|
|
|
Berwyn, IL —
Autre Monde Cafe and Spirits derives its name from the French phrase for “other world.”
Compared to the rest of Roosevelt Road, it might as well be just that.
The décor at Autre Monde Cafe and Spirits is populated by repurposed wood and furniture. Much of the food is sourced from a southern Ohio farm owned by the chefs, while spices are grown in a greenhouse behind the restaurant.
The new restaurant, which started serving customers June 16, focuses on fresh, sustainable gourmet food. Its owners, couple John Aranza, 38, and Christine Tully Aranza, 41, said Autre Monde brings a new mindset to the Roosevelt Road corridor, where industrial-sized headquarters for Turano Bread and Buona Beef have taken up entire blocks of space.
Although opening a restaurant is a tenuous prospect, the pair is hopeful their unusual business can survive.
John and Christine already own one of Berwyn’s quirkiest businesses, Horrorbles sci-fi and horror movie memorabilia. Autre Monde will occupy the storefront next door.
“For us, we thought it was the perfect spot,” Christine said. “Whether you're an Oak Park or Berwyn resident, there really isn’t anything even close to this.”
Horrorbles, “John’s baby,” started as an Internet business seven years ago that later took off as a brick-and-mortar storefront. While it consumed much of John’s professional life the past five years, Christine split her time between helping at Horrorbles and working as a restaurant and marketing consultant.
Before finding success on Roosevelt Road, the couple met and fostered their relationship in the restaurant business.
Both spent years working at famed chef Tony Mantuano’s Cafe Spiaggia, widely regarded as one of Chicago’s finest restaruants, and learned to love the industry’s hectic pace. John spent more than eight years as the bar manager and assistant “sommelier” (or wine steward), while Christine was the assistant general manager. They met at the restaurant in 2000 and married seven years later.
With their own restaurant, the couple said they added a sense of social conscience and small business acumen, jumping feet first into their new venture.
“We’re not purely organic, local and sustainable, but we try to use common sense to determine what’s a practical and ethical way to run a restaurant,” Christine said. “We're really focused on a triple bottom line of social, financial and environmental responsibility.”
While the restaurant’s conscientious goals may sound high-minded, the managing staff also has been purposefully seeking a relaxed Mediterranean feel.
Autre Monde Cafe and Spirits derives its name from the French phrase for “other world.”
Compared to the rest of Roosevelt Road, it might as well be just that.
The décor at Autre Monde Cafe and Spirits is populated by repurposed wood and furniture. Much of the food is sourced from a southern Ohio farm owned by the chefs, while spices are grown in a greenhouse behind the restaurant.
The new restaurant, which started serving customers June 16, focuses on fresh, sustainable gourmet food. Its owners, couple John Aranza, 38, and Christine Tully Aranza, 41, said Autre Monde brings a new mindset to the Roosevelt Road corridor, where industrial-sized headquarters for Turano Bread and Buona Beef have taken up entire blocks of space.
Although opening a restaurant is a tenuous prospect, the pair is hopeful their unusual business can survive.
John and Christine already own one of Berwyn’s quirkiest businesses, Horrorbles sci-fi and horror movie memorabilia. Autre Monde will occupy the storefront next door.
“For us, we thought it was the perfect spot,” Christine said. “Whether you're an Oak Park or Berwyn resident, there really isn’t anything even close to this.”
Horrorbles, “John’s baby,” started as an Internet business seven years ago that later took off as a brick-and-mortar storefront. While it consumed much of John’s professional life the past five years, Christine split her time between helping at Horrorbles and working as a restaurant and marketing consultant.
Before finding success on Roosevelt Road, the couple met and fostered their relationship in the restaurant business.
Both spent years working at famed chef Tony Mantuano’s Cafe Spiaggia, widely regarded as one of Chicago’s finest restaruants, and learned to love the industry’s hectic pace. John spent more than eight years as the bar manager and assistant “sommelier” (or wine steward), while Christine was the assistant general manager. They met at the restaurant in 2000 and married seven years later.
With their own restaurant, the couple said they added a sense of social conscience and small business acumen, jumping feet first into their new venture.
“We’re not purely organic, local and sustainable, but we try to use common sense to determine what’s a practical and ethical way to run a restaurant,” Christine said. “We're really focused on a triple bottom line of social, financial and environmental responsibility.”
While the restaurant’s conscientious goals may sound high-minded, the managing staff also has been purposefully seeking a relaxed Mediterranean feel.
The menu was designed with small plates and paired wines in hopes that patrons will start with a quick bite and a drink in the late afternoon, but enjoy it so much they stay for dinner — and come back to do it again.
In the end, the restaurant’s staff hopes to combine fine dining with a neighborhood look and feel.
“It’s meant to be very relaxing, very accessible,” said Beth Partridge, Autre Monde’s executive chef. “The prices are very fair and we were very deliberate that we want people to be able to afford it and be able to come back if they want to.”
Another central tenet of the restaurant is a heartfelt craftsmanship for every aspect of the business — from farming the ingredients to pairing the meal with just the right beverage.
Christine called the small urban-style eatery “a dream” of hers, and will work to make the front of the house run smoothly. Partridge and boyfriend Dan Pancake will grow the ingredients on their Ohio farm and continually customize the menu based on the availablility of fresh produce.
Pancake and Partridge also met at Spiaggia and worked there at the same time as John and Christine.
“A lot of restaurants sign on a chef with a flashy name to design their menu just in the very beginning, but (Partridge and Pancake) are an integral part of our everyday team,” Christine said.
Meanwhile, her husband will start a wine program from scratch and train a new staff on the ins and outs of high-end bartending. As a bartender, he doesn't have a specialty drink — he picks cocktails based on the weather, the mood and what’s growing in the greenhouse.
The restaurant gives him a chance to bring that love to the public.
“Name the day and what’s growing,” John said.
While opening a new business is a tense and pressure-packed experience, the crew at Autre Monde Cafe seems at ease.
“I mean, this is the way we like to cook and eat,” Partridge said. “If we were at home together, this is how we would do it. It’s just natural for us.”
For John, who still runs Horrorbles every day, the restaurant is another chance to combine his favorite hobbies with an entrepreneurial spirit to make a living.
“Now I get to be back on the spirits and foodie side of it, and still have Horrorbles next door,” he said. “I’m luckier than most. Even though there’s more on the plate ... the neat thing is, I’m doing what I love every day — twofold.”
