Calgary·FOOD AND THE CITY

Margaret Nemeth's 30-year legacy of feeding Calgarians

Margaret Nemeth has been feeding Calgarians for 30 years — from coffee to sandwiches to pots of soup that few people know were inspired by her love of pizza.

Calgary woman does it all, from breakfast, to lunch, dinner and dessert

Margaret Nemeth's foray into the food industry was a coffee shop called MacBean’s. She's since branched out into soups, sandwiches and cake. (Julie Van Rosendaal)

Margaret Nemeth has been feeding Calgarians for 30 years — from coffee to sandwiches to pots of soup that few people know were inspired by her love of pizza.

If you ask, she'll reminisce at length about the city's pizza scene back in the '70s.

"I was a poor student, and lived a block away from Spiros," she said, perched at the counter of her open space at the Crossroads Market.

"Our treat on Friday nights was to go for spinach, artichoke and feta pizza," Nemeth remembers.

"I grew up in Ottawa on Italian-style pizza, and that was a real foreign taste for me."

Nemeth also had her first Hawaiian pizza in Calgary in 1973, and fondly recalls the pizza joint (actually called Hawaiian Pizza) she and her friends used to frequent by the Uptown Theatre.

Coffee start

Margaret's foray into the food industry (after an early fling with oil and gas) was a coffee shop called MacBean's, which she opened downtown in TD Square with no industry experience beyond the fact that her parents once owned a restaurant.

"I was young and single and had so much fun."

She learned a lot about coffee and moved on to work at Canterbury Coffee as one of their sales team, becoming a pioneer of Calgary's now booming caffeine scene.

When the company moved its headquarters elsewhere, Nemeth used her earnings to buy an abandoned building on 37th St. S.W. in Glenbrook, which she turned into Primal Grounds, a coffee shop known for its real roasted turkey and cranberry sandwiches, served on Margaret's thickly sliced homemade bread.

This sriracha chicken sandwich is one of the many Primal Grounds serves up at the Crossroads Market. (Primal Soup Company/Facebook)

Gluten-free soup

She also started making pots of soup — all gluten-free, because of her own dietary restrictions — and her customers loved it.

"They'd say, 'You should sell your soup! You should open a soup company!'" she said, eyes rolling.

"And I'd say, 'Sure, I'll do that in my spare time!'"

But when a developer made her an offer and bought the building, she decided to streamline her business and focus on soup.

She opened the shop at the Market on Macleod, and then added another location when the Crossroads Market expanded.

She calls herself the city's "grandma of coffee," but she has become the "grandma of soup" — her favourite, to this day, is the spinach, artichoke and feta inspired by her favourite Spiros pizza.

This spinach, feta and artichoke soup is Nemeth's favourite and was inspired by her love a Spiros pizza with the same ingredients. (Julie Van Rosendaal)

It's not her biggest seller (it's hard to imagine such a combination in a bowl of soup) but, not surprisingly, it's delicious.

Nemeth hasn't completely let go of her caffeinated past. Her experience and connections in the coffee industry led to the opening of a new coffee counter in the Crossroads Market, where she also sells her almost-famous carrot cake.

There are some things in life that don't translate as well into soup.

Nemeth's signature carrot cake is available at The Market on Macleod location and at Primal Grounds Cafe at Crossroads Market. (Primal Soup Company/Facebook)

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Julie Van Rosendaal

Calgary Eyeopener's food guide

Julie Van Rosendaal talks about food trends, recipes and cooking tips on the Calgary Eyeopener every Tuesday at 8:20 a.m. MT. The best-selling cookbook author is a contributing food editor for the Globe and Mail, and writes for other publications across Canada.