Longview Lull: Little New York Bistro

Jamal Malih, Qwner and Chef of Little New York Bisto, Photo by Jeff Nelson

My wife and I went out for dinner a couple of days ago. We chose the Little New York Bistro in Longview, Alberta. From the outside, in the winter, this place just looks like a log cabin which strangely looks a bit out of place in Longview — there aren’t many log cabins in the village.

But we walked up — there was a place for a menu just beside the door but no menu. We opened the door and went in — the decor and atmosphere are western (horses, cowboys, indigenous carvings and mountains) mixed with northern Africa art (paintings) and artifacts (bowls). Later we learned that these were Moroccan in origin.

Jamal and his wife Majda are the owners. We met both of them and their son, Zayed. Zayed was our waiter for the evening — he knew the menu and he was attentive.

Now you may ask about the name: Why Little New York? Well, that is a long story but I’ll try to keep it short. Back when oil was first discovered (1914) in Turner Valley, some of the nearby towns acquired names based on cities from the US. Little Chicago is nearby but just a monument. Little New York became Longview after the Long brothers opened up a store. Their name combined with the view became…