A billboard that recently popped up to advertise a newer outpost of a Toronto coffee chain has the surrounding neighbourhood in a heated debate about the local slang used to refer to it.
Roncesvalles, named for the thoroughfare that defines its westernmost border, is often referred to as “Roncey” (or Roncy/Roncie, depending on how you want to spell it) by those familiar with it. It is also home to one of the latest cafes from Jimmy’s Coffee, which erected a sign promoting its Dundas Street and Roncesvalles Avenue location just this month.
“I ❤️ Jimmy’s Coffee Dundas & Roncy’s,” the poster above a car wash one major block over reads. Though simple, direct, and containing only a couple of words, it has managed to put some locals up in arms.
“Correct me if I’m wrong, but it shouldn’t say ‘Roncy’s,’ right?” someone asked on Reddit yesterday, sharing a photo of the new addition that they added “made me cringe.”
“I don’t know anybody that calls it ‘Roncy’s.’ If they did, it really shouldn’t have a possessive apostrophe, right?” they continued.
With over 300 upvotes and nearly 300 comments appearing on the post in a day’s time, it seems that quite a few others are also confused by the sign’s wording, and are continuing to argue about it in the comments.
“Agreed. Baffled by the ‘s,” one person wrote. “My parents were born and raised in the High Park area in the early 1900s… Not once, in over 75 years, did I ever hear them refer to Roncevalles in the plural form or denoting ownership,” another added. Still, another quoted Mean Girls, joking, “Stop trying to make Roncy’s happen. It’s not going to happen.”
Ok correct me if I’m wrong but it shouldn’t say “Roncy’s” right?
byu/CanadianTuxedos intoronto
While one person surmised that it may be some type of marketing idea, deliberately using the possessive to “get people in the neighbourhood to feel like it’s their place,” a few feel that the apostrophe might be a way of denoting that it is Dundas and Roncy’s Jimmy’s Coffee location, also purposely possessive.
Yet another person suggested it could be a forced conjunction of Roncesvalles, “like can’t for cannot: Roncy’s for Roncesvalles. Plus a y.” Others think it could be a variation of “Ronces,” said the same aloud, but misspelled, though only some said they use and have heard used that moniker.
“I don’t live there but have heard Roncy’s [from] peers,” one person chimed in, which another agreed with, saying Roncy’s is “how I would imagine [Ronces] spelled not seeing it on paper.”
“When i have heard it said I always thought it was Roncy’s vale, and people just say Roncy’s,” the discussion continued. “That’s how I have understood it to be spelled.”
Setting the record straight, the Jimmy’s team tells blogTO that the ‘s is not an error, nor a marketing tactic, nor anything meaning anything beyond the street and community name.
“We’ve always thought that ‘Roncy’s’ was a familiar shorthand for Roncesvalles — kind of like a friendly nickname among neighbours. It wasn’t intended as possessive, but more as a playful nod to how locals often refer to the area,” a representative clarified over email Thursday.
“We’re thrilled that the sign is sparking conversation, though; after all, bringing people together is what Jimmy’s is all about!” they added, saying that they hope customers enjoy seeing Jimmy’s being featured in the neighbourhood.
The Roncesvalles BIA did not respond to our request for comment on whether “Roncy’s” is indeed common usage. Jimmy’s management and whatever marketers were involved can at least take comfort in the fact that this is nowhere near the most a business has been roasted for a billboard in Toronto.
