Last week we interviewed Tobi Sovak, owner and pastry chef of Noisette Pastry Kitchen. When you walk in the café, your senses are enthralled by sweet and savory aromas, the comforting sounds of the espresso machine steaming milk and bakers pounding their dough, and of course, the dreamy sight of assorted pastries waiting behind a glass window. Tobi started her career as a pastry chef at fine dining restaurants in the bustling metropolis of New York City and later further developed her career in San Francisco and Los Angeles. After living and grinding in big cities she decided to move to Eugene 20 years ago and started working at the fine dining restaurants here. “All of 2 them,” she jokes.
Her European-inspired cuisine uses fresh, local ingredients that embrace the change of seasons. She sources a lot of the produce she uses from our vendors such as Groundwork Organics and Upriver Organics. She was introduced to shopping at LCFM when she was working as a pastry chef at Marché, a common breeding ground for local chefs in Eugene who will later move on to start their own businesses. Her relationship with food changed when discovering all of the high-quality ingredients available here in the Southern Willamette Valley.
“I’ve lived in a lot of big cities that have access to a lot of excellent ingredients from all over the world, but Eugene has the best raw ingredients. It’s incomparable,” she says.
One seasonal pastry that is a big hit at Noisette PK is their savory galette that uses caramelized onions, dijon mustard, a big slice of heirloom tomato, and fontina cheese on flaky, croissant-like pastry. For tomato-loving chefs like Tobi, the season is too short. Nonetheless, she is excited for the fall crops that are in season like apples and pears, which she uses to make jam for her pastries. Some other favorite pastries are their fruit tarts and panna cotta in a custard cup accompanied with a seasonal galet or jam. You can also find common breakfast pastries such as croissants, brioches, danishes, and let’s not forget their airy bread. One of the best things that have come out of Tobi moving to Eugene is being able to use local grains from farms like Lonesome Whistle and Camas Country Mill.
Noisette Pastry Kitchen is woman-owned, and the staff are predominantly women. Tobi recalls being the only woman in the kitchen when she started out and is very proud to offer a space that celebrates diversity and inclusion. Come check out Noisette Pastry Kitchen at 200 W Broadway from Wednesday to Saturday from 8am to 6pm and Sunday from 8am to 4pm.