Claude Elias speaks of his restaurant Oregano Pizzeria and Ristorante in downtown Newburyport as passionately as he does his medical laser business in Salem, NH. An electrical engineer by profession, he can tell you as much about the laser cosmetic equipment he sells through Medical Laser Technology, Inc. as he can about the brick oven at Oregano.

Elias and his family - wife Laura and two sons - moved to Newburyport from Salem because as he said, "We were in Newburyport as much as home." He created Oregano in the former location of Milieu, a furniture and accessories showroom, at 16 Pleasant St. Said Elias: "I wanted something new and beautiful but not sterile." The tables are made of distressed wood but the bar is 120 years old. The doors of the restrooms are from a fire sale in Amesbury and as such, Oregano is a mix of the true antique and restoration antique. Added Elias: "I am deliberate; I do nothing by accident."

Elias also stays true to his Lebanese heritage. "Sharing yourself with your customers, the Lebanese flair, almost makes us more unique than other restaurants in Newburyport." The Lebanese dishes do, or at least will, lean heavily toward the use of eggplant. Said Elias: "My mother makes 13 eggplant dishes at home in Lebanon." Since wife Laura is of Italian descent, that led to the natural question, "Who eats more eggplant? Italians or Lebanese?"

It's a question he hasn't quite answered yet, but he gets a faraway look in his eye as he talks about eggplant. Lebanese cuisine is based around the three basic key ingredients as Italian food, he said - lemon, olive oil and garlic. But Lebanese cooks use mint more than basil; even the pesto is made from mint (although both cultures use a lot of parsley).

Not only did Elias help his grandparents on their farm in Lebanon, he worked as a waiter in restaurants while studying engineering in the U.S. "Culturally, you couldn't have a better fit than a Mediterranean owning a restaurant," he said. It's all very social, he added, more like home than a business.

But he still has the engineering background and thus can speak about laser treatment for hair and birthmark removal and even acne. If you want to know what causes acne and how laser technology can cure the condition, call Claude Elias. He spends about 20 to 30 hours a week at Oregano, talking to customers and grabbing a meal as he can. The key to good Italian food, he said, is good sauce and good cheese. Everything else is just dressing. He does not use dried cheese at Oregano - it drives up his cost, but between that and the heirloom tomatoes, "That's what makes us special."

"I am really, truly an entrepreneur at heart," he said. "I like to dissect, try to understand and copy the success of others. The restaurant is the implementation of many successful places and experiences."

In the photo: Claude Elias (center) with line chef Tom Schlessinger (left) and prep chef Kevin Butler.