Giant Perogy

In 1993, Glendon, a village in Alberta north of St. Paul, unveiled its roadside tribute to the perogy. The town’s Giant Perogy, complete with fork, stands 27 feet tall, weighs approximately 6,000 pounds, and is considered one of the “Giants of the Prairies,” a collection of massive sculptures that can be found across this geographic region of North America.

The fork was added to the sculpture so that people would have some idea as to what it was supposed to be. The first design, without the fork, left passersby baffled. “The first design wasn’t [with] a fork, but then people went by and they responded that it looked like a cow pie or something,” said Johnny Demienko, who dreamed up the sculpture when he worked as the town’s mayor and also a school bus driver.

Next to the Giant Perogy, which was constructed using steel and fiberglass, is Perogy Cafe. The only restaurant in this small town, Perogy Cafe serves Ukrainian and Chinese perogies. Related to the dumpling, the perogy is a staple of eastern European cuisine.