanski a good cook?

“Look at me; what do you think?”

Education?

“After graduating from Highland High School, I attended Indiana University and earned a bachelor’s degree in economics. I was working toward a master’s in business administration, but had to drop out because of financial problems. I have a minor in psychology and a minor in Slavic languages.”

Do you follow sports?

“I’m a (Green Bay) Packers fan, (Chicago) White Sox fan and an Indiana University fan in basketball. I played fast-pitch softball for 12 years when I was younger. I used to lift weights a lot, but I have back problems, so that’s over with.”

Stash, I was raised on Italian sausage.

“That’s all right; we sell Italian sausage. You can kick it up with hot giardinera. The butcher who makes my Polish is Italian, but he uses our formula. We also sell a meatball sub simmered in marinara; it’s topped with cheese.”

The football field at Highland High School is named after my mother’s first cousin, the late Ken “Zip” Sypult.

“Mr. Sypult was my gym teacher; you kinda talk like him.”

How long have you been open?

“Seven months, but we were doing festivals long before that.”

We?

“My brother, Frank, and I. Then, I came up with the idea of opening a deli-restaurant. Obviously we have the pierogis and sausages, but honestly, what keeps me in business are my sandwiches.

“My menu has expanded a lot; I even have hamburgers and hot dogs. We offer a Polish hamburger made with ground beef and pork. Our deli dog is in a firm casing that snaps when you bite into it.”

You also sell beer.

“Yeah, we recently got a beer-and-wine license. We’re remodeling; I’m finishing the bar on that end over there. An 82-year-old guy by the name of Ted Topor is helping me work on the bar; he’s a football legend from Highland. He played for the University of Michigan and the Detroit Lions. Ted’s surname in Polish means battle ax.

“This is gonna be more of a dining atmosphere now. I’ve got two TVs we’re gonna hook up, and I’m gonna do a little more different with the lights. It’s gonna be more like a restaurant, but we’re still gonna have the same products as before. I’m expanding more on the deli and the carryout aspect.”

What’s your No. 1 sandwich?

“Our biggest seller is Big Frank’s Belly Buster Sub; it’s piled high with ham, turkey, roast beef, corned beef and salami, with choice of condiments and cheeses.”

Wow! Stan, a few years ago, I interviewed the owners of the Cavalier Inn in north Hammond.

“Wally (Kasprzycki) is a real nice guy. We’re not competitors — he’s come in here; I go there. He helps me; I help him. I’m of Polish heritage, just like him.”

You don’t say.

“My parents came here from Poland in 1950 after World War II. My father was in forced labor for four years by the Germans. I’ve been to Poland about 10 times. I have a lot of relatives in Poland.”

Are you fluent in Polish?

“Oh, yeah.”

What did you do for a living before opening Big Frank’s Sausage?

“I worked at Menards in Schererville, Dolton (Ill.), Griffith and Hammond for 15 years. I was a plumbing department manager. Then, I was an assistant general manager and a front-office manager.”

Did you just get tired of it?

“Yeah.”

Yeah?

“I didn’t like the fact that you didn’t get compensated for what you did. It was just the way you got treated by upper management. They treated you like idiots; they treated you like you’re kids.

“Not to mention you’re dealin’ with the public. It seems like when you’re in a retail establishment, people are always in a bad mood and they take it out on you. The food establishment is different because people are excited to eat; they’re hungry. They’re in a good mood: ‘I’m hungry; I’m gonna eat somethin’.’ ”

So you decided to work for yourself.

“Yeah, but I had a good, close relationship with the people I worked with at Menards. You work with them for 50 hours a week and, after so many years, they’re like your family.

“The biggest thing for me, when I left, was leaving all the people I knew. Believe it or not, I actually cried my last day of work. It wasn’t the store-level management; it was the upper management. They just keep putting more pressure on you to do more and more.”

Let’s get back to Big Frank’s. What’s your favorite pierogi?

“Kraut and mushroom.”

I still say you guys ripped off the Italians; a pierogi is nothin’ but a ravioli.

“You know what a Polish taco is?”

What?

“A pierogi.”

The Taste of Poland portion of the menu looks delicious — the Warsaw Combo Plate, the Krakow Combo Plate and the Zakopane Combo plate. I probably mispronounced that one; forgive me.

“No, you pronounced Zakopane perfectly. It comes with fresh or smoked kielbasa, kraut, one golabki (stuffed cabbage) and two potato pancakes.”

You also sell Polish groceries.

“Yeah, canned or bottled items like beet salad with red paprika, Polish dill pickles, Polish Spam ... . We also have six kinds of sausage and Polish head cheese.”

Do you still do festivals?

“Oh, yeah. We do the Zest Fest in Highland, Pierogi Fest in Whiting, Labor Day Fest in Lowell, Taste of Crown Point, Taste of Polonia in Chicago ... . We have a meeting with the Chicago White Sox next month; they may be taking our Big Frank’s Polish and selling it at U.S. Cellular Field.

“We’ve sold as much as $10,000 worth of sausages and hot dogs in three days at Pierogi Fest.”

How do you fare in Lowell?

“Very well. This year, Labor Day Fest will expand to four days. Believe it or not, Lowell is one of my strongest fests. The Lowell people are the friendliest people out of all the festivals. That’s where we have the most fun. The Lowell Chamber of Commerce is very helpful.”

Catering?

“Yeah; we also deliver to places like BP.”

Employees?

“I employ five people; my sister-in-law, Sandra, helps out a lot.”

Sandy Stefanski is your sister-in-law? She’s an old friend of mine. Sandy has appeared in this column. She’s a great distance runner.

“Yeah, Sandy must have 100 trophies at home; she’s married to ‘Big Frank.’ ”

***

Before I left, I had Stefanski fix me a Big Frank’s Polish slathered in sauerkraut and onions, with a healthy dose of mustard and black pepper. Stash said it was on the house, but I explained that wouldn’t be ethical; I gladly paid the $4. Four bucks? The thing must have been more than a foot long. I washed it down with a cold bottle of Polish beer.

The sausage sandwich was to die for. But I kinda missed the taste of fennel; it’s an Italian thing.