[passing on the love] the bistro on the boulevard

one of the most important things to me as a small business owner is to see other entrepreneurs and small businesses succeed! i firmly believe in the benefits of community and this belief exists in my professional life just as much as it does in my personal life!! and, i want to make sure that the world knows about the awesome people i get to know and work with as a part of my own small enterprise!! thus, i have created the "passing on the love" interview series, a monthly feature that introduces you to someone great and gives a little insight to who they are [and what their business can offer you]!! 

when i first arrived in st. stephen over five years ago i was a little disappointed that i would have to drive over an hour for a espresso based coffee, or that if i wanted to eat something that came close to gourmet i would have go to saint andrews or make it myself [the disappointment did not last too long once i discovered that we have a fantastic breakfast joint - carmen's diner!!]. so i was very, very happy when i heard that a bistro, complete with an espresso machine and beautiful decor, was opening in the spring of 2010!! the first food item i tried was the french  onion soup, it remains one of my favourite items!! back in august i sat down with diane ganong, owner of the bistro on the boulevard in st. stephen to chat about her vision for the bistro, what inspires her and the hope she has for her business and the community of charlotte county. if you have not yet paid a visit, i strongly encourage you to make it a priority!

when did the idea for a bistro in st. stephen come to mind?

i’ve been thinking of it for sometime. but last year in the winter i decided that if i was ever going to do it, i had better get on with it, so we opened last may [2010].

what was the journey like from conception to the birth of all this?

well i knew what i like in a place where i could sit and have coffee or have a nice meal. i thought we needed a place with nice ambiance and nice music and good service and an interesting selection for the menu. i just sort of used a lot of recipes that i liked in the first menu, and then we change it seasonally, so we change it three or four times a year now. now we get input from the staff but i still have a hand in deciding what the menu will be.

one thing i notice with the menu is that there is always fresh food [real food], there is nothing that would come in already prepared and this is reflected in the taste as well... this is in part because of the philosophy you have behind food, there is seems to be a health aspect...

yes. we decided not to have a deep fryer, there is lots of opportunity to have deep fried food in st. stephen, and charlotte county in general so we thought that was pretty well covered and would try to do something that was a little healthier by serving salads and sandwiches, that are probably fewer calories and cooked in such a way where there is not as much fat.

and then you have the option of gluten free items. can you talk about that a little?

yes, well, i am a celiac so i have eaten a lot of salads in my day because often that is all you can get in a restaurant so i thought well, the gluten free products are readily available now and there are a lot of people who really looking for gluten free now and it’s easy to do for us so we do that. and we try to accommodate other allergies as well, for example we have soy products.

so you mentioned that ambiance is important to you – something that is comfortable and relaxedy, and obviously something that is aesthetically beautiful... what inspired the look and what is the kind of experience you want people to have when they walk into this space?

well, i wanted it to be warm and relaxed, and yellow happens to be one of my favorite colours so that was a very easy decision. and, i have a friend who is very good at decorating so she came and helped me with the banners on the wall. and i contacted the decorator in st. stephen and she sat down with my for a while. and the building itself lends itself to the ambiance with the brick walls, and the fact that it is a heritage building i think helps. the hardwood floors are original, we had them refinished but they are the original factory floors. so i think the building echoes the stories of the people who worked here for years and years so i think it’s just neat to have a restaurant here.

what have you enjoyed most about running this bistro?

i have learned a lot in the last fifteen months because i have never done anything like this before! but i think meeting the customers, seeing people really enjoy themselves here really means a lot.  and we have the comment cards, which sometimes are not always good but we learn from those comments... but generally speaking i think people enjoy coming here and meeting their friends or having business meetings or having intimate dinners with their spouses or partners.

through that you’ve expressed is one of the things i love about this area, which is the relational aspect of doing life here. you basically said you love running the bistro because you get to meet new people and learn from them and provide a space for people to build relationship... i love that and it is so inspiring!

in terms of running a business and doing something that hasn’t been approached before, offering higher end food and coffees... what are your hopes?

well, there is still a lot of people who not even been in, and one person told me that they didn’t think they knew what anything on the menu was! but it’s really not that complex a menu – there are some terms like panini and such, but i think because of that some people have been unsure about coming in. and there are still some who don’t even know we offer take-out coffee... signage is a bit of an issue for us. but i hope that more people will come in and give it a try!!

last year you teamed up with st. croix theatre company and had a dinner theatre event here... what are some other unique ways you hope to have the bistro participate in the community life of st. stephen?

well we also did a dinner for hospice and i think we’ll do that again, and we have talked about doing some theme nights - last year we did a cuban night and would like to do more, and with summer winding down we’ll have more time to plan them. and maybe have something special on friday nights.

what are three things you would like st. stephen to know about you?

i grew up here and family is really important to me, and i love living in charlotte county.

i like to travel.

i like meeting people, having new experiences and i like a challenge!

love & sunshine,
shannon-may

featured in the photos were: lobster stuffed mushrooms caps, a mocha latte, happy employees and very regularly [satisfied] customer!!