For O’Neill, the cornerstone of a truly great breakfast sandwich is the bread. “I’ve always found English muffins underwhelming,” he says. That led him to develop his own version, pulling techniques from nearly ten different recipes. A key discovery came from Francisco Migoya, author of Modernist Bread, whose method—featured on an episode of Martha Stewart—involves caramelizing grains, like cornmeal, in fat using a pressure cooker. O’Neill adapted it with olive oil instead of butter to keep things vegan-friendly, but the outcome remains the same: a tender, airy muffin with a beautifully crisp griddled edge. Now, with a perfected recipe in hand, he’s thrilled to launch his breakfast concept at Dawnbringer, where he says the creative energy and community make it the perfect place to start.