The Fence and Post is celebrating its first year with a bang being named Cochrane's best restaurant in the Cochrane Eagle's Best of Cochrane Readers' Choice Awards. The new eatery added to the fine dining choices in Cochrane opening its location in Historic Downtown on May 23, 2017. Melanie Martzoukous, co-owner of the restaurant along with man in the kitchen Mike Hartman, took the plunge hoping Cochrane palates would take to finer cuisine. "Cochrane was ready for it," she said, pointing to the success the Fence and Post has seen over the year culminating in the recent award. She attributes the success to key ingredients - great food and atmosphere - but also to their commitment to locally-sourced product from the produce and meat to the beers and liquors. Martzoukous said they source as much as possible from Alberta and Canada and even use local hyper-local suppliers such as Cochrane's Krang Spirits. While the restaurant business has its ups and downs, Martzoukous said she and Hartman are pleased with how the business is going and public support has allowed them expand their offerings. Along with Saturday and Sunday brunch, they are now also open on Mondays. Though the latter is a bit slower, Martzoukous said as business owners in Historic Downtown, they believed it was important to be open to help support the district. "We're ecstatic and surprised and grateful," Martzoukous said excitedly when asked about the award and the support the restaurant has received. "Thank you to those who have supported us. It's been incredible."
