Faces and Food: The Flambouyant Flatbreads by Andrea Eraso of Bird & Ewe
Tucked away at the revered Carriageworks Markets, stalls stand ready every weekend offering a variety of gourmet goods, organic products and delicious meals straight from farmers or crafted by artisans. One lovely stall, called Bird and Ewe, leverages the fresh produce at these markets to deliver a spectacular range of flatbreads feeding the swelling number of visitors that swing by the markets on any given weekend. Co-owner Andrea Eraso and her team of flatbread experts, have been operating Bird and Ewe for the past couple of years facing various challenges such as the COVID-19 lockdowns. I sat down with Andrea after one busy Saturday to hear more about her story.
D: “What a lovely little stall. How did you get this all started?”
Andrea: “Tim (my husband) had cousins who owned this store previously. One of them needed to move to Melbourne so they sold the business and the recipes to us. We started in December 2019 and we’ve been in the business ever since then.”
D: “Have you always been at Carriageworks?”
Andrea: “We started here and we tried going to different markets. Carriageworks closed for a few months and only re-opened in October 2020. Another lockdown happened this year and we figured it’s just easier to stay here for now.”
D: “What made you guys pursue Bird and Ewe?”
Andrea: “I had back surgery and had a few issues with my back. So, we needed to find something we could do at home and just have one big day at work. Bird and Ewe fit that pattern perfectly when we chatted with Tim’s cousins. When we came to visit the stall, we loved everything about it; the food and the vibe.”
D: “Have you done anything like this previously?”
Andrea: “Oh no. We have not worked in hospitality before. I love cooking and I can follow recipes. For Tim, it was the first time for him on the barbecues and he broke half a box of eggs on his first go. So a few nerves at the start but we’ve gotten better. The business has been good for us and the pattern with which we want to work especially with my back pain. It’s been great.”
We share a laugh as she talks about the trials and tribulations they faced when they first opened the stall as owners. Andrea then mentions how she moved here from Columbia and traversed through a series of jobs before finally landing on owning and running Bird and Ewe.
D: “What’s your favourite flatbread on the menu?”
Andrea: “Oh, I go through too many stages! I love everything on my menu and it just depends on what I feel like. What I really love about our flavours is that they’re all different and they take inspiration from different cuisines. I’m, really proud of our flatbreads. It’s lovely.”
D: “What’s the inspiration behind the diverse range of flatbreads you have on the menu?”
Andrea: “I learnt more about Carriageworks and the amazing produce they have here. From there, I just wanted to incorporate all the supplier’s ingredients here. We want to support the farmers here with 100% of the produce coming straight from the farm or the suppliers. You can really tell the difference between their produce and the stuff at the markets. It really enhances the flavour in my opinion.”
D: “Excellent. I love that. Now, you’ve been through two lockdowns. Which one was scarier?”
Andrea: “I know lucky us! I think definitely the first lockdown was the scariest for us. Especially because it was the first one. We just did not know anything about the virus at the time and we just did not really know what was going to happen. We didn’t really know what to do with all the restrictions. We started the business in January as full owners and we were closed and in lockdown by March. Someone even offered to buy the business from us the week before lockdowns so it just felt like really bad timing for us. But after everything, I think that choice was for the best and I really believe in this business so I’m thankful we’ve stuck it through.”
D: “How did you approach the second lockdown? Were as worried or did you try to do something different?”
Andrea: “Yes we were prepared but we definitely faced our challenges. We lost more business in this (the 2021 lockdowns) than the previous year’s one. I knew we needed to do something new so we trialled the home packages. It’s something we saw other restaurants and businesses do so we decided to give it a crack and it worked well for us. I think it’s something we’ll try to re-incorporate again into the future so our menu is available to people here and at home.”
D: “That is awesome. What motivates you to wake up every morning and open this business?”
Andrea: “Yeah that’s a great question. We start at 4 am so it’s definitely not easy particularly when it’s on a weekend. I just love it when I see people try our flatbreads for the first time and see people come back. I have customers that come here every week to get the same thing and it just makes me believe in our food even more. I love having chats with the customers and all the vendors here. It’s great and I just love the vibe. It doesn’t feel as hard going to work because there’s so much to love here. If I can say one thing to everyone, it would be to support small businesses! Seeing everyone here every morning working hard. These people deserve it.”
The interview ends there as the Carriagework markets begin to close. The flatbreads at Bird and Ewe are absolutely incredible. Furthermore, you can really see the passion and fresh ingredients that go into each one of these flatbreads. Visibly. Bird and Ewe is representative of the entire “farm-to-customer” experience where every product is sourced straight from the farms and you can feel that as you walk around Carraigeworks.
Visit Bird and Ewe’s instagram page here.
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