The kind folks that take your orders and delivery your meals
Welcome Home With nearly 20 years of experience serving Calgary’s business crowd, The Green Bean is geared to grow in its new location Written and photographed by Camie Leard
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rop by The Green Bean Restaurant’s chic new space on 6th Avenue SW during a weekday breakfast or lunch hour and you’ll be treated to a buzz of conversation, experienced staff providing impeccable service and, of course, fresh, handmade food to delight the palate. But this lively and beautiful space is only the fabulous new face of an organization that has a much larger scope and a long history of satisfying Calgarians’ hunger for quality and service. Steve Beddoe arrived in Calgary in 1973 with the whisper of “go west young man” in his ear and a recipe for success in his pocket. Trained as a chef at the Savoy Hotel in London, England and having worked in Europe, Beddoe’s passion for food fuelled his business mind and he immediately opened his first of many restaurants in Calgary’s core. Longtime Calgarians will remember the Bristol Room, Terrace 15 and the Piccadilly Grill as lunchtime favourites for the down-
town crowd. But the story of The Green Bean begins in 1995 with a small roasterie/café and dining room in the Herald Building on 6th Avenue. “My love of food is equalled only by my love of coffee and beer,” laughs Beddoe. “So it was a natural fit for me to open a coffee house.” The original Green Bean had a threepart model: part café/roasterie, part dining room and part catering. After a small fire exposed the hazards of roasting beans and the demand for catering services exploded, BedBed doe decided to first sell the roaster and then close the dining room to expand the catering department. Flanked by The Chowder House, another of Beddoe’s restaurants, The Green Bean found great success in its sandwich/coffee shop and catering services specializing in serving corporate Calgary in the downtown core. For more than 20 years Beddoe and his team served their customers from their location in the Herald Block. But, as the city concon