Waterbury’s food & beverage scene evolves, innovates & rolls with nature’s punches
July 21, 2024 | By Sandy Yusen | Correspondent Waterbury’s ever-evolving restaurant and pub scene has added some new players in recent months and some longstanding establishments have added new twists.
And like the rest of the community, some have had to react quickly less than two weeks ago to their third flood in 12 months.
Elm Street in downtown Waterbury is flanked by Prohibition Pig Brewery on the left and Vermont Beer Collective on the right along a submerged street early on the recent morning of July 11. Photo by Tom Stevens
We checked in with some of the creative food and beverage entrepreneurs who continue to transform the nooks and crannies of Waterbury’s historic buildings and commercial spaces. (A recent tally turned up 14 bars in the village alone.) Their following among locals and tourists alike made it no surprise that the Boston Globe this spring ran story with the headline: “Waterbury, VT: The best little foodie town in New England.”
As it turns out, Waterbury’s small businesses run on seemingly equal parts creativity and survival instinct. Ready for the latest round of water from the recent storm, most downtown business owners had basements emptied to avoid much damage and jumped on cleanup as soon as the storm subsided. Within a few days, most were back to serving food and drinks, selling sporting goods and clothing. Now they want people to know they’re open for business.
Even as buildings around town are still humming with dehumidifiers drying out basements from the July 10 storm, there are plans coming together aimed at changing the narrative around flood recovery for the impacted businesses especially.
The Vermont Beer Collective on Elm Street has come through three floods since Nate Dunbar and his wife Elizabeth bought the business in spring 2023. He is among those determined to flip the conversation around flood damage in Vermont to focus on recovery so that businesses like his take less of an economic hit from the storms.
“We’re trying to find a way to change that narrative of ‘Don’t go to Vermont, they’ve just been through a natural disaster,’ to, ‘Come to Vermont, we’ve recovered from the natural disaster,’” Dunbar said shortly after the latest round of flooding.
To that end, Dunbar is working with others to organize a block party on Elm Street to celebrate Waterbury’s community and resiliency. “Fingers crossed it will all go through the next few weeks and we’ll have something in early August for the community to come and party,” he teased. “We’re hoping it will be a big success, and people come out and support us, and it also sends a sign that, hey, Waterbury is still a beautiful town. We’re OK. Our doors are open and streets are open. So come enjoy it. And come drink beer.”
Gallus opens in historic grist mill
Gallus Handcrafted Pasta is the latest eatery to make use of the historic grist mill on Stowe Street. Photo by Sandy Yusen
Gallus Handcrafted Pasta, the newest restaurant from chef/owner Eric Warnstedt and his Heirloom Hospitality group, opened its doors in late June in the grist mill at 92 Stowe Street, which housed his flagship Hen of the Wood restaurant for 17 years before it relocated to South Main Street in spring 2023. The recent flood hit just two weeks after its opening.
The patio overlooking the brook at Gallus. Photo by Sandy Yusen
The night of the storm, Gallus Executive Chef Antonio Rentas was working in Hen’s downtown location where pasta for Gallus is made. He was watching videos sent by Gallus staff of the brook raging behind the grist mill building. That night, the storm sent water gushing over the newly installed bar rail into the patio overlooking the brook, taking furniture, patio umbrellas, and planters along with it and ripping out the back staircase.
The next day, a crew of restaurant staff tackled the clean-up – mopping water that leaked into the dining room and reinstalling the patio. Gallus closed for one night – the patio was off limits for two. After that, Rentas said it was business as usual.
The latest eatery to settle into the unique ambiance of the well-preserved historic grist mill, Gallus will soon offer online ordering for take-out, Rentas noted.
Meanwhile, reservations are in high demand due to Warnstedt’s long-earned reputation and enticing photos of pasta dishes teased on social media. Those who plan ahead can book a table in advance and Rentas emphasizes that walk-ins are welcome. With 15-20 seats, the patio is first-come, first-serve – weather permitting, of course.
Elm Street beverage retailers flooded again
In recent months, two retail establishments on Elm Street – Vermont Beer Collective and The Wine Vault – have modified their spaces to include in-store beverage consumption, perfect for a brief stop on a village walkabout. Unfortunately, their location once again put them at ground zero for flooding from the recent damaging storm.
