How a Band Without Borders Found a New Home at the Eastgate Café.

What does a band do when it outgrows one venue and the next one they move to goes out of business? Well, you could discover the Eastgate Café and make it your new home. At least, that’s what six Oak Park musicians did when Borders Bookstore closed down and left them a Band Without Borders in 2011. Now they play at the Eastgate, 102 Harrison St. Oak Park, IL, every Saturday from 10 am to noon, delighting Eastgate brunch patrons and dozens of regular fans.

Band Without Borders first played together when they met at the Saturday morning jam session at the Oak Park Farmer’s Market over 20 years ago. Mandolin player Dustin Felix and bass player Carrie Felix along with guitarists Dave Roen, Dave Heath and Doug Greene all had serious “day” jobs, but their avocation was playing folk music, bluegrass and other genres that were perfect for the outdoor venue of the market.

“Sometimes people who play together click as friends over and above harmonizing musically, and sometimes they don’t. In our case, we just seemed to connect too strongly to give up playing together, even after the market closed in October,” explained Doug Greene, one of the guitarists in the group.

The band members got together at Dave Heath’s house for cinnamon coffee, doughnuts and a jam session on Saturday mornings. Soon these meetings became a regular thing. Playing on the own, they discovered that while they still loved playing folk tunes, country and bluegrass music, they also wanted to expand the group’s repertoire to include jazz, pop, rock and the blues.

The next step was to find a public venue where they could share their music with others. After gaining a following at local coffee shops, they found that Borders Book Store at the corner of Lake and Harlem in Oak Park was a good fit for them and their band for it. They also added another guitar player, Pam Kimmel, in 2004. The band played there every Saturday for the next 11 years until Borders closed its doors in 2011.

That’s when they started playing every Saturday at the Eastgate Café, becoming a special fixture at a restaurant known for nurturing local talent. "We soon discovered," Dave Heath explains, "that the Eastgate has the most amazing acoustics and the audience is all around you. It's a wonderful experience for a performer. And the food is great, too."

“We love having the Band without Borders here,” exclaims Olya Dailey, the Eastgate’s owner and band supporter. “Their music is wonderful and they add a special ambiance to our brunch every week.”

So, if you’re looking for a change from the usual brunch place, consider stopping by the Eastgate Café on a Saturday morning between 10 am and noon. Place your brunch order, have a relaxing mid-morning cocktail and prepare to enjoy a very special treat. For in addition to the Eastgate’s perfectly made omelets, gourmet French toast, quiche or bagel and lox platter, you can enjoy almost every musical genre performed by a band who may be without Borders, but has talent to spare. It happens only at the Eastgate Café.

For more information on the Eastgate visit www.eastgatecafe.net.