Breakfast and donuts, call it a match made in heaven. If that suits your style, then follow your nose to the new Beni Rise and Shine breakfast spot in the South End of the city.
Located in the old Tutti Frutti location on Loach’s Road, Chuck Barbeau and friends have amassed a breakfast lover’s delight.
Chef Michael Collings-Moore is running the kitchen. Dave Johnston is managing the front of house and Anna Laura Barbeau is the pastry chef running the pretty-in-pink Anna Laura Bakery within the establishment.
“We have assembled the next generation here,” Barbeau said.
“All these fine people are associated with Di Gusto at one time or another,” which is another one of Barbeau’s successful business ventures.
When the owner of the South End Tutti Frutti franchise announced her retirement in the fall of 2023, the team at Di Gusto quickly jumped on the property and executed a two-month turn around for the breakfast spot, Barbeau said.
The doors opened quietly in mid-December, but the booths quickly became occupied with each passing day. The establishment doesn’t have an online presence, but you can say word of mouth has done it wonders.
Dubbed a premium, casual breakfast experience, there are lots of goodies on the menu thanks to all the young experts who have taken ownership of Beni (named after the six varieties of Eggs Benedict they serve) and Anna Laura’s.
Everyone has their favourites on the menu. Johnson loves the chicken and waffles served with maple syrup. Barbeau the elder likes the braised beef eggs benedict with fried onions and mushrooms. Collings-Moore, a graduate of Georgian Brown culinary program, really enjoys the pork belly eggs benedict with tangy herb sauce.
Collings-Moore prepared for the breakfast venture by visiting with celebrity chef Michael Smith. Collings-Moore visited the American-born Canadian chef’s inn on Prince Edward Island.
“I honed my breakfast skills and learned a lot about breakfast culture and food sustainability,” Collings-Moore said.
“We want money staying local, with local options and the eventual addition of local breads, eggs. We make our own Hollandaise sauce and we don’t have to worry about franchise fees,” Chuck Barbeau adds.
And it’s all coupled with pastries from Anna Laura Bakery you can enjoy while dining in or taking them to go.
Anna Laura Barbeau graduated from a firefighting program and then trained at a pastry institute in Bourdeau, France in the spring of 2023. She uses her sheeter machine to make fresh croissants and makes fresh donuts around the clock.
“The favourites so far are the peanut butter and jelly donuts, the creme brulée and the Nutella cupcakes that use croissant scraps” she said.
Most breakfast spots offer plain jane tea and coffee with your meal. Beni has an expert in that field, too. Johnston spent years working in the coffee industry and lived in Australia making many great espressos and lattes.
“I taste tested coffees with the team for weeks and brought on Reunion Roasters in Oakville. We have turmeric lattes, espresso and Americanos” to give your meal that extra caffeine-infused jolt.
This premium casual dining experience gives customers something modern and different. They say that customers are thanking them for the great eats and filling the void with something local and tasty with variety.
Beni Rise and Shine and Anna Laura Bakery are located at 125 Loach’s Road in the South End. It is open seven days a week from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Anastasia Rioux is a writer in Greater Sudbury. Let’s Eat! is made possible by our Community Leaders Program.