Nate Dunbar bought the Vermont Beer Collective with wife Liz five weeks before last year’s July flood. This year, storm waters crept more than two feet up the foundation, with nearly a foot leaking into the basement. “This is our third one in 12 months, so it’s painful to go through,” he said.
Vermont Beer Collaborative bartender Charles Corley works with custom-made LUKR taps, imported from the Czech Republic. Photo by Sandy Yuse
Dunbar no longer uses the store’s basement – one of many lessons learned from past floods. “It’s sad to say but this is now an SOP – standard operating procedure – how to manage these things at this point now that they’re so frequent. So we can recover a lot quicker than we have in the past,” he explained.
What some don’t realize about the flooding is that beyond the physical damage, the economic damage is most harmful for small businesses, Dunbar said. His business dropped 50% last July, normally among the busiest months in Vermont. “For small businesses like ours we see a huge downturn in support from tourism and locals as well. People don’t want to come down to the flood zone and have a beer,” he said.
Over the past year, Dunbar has worked hard to rise above the economic blows from Mother Nature by growing and evolving his business. The shop earned praise from the Boston Globe for its extensive selection of Vermont beers. Dunbar points out that he curates not just in-state brews but offerings from around New England and the world. “Chances are there’s most definitely going to be a beer within our store or on draft that you’ve never had before,” he said.
In December, the Dunbars added a small bar and lounge area and in June, they expanded further. “People can now come in and enjoy a draft beer at our bar, in our lounge area in the back where we have darts and board games, and also in our front windows that overlook Elm Street.”
To carve out these spaces, Dunbar has had to navigate what he says are onerous state alcohol licensing laws. He recently received an exemption from the Vermont Department of Liquor Control to serve beer in non-continuous areas within the retail store. He worked last session with state legislators on a bill “to try and break down some of these older laws that just don’t really make sense.” The legislation didn’t advance this year and would need to be reintroduced in the new biennium in January.
Another new twist: summertime pop-ups with small food vendors. On Saturdays, Middlesex-based Peace Burger sets up a tent at the beer store where customers can order and eat inside. “We’re partnering to help him make a name for himself and also provide a food option for our customers. There’s not much better that goes better with beer than burgers,” Dunbar said.
Anastasia Kohl inside her shop, The Wine Vault at the corner of Elm and Main Streets. Photo by Sandy Yusen
Next door to the Vermont Beer Collective, The Wine Vault has become a magnet for wine enthusiasts since opening in 2019. Tucked inside the store is a cozy lounge, where owner Anastasia Kohl hosts weekly tastings on Fridays from 4-7 p.m.
Last July, Kohl’s store flooded with 18 inches of water. Just six months later in December, water stopped just short of Kohl’s entrance. “Last year was so bad for all of us. Had we had a mild flood last year and then a big one we probably would all be out of our minds, but because it was the other way around, we’re feeling a little like we got this,” the now-seasoned veteran of storm cleanup said.
Floodwater from the recent storm made its way into the shop, but the damage was less severe than a year ago. “This time we had a good inch in here but we didn’t have to rip up the floor, so that was nice,” Kohl said.
Both Kohl and Dunbar credited landlords Jeffrey and Maryanne Larkin for helping move furniture and goods, and lining up ServePro for the heavy equipment needed for cleanup.
Nevertheless, Kohl’s business took a hit. The store is situated in the building’s basement level, which means she couldn’t open for customers while cleanup was taking place. She expressed frustration with slow progress on the part of local and state government to address flood mitigation. “A move has to be made. It can’t just be ‘oh, whatever we do, it doesn’t work.’ Something’s got to be done,” she said.
Anastasia Kohl shares the stories behind the wines with a customer during The Wine Vault’s Friday afternoon wine tastings. Photo by Sandy Yusen
Like many local entrepreneurs, Kohl has plugged into the community as a way to give her business a foundation. A resident of Warren, Kohl tells of working in the event-rental business prior to opening her own store. She recalls staging and tenting Phish’s mud-fest concert in Coventry in 2004 and later was introduced to wine working at Shelburne Farms. The opportunity arose with the downstairs space in downtown Waterbury. “I wanted it to be dark, because wine likes dark,” she explained. Sure enough, the Elm Street shop feels like entering an actual wine cellar, with bottles hung like artwork against black walls.
