The Village Porch Opens
By Martha Slater

The cold winter weather isn’t ideal for sitting outside on a porch, but it’s just fine for sitting (and eating) inside at The Village Porch, a new restaurant and pub that opened last month on Main St. in Rochester village.

Located in a large, restored Victorian house on the corner of School Street, next door to the hardware store, The Village Porch is the brainchild of the building’s owners, Dean and Connie Mendell. They originally bought the building as a home for Dean’s Nordic Adventures business and headquarters for Connie’s Occasions Catering and her linens businesses. A couple of years and a lot of man and woman hours later, the building has been extensively renovated and is notable to passersby for its handsome tri-color paint job and authentic "gingerbread" woodwork.

Venture inside The Village Porch when it’s open Thursday through Sunday from 4-10 p.m. (they stay open until 11 on Friday and Saturday) and you’ll find a comfortable, cozy ambience and a variety of interesting food choices. The décor is eclectic, with a mixture of porch-style furniture and a table arrangement that makes good use of the available space. Folks who choose to eat in the back dining room have a great view of the gleaming kitchen where Chef Luke Stone creates the restaurant’s bistro-style cuisine.

Chef Stone, who previously worked at The Waybury in Middlebury, the Bobcat Café in Bristol and Christophe’s in Vergennes, has worked with the Mendells to put together a menu that features a number of soups, salads, appetizers, and pub food that is always available. There are also weekly specials for appetizers and entrees, "dessert of the day" blackboard specials, and "early bird" specials. The restaurant takes its food seriously, but there are also fun "down-home" touches such as the spotless canning jars used for water glasses.

A perusal of menus from two recent weeks shows entrée specials that include Cajun Lasagna, made with chicken, shrimp, sausage and Luke’s homemade pasta; herb marinated and roasted flank steak, baby lamb chops, pan-seared salmon, and a Thai stir-fry that was served either vegetarian style or with soy ginger marinated chicken.

"We opened just two weeks before Christmas, and we were crowded for the first month," Connie explained. "Now things are settling down a little and we feel like we have a handle on it."

To make reservations at The Village Porch call 767-3126. Walk-ins are also welcome.

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