v24i3_v10i1.qxd

needs.

The internet has many different places you can

find any of our restaurant’s hours of operation and

menu offer. We chose to only make changes solely

on our own website. It is the one place on the inter-

net that we have full control of the content. We did

not make any attempt to change hours on 3rd party

sites like Trip Advisor, Facebook, or Google.

We believed that leaving our standard hours of

operation intact in those areas was more impor-

tant, as many of those platforms had a note indi-

cating that the hours may be different due to the

current situation. The BEST place you can

find current hours of operation and the cur-

rent menu being offered will ONLY be on

our websites. Or, you could give us a call.

As we look ahead to the summer, we will

be operating at 50% seating capacity inside

and whatever outside dining space we have

been able to create at each of our restaurants.

85 Main has the most limited outside dining

due to their location and the size of their patio

and will require reservations. The Vanilla Bean

Café has the most space due to their location

in the country. Dog Lane Café and Fenton

River Grill have done well creating safe out-

side seating based on state guidelines.

We are looking forward to when our

whole industry can be at full capacity. We miss our

customers and we all wish to maintain our enduring

relationship within our communities. Large chain

restaurants will have the support they need from the

companies of which they are a part. Independent

restaurants like ours rely on local support. We want

to take this moment to thank all our customers for

their patience and continued patronage as we navi-

gate these difficult times for all our restaurants. Your

patience really does make a difference.

Issue 24 Number 3 July - September 2020 Free*

Serving

Northeastern Connecticut

& Vanilla Bean Café Calendar

Information & Entertainment

#96

he second quarter of 2020 has been quite dif-

ficult for everyone. We are thinking of all our

customers at this difficult time. While the

restaurant industry was hit pretty hard, we under-

stand that many other are people having a difficult

time as well.

Beginning in mid-March, we had to switch all

our operations to take-out only. We saw sales

plunge along with most other industries and

retail operations. We furloughed 85% of our

staff and worked hard to find a way to survive.

It was a difficult and stressful time. We thank

you for your ongoing patience and support of all

our restaurants.

The hardest part was making every effort to

still be a place of hospitality when every direc-

tive that came from the state made us less and

less hospitable. Not only was it difficult to set

up and implement, we continually have to

make changes as the situation changes.

Our first steps were to create a place that

was still safe for all our employees. Then we

worked on making sure our offer was safe for

our customers, all based on recommendations

and directives from the Governor and the

Health Departments. We did our best to create

an operation that could still be fiscally viable

for a longer period. We stayed open to main-

tain employment for our staff that still wanted to

work and to provide a service for our customers that

still relied on us when they were traveling or just

short on time. Restaurants were considered essential

businesses and we worked to maintain our offer the

best that we could.

Each restaurant adjusted their hours and offer

based on what we were seeing in the way of cus-

tomers and business in the first few weeks, and then

continued to adjust the operation to meet those

1989

2005

2012

2018

The Vanilla Bean Café

wants you to know...

The Vanilla Bean Café opened in 1989 with 16 seats

The Vanilla Bean Café is owned by the Jessurun Family

The Vanilla Bean Café is a member of

Green Valley Hospitality

We open 361 days a year. We close on:

Easter Sunday, Fourth of July, Thanksgiving

& Christmas Day

Business Hours:

Monday, Tuesday 7 am - 3 pm

Wednesday, Thursday 7 am - 8 pm

Friday 7 am - 9 pm*

Saturday 8 am - 9 pm*†

Sunday 8 am - 8 pm*

*We may close early during colder months.

†Entertainment night -

we serve dessert, beer & wine until 10 pm

Web site: www.TheVanillaBeanCafe.com

E-mail: [email protected]

Address: 450 Deerfield Road

Pomfret Center, Connecticut 06259

Phone: 860-928-1562

Music Booking: Maria Sangiolo

[email protected]

Art Booking: Sarah Matteau

[email protected]

Bean Soup Ads: Barry Jessurun

[email protected]

is an information and

entertainment newsletter.

Compiled by Barry Jessurun

Written by Barry Jessurun

Edited by Maria Sangiolo

Layout & Design - Barry Jessurun

Green Valley Hospitality Pomfret, Connecticut 06258

“How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment

before starting to improve the world.” - Anne Frank

“The key to success is to keep growing in all areas of life

- mental, emotional, spiritual, as well as physical.”

