About Marché Provisions
Marché Provisions is located in the 5th Street Public Market, next to the fountain. Click here for directions
296 E 5th Avenue
Eugene, OR 97401
541.743.0660
7am-7pm Monday-Saturday
9am-6pm Sunday
Chef Biographies
Stephanie Pearl Kimmel, Founding Chef & Owner
Rocky Maselli, Executive Chef
Tobi Sovak, Pastry Chef
Jeff Sirianni, Company Chef
Ryan Dawe-Stotz, Wine Guy
Stephanie Pearl Kimmel
Founding Chef/Owner
A native of Texas, Stephanie grew up living and traveling around the world. Her father was a career Air Force pilot who was stationed in Japan, Europe and North Africa, as well as in many regions of the United States. Her parents, both enthusiastic cooks and cultural explorers, engendered in her a love and appreciation for diverse culinary traditions, especially those involving food. Stephanie's formal education was in English literature and French cultural history, with degrees from the University of Oregon and the Sorbonne. As a graduate student in comparative literature, she took her first restaurant job to help pay for educational expenses, and it was there that she discovered her true passion. Her lifelong interest in cooking evolved into her métier.
In 1972, she opened the Excelsior Café in Eugene, Oregon, pioneering a Northwest culinary movement with her use of seasonal menus that celebrated the bounty of the region. The restaurant was also the first in Oregon to feature the wines of the young Oregon wine industry. During her tenure there as chef and owner, the Excelsior Café was featured in many national, regional and local publications including Food & Wine, Gourmet, Travel and Leisure, Bon Appétit, The New York Times and Sunset.
After selling the Excelsior Café in the spring of 1993, Stephanie took an extended trip to France to explore the regional markets and vineyards, an experience that further sharpened her focus and commitment to market-oriented cooking. In the fall of 1993, she was chosen by King Estate Winery to develop an intensive culinary department as an integral part of their national marketing plan. Her responsibilities as culinary director included supervising a full-scale hospitality program; planning the organic vegetable and flower garden, berry patches and orchards; developing a line of food products from the property; doing food and wine events around the country; and writing about food and wine pairing.
In 1995, Stephanie compiled and edited the King Estate Pinot Gris Cookbook, and received highly favorable reviews in a number of food and wine publications. In 1996, she followed up with the King Estate Pinot Noir Cookbook. Stephanie was the culinary director of a 13-part cooking series called New American Cuisine, which has been shown on public television stations nationwide. New American Cuisine was nominated for the prestigious James Beard Award for best national cooking series in 1997.
In 1997, Stephanie turned her attention to downtown Eugene and the historic Fifth Street Market complex. She opened the casual, French-inspired Marché Café in December of 1997. Marché, a full-service restaurant and bar serving market-driven regional cooking, opened to an enthusiastic audience in September of 1998. Since then, the restaurant has flourished under Stephanie's care and emerged as one of the Pacific Northwest's culinary destinations. She proudly opened Marche Provisions, a european-style food emporium that includes housemade ice cream, pizza, espresso, charcuterie, a line of specialty foods, retail accessories and a wine bar.
Stephanie is active in the community, having served as a Eugene city commissioner, a representative on the Oregon Liquor Control Commission, and a board member for the International Pinot Noir Celebration, Women Chefs & Restaurateurs and the Oregon Restaurant Association. She's an active member of the Chefs Collaborative and Slow Food.
Throughout her career, Stephanie has been recognized as a pioneer in the movement to support and celebrate regional, seasonal cuisine. She was nominated for a James Beard Award in 2006.
Rocky Maselli
Executive Chef
The youngest of three boys, Rocky grew up on a ranch in California surrounded by fruit orchards, olive trees, livestock and vegetable gardens. When he was ten, his family moved to British Columbia, where Rocky jumped in and could be found cooking fresh fish, oysters and mussels at his family's marina and seasonal restaurant. His love for the food of the Pacific Northwest grew out of these experiences, and since then, Rocky has made his life in the restaurant industry.
After graduating from the restaurant management program at San Francisco City College in 1990, he landed a position as a sous chef for the French hotel company Sofitel. After three years under the strict French brigade system, Rocky had learned all of the culinary posts and was ready to stand on his own. He left Sofitel to become an executive sous chef for Il Fornaio, the California-based chain of nationally recognized Italian restaurants and bakeries.
While working for Il Fornaio, Rocky met his wife and returned with her to her native Oregon, where he began as the chef de cuisine at JoBar and Rotisserie in Northwest Portland. In June of 1998, Rocky and Leah moved to Eugene and Rocky became chef de cuisine for Marché. In 2004, he became the executive chef.
From Stephanie, Rocky has inherited a rich tradition of working with local farmers, foragers and wine producers to bring together a seasonal, regional menu that is a perfect marriage of Oregon bounty and French culinary tradition. As executive chef, Rocky takes the lead in maintaining Marché's philosophy and traditions, while positioning the restaurant for an exciting, creative future.
Tobi Sovak
Pastry Chef
A recent transplant to Eugene from Southern California, Tobi has worked in acclaimed restaurants on both coasts. Originally trained as an artist, she attended the prestigious Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture, and works to incorporate her artistic sensibilities into her work at Marché. She was instrumental in the design and implementation of the Marché Provisions Bakery--which is a combination of state-of-the-art French ovens & baking equipment and a team of expert pastry chefs. Tobi and her team produce beautiful, delicious desserts, handmade ice creams and artisan breads not only for Provisions, but for the restaurant, cafes and wholesale accounts. Tobi is committed to the fundamentals of her craft: the seasonal, the technical and the whimsical.
Jeff Sirianni
Company Chef
Jeff was trained locally at the Lane Community College Culinary School, and has since headed up kitchens in a number of venues in Oregon and Utah. A pillar of calm and organization in the kitchen, Jeff has been part of Marché's kitchen team for almost a decade. He was the restaurant's chef de cuisine for much of that time, and now has taken over a company-wide position guiding menus and logistics. He leads the kitchen in Provisions and heads up off-site events in his role as catering chef.
Ryan Dawe-Stotz
Wine Guy
Ryan's enthusiasm for the best in food and drink is a key element in Marche Provisions. French and British cheese sparked his initial interest in food, which quickly grew to a borderline obsession with charcuterie, classical French cooking, Cajun and Creole cuisine, the food of southeast Asia, and a host of other epicurian pursuits. After returning to his hometown of Eugene from New Orleans, where he worked for notable restaurants and wine shops, he rekindled his interest in wine, working with an Oregon winery before joining the Marché staff in 2006. With a special interest in Burgundy and the Rhône as well as offbeat varietals from all over Europe, Ryan's focus is on elegant, refined, food-friendly wines.