A beloved North Central restaurant has closed its doors after a long cold snap and a series of homicides in and around the neighbourhood this January.

The Bannock House, which had been a fixture on Fifth Avenue for almost three years, closed Jan. 13.

Owner/operator Pamela Carpenter says she could have survived the cold snap or the increased crime rate, but not both at once. Before she closed, she was sometimes seeing fewer than 10 walk-in customers a day. With so few sales, she could not afford to keep the restaurant open.

"I finished out my week and I knew that Monday I couldn't come back," Carpenter said.

"Honestly, and I hate to say it, I didn't have enough money in my bank account to buy groceries to actually open up the restaurant."

Elizabeth Popowich of the Regina Police Services said the spike in violent crime is unprecedented in her time with the force.

"We've never in 23 years had that many homicides in a single month," she said.

Since the closure, Carpenter has been operating a catering business out of the restaurant space.

Pamela Carpenter prepares an order of bannock in the kitchen of The Bannock House on January 20, 2020. Though she is no longer serving customers at the restaurant, she continues to operate a catering business out of the space. (Julia Peterson)

She is also exploring the option of re-opening the restaurant elsewhere in the city, but said she is reluctant to leave the area where she has lived and raised her children.

"I'm always drawn back to this neighbourhood, this location, and I think this is where it needs to be," Carpenter said.

"You should have a restaurant. That's what makes a community."

North Central is considered a food desert. Even in the summer, buying a tomato at a local convenience store can cost three or four dollars. The Bannock House provided a much-needed option for residents to buy affordable food.

It was also a vibrant gathering place. As recently as December, customers spent hours at The Bannock House studying, talking and watching music videos on TV while eating soup, bannock and Indian tacos. Carpenter regularly made off-menu meals for customers with dietary restrictions and lined the walls with paintings and beadwork by local artists.

Dave Morris, a regular Bannock House customer, drinks his coffee near the end of a busy night in December, when the restaurant was still open. (Julia Peterson)

Murray Giesbrecht, executive director of the North Central Community Association, said losing an established local business is hard.

"There's always that emotional impact around morale, too," he said. "It's a feeling of loss."

Giesbrecht sees a path for small businesses to survive and thrive in North Central.

"This is a community of 10,000 people, so when you think about that, that's the size of a city like Weyburn or Estevan," Giesbrecht said. "There is a population here [and] there is a need here. It's a matter of working through some of the stigmas that exist, keeping an open mind and looking for an opportunity to serve."

As for Carpenter, she is still trying to keep her business going. Even though the restaurant is closed, she plans to have her food truck on the road by mid-April.