Bennington’s newest distillery introduces spirit-infused menu highlighting local purveyors
Vermont Business Magazine Village Garage, a new distillery in Bennington making craft spirits from Vermont corn and rye, proudly announces the opening of Servicenter at Village Garage Distillery, a restaurant and tasting room infused with spirit and highlighting local purveyors. With the kitchen helmed by Chef Jonathan Studley, whose roots in the hospitality industry span 40 years, Servicenter features a full menu including small plates, salads/bowls, bar snacks, “hand helds,” mains, sweets, and a kids menu. The bar and tasting room experience is led by Alexander von Pfieffer, formerly the manager of some of New York City’s top craft cocktail bars. Opening hours are Thursday to Saturday (5-9pm) and Sunday (12-5 pm).
“I’m proud and excited to be opening the restaurant at Village Garage Distillery, as part of a great team working together to make Vermont whiskey a category unto itself,” says Chef Jonathan. He works with locals to source ingredients featured throughout the menu, such as vertically grown greens, artisanal mushrooms, Vermont cheeses, and other items that will rotate seasonally. Even the spent grains from the distilling process are provided to local farms to feed livestock that will then be featured on the menu, further combining the distilling and culinary experiences.
Highlights of the menu include:
● Bourbon Mac made with a Vermont cheese blend
● House Poutine with neighboring (three miles from the distillery) Maplebrook cheese curds
● Charcuterie Board featuring local meats and cheeses, pickled onions, olives, spiced nuts, stone ground mustard, fig jam and crusty bread
● Grown Up Grilled Cheese made with assorted regional cheeses, caramelized balsamic onion, crisp apple slices, and pork belly served on grilled waffles
● Bourbon Cask Roasted Salmon brushed with bourbon barbecue sauce and roasted on repurposed barrel planks
● Bourbon Bread Pudding
Chef Jonathan is a long-standing member of the American Culinary Federation and the Midwest’s representative to the American Institute of Food and Wine, Chef Studley began his career in the hospitality industry in the mid 1970s at his family’s three-star French restaurant in New York City, La Colombe D’Or. He trained with Master Chef André René at the former Windows On The World atop the World Trade Center, and served as Executive Chef at The Kula Lodge on Maui, The Magnolia Inn in Pinehurst, North Carolina, and The Long Wharf restaurant and deck in Sag Harbor, NY.
Leading the guest experience at Village Garage Distillery is Alex von Pfeiffer, a recent transplant from New York City's craft cocktail bar Employees Only. Alex previously helped set up and led efforts at NYC's Amor y Amargo, Due West, and Blacktail, and brings experience as a live sound engineer and tour manager from the United Kingdom, Europe, and Australia. The cocktail menu offers a variety of riffs on classic cocktails, such as the Village Maple Walnut Old Fashioned, Razerac (Village Rye and house made raspberry liqueur), and the Nor’easter (Village Vodka, milk, in-house coffee liqueur, maple syrup). A tasting flight of Village Bourbon, Rye, and Bonfire is served in a genuine hand-sanded stave from a barrel in which the whiskeys were aged.
“It’s been exciting to develop this cocktail menu, which showcases the spirits and liqueurs produced in-house and to complement the craftsmanship evident throughout this entire project,” says Alex. “The menu features build-your-own Old Fashioned and Highball experiences that encourage our guests to experiment and be creative here at the bar and inspires them to continue with the bottles they take home.”
The illustrative menu was drawn by local architect Geoffe Metcalf of Keefe & Wesner Architects, who also helped bring Village Garage Distillery to life.
ABOUT VILLAGE GARAGE DISTILLERY
Inspired by the lands their families have farmed for over eight generations, Bennington, Vermont, natives Matt Cushman and Glen Sauer opened Village Garage Distillery in August 2021. Head Distiller Ryan Scheswohl is redefining Green Mountain-made spirits by using local grains and water to produce the distillery’s first releases, Village Bourbon and Village Vodka. Buy them at the distillery, throughout Vermont, and direct-to-consumer at villagegarage.com. Follow Village Garage Distillery on Instagram.
Bennington, VT (March 21, 2022) — Village Garage