our story

It was in the 1960s when the matriarchal Lina Aragon made the choice to leave her friends, family and the comforts of Manila for a new life and opportunities in Canada.. Big River Hospital in Saskatchewan, to be precise. At the same time the grandson of German immigrant, Gustav Johann Garbe was working toward being the first son to leave the fertile farmland of Churchbridge for the halls of the U of S School of Medicine with the help of the first ever IMC Potash Scholarship program. Both forged with courage, perseverance, strength and spirit they met and began their journey together. Building a family with two sons, the boys grew up in their parents footsteps to learned drive, intensity and passion.. as well as an affinity for the Green & White!

Soon enough, the nomadic genetics brought them away from the prairies, Eastward creating new paths in Southern Ontario. James entered the financial sector while John found his path in hospitality. After some time at both Ryerson and McMaster Universities, John met his life partner Susan and the next generation began in Hamilton. As John graduated from McMaster and Susan from Mohawk, their two daughters made the scene.. Aysia and Cassidy.

The Snooty Fox, then McMaster’s newest off-campus pub, proved to be the first Aragon Restaurant and foundation for the future. Franchising efforts saw locations open in Port Carling, Fredericton and London while new concept development saw the very early adopter vegetarian restaurant Edible Roots and its transformation into SoCal inspired, iL Fiasco.

After a family visit to Blue Mountain the opportunity to engage with Intrawest at their new village struck a chord. A whimsical “thrown your hat in the ring” turned into a year long process that saw Aragon and the Kaytoo concept as the ultimate choice of over 35 other operators. With that, the Garbe family made plans to move to Blue Mountain and began the next chapter of the adventure!

The girls grew up going to school at Mountain View - go mounties and playing on the local rep basketball team, the trail blazers, GO blazers!! Aragon restaurants was always happy to help sponsor their local sports teams and organizations, always ensuring we give back to the community and do what we can to help build our wonderful town.

Kaytoo was the catalyst that opened the door, allowing Aragon to follow ideas and make dreams come true.. Next was Brgrz, one season of Kaytoo on the Lagoon, Hudson and ultimately Gustav Chophouse, named in honour of John’s Great Great Grandfather.

With the arrival of Covid, the hospitality industry was devastated with many restaurants closing their doors to never open again. A number of friends came to the table, looking for ways to keep hopes and dreams alive amid the pandemic.

25 years later, aragon restaurants continue to honour Lina’s name and the courage she showed as a 19-year-old chasing a brighter future. Her story lives on in every space we create, every meal we share, and every connection we foster in the community we’re proud to call home.