POPULAR OEB BREAKFAST CO. CRACKS THE DOWNTOWN MARKET
The big OEB initials jump off the facade at 222 5th Ave. S.W. Passersby stop and wonder what it means. Ontario Energy Board, maybe? Organization of Eagles and Beagles perhaps? Then the egg-shaped design of the letters indicates that it’s the new location of OEB Breakfast Co., the line-up-for-a-mile Edmonton Trail breakfast cafe.
Mauro Martina, founder of OEB, is in expansion mode. With over seven years of experience and almost 700,000 eggs cracked at the original OEB, he’s decided to grow. So he’s answered the call of his many fans to open a spot downtown serving his lengthy list of egg dishes (I count about 45 egg dishes on the menu). He took over the moribund kitchen of the former Malcolm’s and, with the help of Hribar Design Group, has put together a 50-seat cafe.
The new downtown OEB (587-352-3447) drips with yolky colours of yellow and white. Eggshaped and curled-waffle booths fill corners and egg-print vinyl covers the floor. An open kitchen fills one side of the space and two counters welcome guests — one for dine-in, the other for takeout. It’s a bright, inviting space, perfect for breakfast or lunch meetings and open daily ( yes, weekends too) from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Martina is making plans to add more OEBs, too, some in Calgary, others perhaps more far flung across Western Canada. His OEB flock of chickens, raised in Manitoba, is up to 1,900 birds and he’s ready to add more. They are free-run birds, fed to lay Omega 3 eggs.
He works closely with producers, including rabbit farmers (for a fine rabbit mortadella), Berkshire hog farmers, and Angus beef ranchers who raise their animals without hormones. The meats are processed by Paolini’s Meats using gluten-free recipes.
Helping set up the new downtown OEB was one of Calgary’s favourite — and most talented — chefs, Giuseppe (Joe) Di Gennaro, the former chef/owner of Capo and Borgo.
It’s been a long couple of years for Di Gennaro since Borgo closed. When the building that housed Borgo on 16th Avenue S.W. was sold, Di Gennaro’s lease was voided and he had to cease operations. (Parc Cafe & Brasserie currently operates there.) So Di Gennaro opted for a change of pace. A self-admitted snappy dresser, he took a job selling suits at Nordstrom and within weeks was managing the department. Then a call came from a friend who was opening a bed and breakfast in Tuscany and wanted Di Gennaro’s assistance in market- ing his new place to Canadians.
Di Gennaro flew to Italy and hopped into a taxi at the airport. A few minutes later the taxi was in a serious car accident and Di Gennaro spent the next threeand-a-half months in hospital with a broken jaw and a severely damaged leg. When he was finally released, he and wife Fiona and their kids shifted to Australia — her homeland — for recuperation. Over time, as he felt better, he would do the occasional shift in local restaurants. Then he was approached to help open a new restaurant and took the job. Three months later it was named the best new restaurant in Queensland. He felt he was back.
Calgary beckoned and the Di Gennaro family headed north. He took some consulting jobs here, helping open PZA Parlour as well as OEB. He’s now left the egg business behind and is looking for more challenges in the restaurant industry.
NEW BAKERIES OF THE SWEET AND SAVOURY KIND
If you like your breakfast foods in a pastry form, a couple of new bakeries have recently opened in Calgary.
Catherine Tetreault has opened Framboise Bakery Cafe at 1104 20th Ave. N.W. (403-210-0023) within shouting distance of her alma mater, SAIT. Working with her is another SAIT alumna, Tammy Crocker. Both are expert bakers — Tetreault was pastry chef at the Hyatt while Crocker was most recently head pastry chef at Model Milk and Pigeonhole.
The bakers’ focus is on pastries and cakes, with a wealth of brownies, cookies, squares, pretzels, tarts and danishes. There are plain and stuffed croissants plus brioche but no breads at Framboise. You grab-and-go at Framboise or take a seat and enjoy your pastry with a coffee while surrounded by the aroma of fresh baking.
Framboise is open Tuesday to Saturday from early morning to late afternoon.
Meanwhile in the Beltline, Sweet Relief has opened at 120 13th Avenue S.W. (587-894-0822). Trained at the Culinary Institute of America, chef-baker Deidre Lotecki spent the past few years whipping up pastries for the Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel and Deville Coffee. She also offered cakes on the side and now has a storefront behind Hotel Arts.
Lotecki focuses on cakes, macarons, cheesecakes, cookies and cupcakes and is highly skilled at preparing those special cakes for special occasions.
Sweet Relief is also open Tuesday through Saturday from early morning to late afternoon.
And if you like your pies savoury, YYCPizza week is underway now through next weekend. Over 50 local pizzerias have whipped up special pizzas for the festival in support of Calgary charities. For all the info, check out yycpizzaweek.com.