Breakfast With a Twist

QUEZON CITY’S NEWEST CULINARY DARLING, BREAKFAST AND PIES, PROVES THAT BIG THINGS COME IN SMALL PACKAGES

Chef Edward "Ed" Bugia is not a stranger to the culinary world. As one of the brains behind the successful concepts of Pino, Pipino, and BRGR: Burger Project, Chef Ed is constantly on the lookout for new, fresh, and innovative ideas to maintain a competitive edge M an industry that is constantly in flux.

A STROKE OF SERENDIPITY

Chef Ed's newest baby, Breakfast and Pies, reflects the theme of his culinary career serendipity. “It just so happened that I've always wanted a bakeshop”, he relates. But he and partners could never find a spot for it. Luckily, however, a laundry shop in the Quezon City, Teacher's Village area—where Pino, Pipino, and BRGR: Burger Project all have flagship branches—closed down, and Chef Ed seized the opportunity. "That's why the floor looks like this”, he chuckles.

The story parallels Chef Ed's foray into the culinary arena. He was initially majoring in business management at Ateneo de Manila University, then shifted to philosophy later on. Upon graduating from college, he dipped his toes in the corporate world, but realized after a couple of months that it wasn't for him. While tinkering with other career opportunities, Chef Ed happened to see a flyer promoting a culinary school stuck on his car’s windshield, and decided to take the proverbial plunge. "Ganun lang. I didn't know I was going to excel in it”, he states simply.

Thus began his culinary journey. Chef Ed enrolled in the certificate course at a renowned cooking school and was pleasantly surprised himself enjoying it. What’s more, his teachers saw his potential and actively encouraged him. He shares that he was able to work for distinguished chefs who encouraged him to go back to school and enroll in a diploma course, underlining the notion that he would learn more from it. Chef Ed gamely did so and found himself passing on his knowledge to a younger generation of would-be chefs at a prestigious culinary academy, teaching “culinary and baking and pastry”.

EMBARCING THE CULINARY LIFESTYLE

In 2009, around a year after setting up his first restaurant, Chef Ed decided to stop teaching  and focus on being a chef-restaurateur full time. He is thankful for his short stint in business management, as it helped him helm his restos. “Kahit papano may na-apply naman ako”, he says.

His days are consumed making the rounds among his four restaurants. “Weekdays are different from the weekends. Weekdays I try to go to all the power concepts—Quezon City, two in Makati, and when I have time I go to Taft Avenue because we have a BRGR: Burger Project branch there, “Chef Ed explains. On weekends, he can be found at Breakfast and Pies, which has been in operation for less than two months, but is already proving to be a hit among foodies. “I go here because the lines start forming at 6a.m., but we open at 7a.m.,” he shares. “So I have to be here the whole morning. Our turnover per day is around 12 and our seating capacity is 40.” One can only imagine the hustle and bustle of Breakfast and Pies.

THE TASTE OF SUCCESS

“It’s crazy; it’s our number one brand right now,” Chef Ed exclaims. He credits Breakfast and Pies’ triumph to its creative and novel concept. “It’s our first new concept in three years so that’s why people are excited.”

Chef Ed is also optimistic about the longevity of Breakfast and Pies. “It’s scary that the Philippines as a market still has not encountered a pie shop. But I believe that there is a market for pies in Manila,” he says. “There was no breakfast place yet here in this area,” he adds, saying that fulfilling that gap in the QC Teacher’s Village area is another factor for Breakfast and Pies’ sweet success. Admittedly, Chef Ed is hands-on with his restos. “I make sure the restaurant is running smoothly; the food consult; the way we want it to come out. I handle everything food-related—talk to suppliers, etc.” And as a staunch advocate of local products, Chef Ed has formed a partnership with San Miguel Pure Foods Inc.—Great Food Solutions (GFS), for the latter to supply them with Magnolia Gold Butter and Magnolia Fresh Milk.

“I’ve worked with their Culinary Center before, so I already know how they operate. Plus, I’ve always been an advocate of local products,” he explains. “Local meat is fresh everyday and is ground every day—that’s why I’ve always preferred local meat.” In fact whenever Chef Ed has to field requests for interviews and features, he always urges them to try the dishes with local ingredients. “I tell them, ‘There’s no need for the imported ones,’” he says.

Of course, quality is at the top of the list when it comes to considering partnerships with suppliers. “With Breakfast and Pies, we started with our dairy products,” Chef Ed says of their partnership with GFS. “It was such a natural thing. I’ve done special menus for San Miguel Pure Foods both for their Culinary Center and GFS. They’ve featured me as Chef of the Month.” He adds, “For pastries— for example, cookies and brownies—you can tell if you used cheap butter and Magnolia is really good. It’s the standard when you bake.” Chef Ed shares that all of Breakfast and Pies’ pies are best-sellers, though the Banana Cream Pie is his personal favorite. “We’re the only ones focused on banana cream,” he proudly says. “All our rice meals, as well as our breads, are also doing really well.”

FUTURE FORWARD

Chef Ed has no plans of kicking back and resting on his laurels, so to speak, even though Breakfast and Pies is already proving to be a successful endeavor. He shares his future plans. “We want to come up with savory pies like meat pies, fish pies… ‘yung uso ngayon would be caviar pie.” For him, being in the culinary industry means always being at the top of your game. “When you talk about the restos, you talk about all our employees, all the people we make happy, “he states. “So if you screw up, kawawa ‘yung mga taong ‘yan. They all have families to feed, people to support, so you have to be at the top of your game. You have to be updated.”

He shares another insight for those aspiring to venture into the F&B industry, “Don’t skip college—you need the foundation. You need to have a good business plan before you go into this industry; you need to be a good businessman. You have to have really good business acumen. Just go into it for the right reasons.”