At breakfast restaurant in Edwardsville, you pick the ingredients, they cook the dish
O’bar Café in Edwardsville is under new ownership and held a grand re-opening in early May.
It offers a wide variety of egg-based dishes, including omelets, scrambles, quiche, skillets and bowls.
Dee Miller, a silent partner for O’bar and a managing partner of 360 Sports Group, describes O’bar as “the Chipotle of breakfast.” Customers decide what kind of dish they want and select ingredients from a long list as they go through the line. The streamlined process is similar to how Chipotle and Subway restaurants operate.
O’bar Café’s goal is to provide healthy options for its customers. Most of the dishes are no-carb with high protein content. Even the burritos and tacos are wrapped in egg instead of flour or corn tortillas.
O’bar CEO and owner Edmund Jones says the restaurant is fast casual, focusing more on providing fresh ingredients. They focus on healthy, all-inclusive options and cultural additions for their customers. For those who crave the carbs, don’t worry. The menu includes “extras” such as pancakes, potato sides, hash browns, oatmeal and more.
The beverage menu also has a lot to offer. It includes the usual coffee, tea and orange juice options, as well as a selection of O’bar’s signature citrus-infused coffees, teas and juices. Patrons can also order mimosas, sangria, bloody marys or O’jitos. O’bar’s barista and manager, Samantha Stinson, is always coming up with new juice and cocktail recipes, according to Miller. They are hoping to soon offer a Juice of the Day.
In addition to a healthy menu, customers can enjoy meals in a calm, plant-filled setting. O’bar is located in a suite next to Replant, a house plant adoption and education center. The space between the two businesses is open, so the diners at O’bar can enjoy the plants, and those looking to purchase plants can grab a bite to eat.
Jan Wallace is a regular customer at O’bar and describes it as “quaint and comfortable,” with a “Starbucks atmosphere [but] more serene.”
Wallace is the CEO of KWL Science, which manufactures hemp-based CBD oils for therapeutic and health benefits. She’s been working with O’bar to develop CBD-infused beverage options.
I asked Tisha Glasper, Jones’ executive assistant, how business was since the opening, and she replied that it’s been a little slow but “starting to pick up” now that people are going out more post-COVID.
Glasper added that they are focused on “getting the word out that we’re open.”
Check out the menu at obarcafe.com and numerous images of the dishes and drinks on the restaurant’s Facebook and Instagram pages. O’bar is located at 1063 IL Highway 157 #12 in Edwardsville next to Bella Milano. Hours are 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday-Sunday. Happy Hour is 9:30-11 a.m. Tuesday-Friday. For information, call 618-307-9008.
This story was originally published June 20, 2021 at 7:00 AM.