Regardless of the weather, Kohl said her Friday wine tastings have built a local following that even include a steady stream of visitors from The Stagecoach Inn, which promotes the events.
The tastings feature wines from Vermont and around the world with an emphasis on products from small-batch wineries and natural, organic, and biodynamic wines that Kohl says deliver on taste. To round out the experience, Kohl adds charcuterie boards with Von Trapp cheeses and mini cupcakes from the Red Poppy Cakery next door.
Like the Dunbars, Kohl says she appreciates the close-knit connections of Waterbury and opportunities to be involved in the community such as recently participating in an advisory committee through Revitalizing Waterbury on economic development and housing.
Families add Mexican, Italian take-out to Waterbury
Two family-run establishments have recently opened in Waterbury serving up authentic regional cuisine out of unexpected spaces. Located at opposite ends of town, both were spared damage in the recent flood.
Arandas employees in Waterbury include Jorge Dominquez, Isai Ortiz, Teresa Cordova, and Juan Pablo Sola-Thomas. Photo by Sandy Yusen
Opened this past winter, Arandas Mexican Cuisine has quietly amassed a cult following for its take-out Mexican food at the Irving Oil gas station at the south end of town – the fourth location in the growing Arandas chain. Husband-wife team Lu Sola-Thomas and David Thomas created the business with son Juan Pablo Sola-Thomas, a mechanical engineering student at Clarkson University, after moving to Vermont from Mexico City five years ago.
Arandas’ convenience store in Waterbury carries Mexican desserts, sodas and other regional snacks. Photo by Sandy Yusen
“We moved here and then as a family we started these crazy adventures,” Juan Pablo Sola-Thomas said. The family first tested the in-store food concept at a Barre farm and garden store. They offered pizza, hot dogs, and ice cream, but their burritos were by far the best sellers. They gradually expanded the menu with more Mexican items, and have since added locations in Montpelier, Stowe, and now Waterbury.
Last July’s floods wiped out Arandas’ Montpelier and Barre locations, according to the restaurant’s website. This month, water from the overflowing Winooski River in Waterbury came close, but didn’t breach the property.
Sola-Thomas says Arandas is named for the town in Mexico where his great-grandfather grew up, and is inspired by Mexican street vendors who offer made-from-scratch food prepared quickly for on-the-go customers. Arandas’ extensive menu includes popular items like burritos, tacos, and nachos, to more regionally specific and traditional Mexican offerings.
The kitchen area at Arandas Mexican Cuisine within the convenience store space at the Irving Oil gas station in Waterbury. Photo by Sandy Yusen
“Most of the recipes are from my grandmother and my mother,” Sola-Thomas explained. He also credits his employees – who hail from Vermont as well as Latin America – for contributing their own recipes, too. “Mexico is very diverse and we have a lot of different dishes and food. So having so many great employees allows us to have more diversity in the food we can offer,” he said.
For Sola-Thomas, it has been rewarding to see positive feedback from online reviews and from customers who visit each morning. “We’re a part of their daily lives now,” he said. “Thinking that we’re the first thing they eat in the day and it keeps them going through the day is very nice, it’s very happy.”
For Giancarlo, Maria, and Desiana DeVito, “la famiglia e tutto” (family is everything). Photo by Sandy Yusen
At the other end of town, Giancarlo’s Panini Press opened in early June on Vermont Route 100 in Waterbury Center in a corner of the popular shopping center alongside the stores with Vermont brands like Cabot cheese, Lake Champlain Chocolates, Danforth pewter and recently added Vermont Flannel.
Away from the river and local streams, the shopping center didn’t experience damage from the recent storm.
At Giancarlo’s Panini Press in Waterbury Center, Giancarlo DeVito makes up an eggplant parmesan panini using ingredients sourced from Italy and Vermont. Photo by Sandy Yusen
Co-owners Giancarlo and Maria DeVito, who used to live in Waterbury Center but now live in Stowe, had been eyeing this spot for their venture. “The location is just phenomenal,” Giancarlo DeVito said.
Daughter Desiana, who studies hospitality management at Johnson & Wales, is also part of the team grilling up paninis in the space that most recently was a drive-through coffee shop; past tenants include a bookstore and even a Dunkin’ Donuts shop.
The DeVitos make efficient use of kitchen space just big enough to fit two panini presses, a cookstove, refrigerator, sinks and shelving for ingredients. A sign above the drive-thru window says “La famiglia e tutto.” Giancarlo DeVito translates: “‘The family is everything’ – that’s our mission for the business.”
