Business Ticker New American Grill reopens; Mountain Energy expands offerings; King steps down at Nature Museum

New American Grill reopens

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The New American Grill restaurant in the Mountain Marketplace in Londonderry, 5700 VT Route 100, re-opened its doors on Dec. 26, 2018, which chef/owner Max Turner returning with extensive renovations that include a new bar and a platform for patrons and “everybody’s favorite dishes” from the old menu.

All but one server had worked there previously while the bartenders and kitchen staff — including the chef — are new. The new chef, Aaron Sanborn, helped with renovations along with Turner’s mother, Jettie.

Several years after the restaurant first opened in 2004, Turner’s wife, Cara, ran it while he was head chef for the Fire Tower restaurant at Stratton. When Cara died in January of 2018, the staff kept the New American Grill open until April, when they normally would close for mud season. The chef took another job in Manchester, so after Turner’s obligations ended at Stratton in October, he turned his attention back to the New American Grill.

Turner said he is “happy to be back. The amount of love and community support has been overwhelming, even for the past year. We now have the New American Grill 2.0 with a new bar instead of a lunch counter.” Mary Dana Bentley, one of the original servers, said there is “good energy” and “the town is so excited to have him back.”

Starting Friday, Jan. 18, the New American Grill will open for lunch at 11:30 a.m. and close at 9 p.m. most nights after dinner service. The restaurant is currently closed on Tuesdays, and days and hours open are subject to change.

— Bruce Frauman

Mountain Energy expands offerings to local food

Patrons of Mountain Energy of Vermont,  at 3590 Vt Route 100 in South Londonderry,  can now shop for dinner — from salad to dessert.

Fresh lettuce, canned and packaged soups, meats such as beef, pork baby backed ribs, venison and elk, three brands of bread, a wide variety of cheese, pasta, locally produced honey, ice cream and frozen pies, and much more are all now available. Owner Donna Korpi is amazed at the number of high quality food producers in Vermont and nearby.

Mountain Energy, opened by Korpi in 2011 to install renewable energy systems and sell energy saving devices and environmentally friendly products, especially cleaning products, all of which remain in stock. Korpi noticed an increasing demand for locally and regionally produced foods. Her commitment to environmental sustainability led to the expansion of her offerings in December.

Korpi has sourced as many organic and gluten free products as is reasonable along with reasonable pricing. Her goal is to make it affordable for everyone to eat a healthy diet. The store is open 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday.

From 3 to 6 p.m. on Saturday Jan. 19,  Mountain Energy will host a cheese tasting event, featuring a variety of cheeses from the West River Creamery, also located in South Londonderry.

— Bruce Frauman

King steps down from Nature Museum

Carrie King, a Chester resident who for the past seven years has been executive director of the Nature Museum at Grafton, stepped down from that position in early January.  In a blog post on the museum’s website, King wrote that she still intends to volunteer at the very popular Fairy House Festival.