DeVito grew up in Terracina, Italy, a small fishing village south of Rome. He said he worked in the restaurant business for 40 years and co-owned Trattoria La Festa in Stowe with his brother and another partner. Although he retired four years ago, he said he always dreamed of owning a panini shop. “And so I said, it’s never too late,” he recalled.
The simplicity of paninis lends itself to the drive-through format. “In Italy, there’s the autostrada which is the highway, and at every spot when you stop for gas, there’s a panini grill,” DeVito explained. “You go in, you get a fast panini just like that. You get an espresso, a gelato, a glass of wine – they sell everything.”
The DeVitos take pride in sourcing their ingredients from Italy and Vermont and the menu reflects those choices with paninis ranging from chicken parmesan to turkey with Cabot cheddar cheese. “Everything is 3-5 minutes. It doesn’t take long. It’s all in the prep,” he explained.
While the DeVitos expect to benefit from tourist traffic, their initial customers on day one were employees in the retail complex who haven’t had a restaurant nearby. Giancarlo DeVito said he’s happy to fill that void. “It’s a one-stop shop. That’s the way I see it. It’s like its own little village. I think they have everything now that they need,” he said.
40 Foundry Street fills up
Paprika Catering Company recently added a small lounge to its eat-in and take-out restaurant. Courtesy photo
The building at 40 Foundry Street rests on higher ground than many Waterbury Village properties. This protected Paprika Catering Company from floodwaters, even as the Elm Street home of owners Jacqueline de Achaval and Jennifer McCabe-de Achaval flooded once again.
Over the past few years, Paprika’s empanadas became a familiar addition to the Waterbury food scene through Wednesday night pop-ups at Stowe Street Cafe, a regular booth at the Waterbury Farmers Market and at special events. For the past six months, they have settled into their own storefront space along Foundry Street next door to Salt & Rind. Now in its permanent space, Paprika serves up empanadas along with daily salad specials a few days each week. Customers can take food to go, or enjoy it on site in a cozy seating area recently furnished as a small lounge. Find the menu of eight empanada varieties, catering and wholesale information on the new Paprika website.
Matt Gordon, co-owner of The Tropic, inside the manufacturing space at the 2,400-square-foot brewery and tap room. Photo by Sandy Yusen
The latest addition to the 40 Foundry Street food hub is The Tropic Brewing, which opened in March. It took Matt Gordon, who co-owns the brewery with his brother Zach, a few years to bring the business to life, working through hurdles that included permitting, scaling up his home brewed recipes for large batch brewing, and tackling the layout and construction to adapt the space to accommodate the taproom and brewhouse. “It was just this big puzzle to fit all these pieces and figure out where things should go,” he said.
The Tropic now has a 21-seat bar and tasting room, with seven beers on tap and in grab-and-go 12-ounce cans with colorful graphics that invoke the ocean, palm trees, and sunsets. Beer is the focus as The Tropic has no kitchen, but they serve a few simple bar snacks, too.
The Tropic Brewing has a 21-seat tasting room at 40 Foundry Street, serving lower-alcohol beers on tap and in 12-ounce cans for purchase. Photo by Sandy Yusen
The latest arrival on Waterbury’s craft beer scene, Gordon said The Tropic is looking to fill a “drinkability” niche. “It’s been the endeavor to create some lower-alcohol recipes that really have a lot of taste,” he said. For example, blonde ale Sand Bar clocks in at 4.3% ABV, while Oceania, a Cold IPA, is the highest ABV at 6.1%.
Gordon sees growth potential in lower- and non-alcoholic beers: “They’ve blown up hugely in a way that probably no one would have ever predicted 10 years ago. It felt like it just really hit on something that we liked and resonated with us,” he said. Based on feedback so far, the trend seems to appeal to a health-oriented customer base. “We’ve got a really active outdoor recreational focus in this part of Vermont, so we thought having beers that align with that, too, would be helpful.”
So far, visitors have to catch The Tropic on Friday and Saturday, late afternoons and early evenings. Gordon said he would like to expand the open hours if he can find the right employee to manage the taproom. “Reports on the job market aren’t super-awesome but hopefully working at a fun little brewery is more appealing, right?” he quipped.