- Julius Erving

Real

Good

Whole

FOOD

reen Valley Hospitality (GVH) is the finan-

cial management and marketing company

that oversees our 4 restaurants (The Vanilla

Bean Café, 85 Main, Dog Lane Café and Fenton

River Grill). GVH company was founded in 2015 to

create a streamlined approach to fiscal responsibili-

ty and a more focused approach to marketing. Most

of the work handled by GVH are the tasks that

would keep the managing partner of each location

in the office, and not on the floor managing the

restaurant, overseeing staff and keeping the focus

on overall quality.

All GVH restaurants also focus on educating our

staff and engaging with our local communities.

Through training, access to continuing education

programs, and creating a friendly and rewarding

environment, our staff are provided with a place

where they can enjoy working. For our guests, this

means immediate, friendly and courteous service by

well-trained and educated staff.

About Green Valley Hospitality

“If I am not for myself, who is for me? And if I am only for

myself, what am I? And if not now, when?” - Rabbi Hillel

he Wine Cellar at 85 Main has received many

accolades since its opening. The downstairs

function room at 85 Main was completely ren-

ovated in 2015 and is available for private parties,

business meetings, special events

and regular dining when it is not

booked for a private party. Contact

Dawn at 860-928-1660 or send an

email to [email protected] for more

information and available dates.

Book Your Next Event

In The Wine Cellar @

FentOn River Grill

NOW IN THEIR THIRD YEAR!

Find Us on Facebook

GVH Restaurants...

...are open 361 days a year.

...offer many Gluten Free items.

...offer daily vegetarian specials.

...post their Daily Specials on their websites.

...purchase locally grown products all year.

...are on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

...are great places to work and have fun!

“Cheers to a new year and another chance for us to get it

right.” - Oprah Winfrey

“Helping

Clients to

Mind Their

Business.”

“You never have to change anything you got up in the mid-

dle of the night to write.” - Saul Bellow

We Thought You Should Know

ctober 1

of 2019, the State of Connecticut

implemented a new 1% additional Sales Tax

on restaurants. That means the consumer at

restaurants will be paying 7.35% sales tax. The

State has also implemented a 10% Spirit Excise Tax

that will be passed onto restaurants and package

stores in wholesale costs. Not only that, but begin-

ning at the same time, the state Minimum Wage

increased from $10.10 per hour to $11.00 per hour.

It will increase every 11 months by $1.00 until it

reaches $15.00 per hour on June 1

of 2023. In 4

years, this will increase the minimum wage by

48%. This will in turn cause menu prices to

increase a minimum of 25% in that time frame, but

most likely more than that as the increases incurred

by our suppliers are passed along to us as well.

Throughout this time, we will hold true to our com-

mitment to high quality, hand-prepared foods at all

our restaurants. We will implement price increases

throughout this time to keep up with this rapid ris-

ing cost of business. We are completely unsure how

this will play out for our business model.

Live at the Bean

CD Compilation

$10.00

Get One Today!

“Though no one can go back and make a brand new start,

anyone can start from now and make a brand new end-

ing.” - Carl Bard

“We must not allow other people’s limited perceptions to

define us.” - Virginia Satir

“Be who you are and say what you feel, because those

who mind don’t matter and those who matter don’t mind.”

- Bernard M. Baruch

“A greenhouse that makes you go Wow!” - Eileen Jessurun

About... SING:

Quiet Corner Song Swap

Now Happening On-line Via Zoom

After the death of Pete Seeger in 2014, a small group

of his admirers joined together to celebrate his life

with a sing-along concert at the Hampton Grange.

The event was a huge success and gave birth to

SING:The Quiet Corner Song Swap. There is no

charge and lyrics are available for most songs. They

frequently use the folk “hymnal”, Rise Up Singing

and its sequel, Rise Again for song lyrics. Partici-

pants are encouraged to lead their favorite songs or

suggest them to the song leaders of the evening.

Bring your voices, your instruments and your ears.

This is specifically a night for singing, so please, no

fiddle tunes or songs without a place to join in.

email: sally@sallyrogers.com to sign up.

Virtual Open Mic

with Host Peter Lehndorff

Now Happening On-line Via Zoom

We have started the Vanilla Bean Virtual Open Mic

and had our first successful one in June. For the fore-

seeable future we will be getting together using

Zoom as our performing platform. Follow us on

Facebook or join our mailing list to be informed

when the next Open Mic will be hosted. When you

the Zoom meeting and a Zoom password. The per-

formance order will be posted in the chat area.

Everyone will do one song or story or poem and then

time permitting we will go around again. If you are

performing, it is best if you use a computer. Use an

external USB mic or a microphone with a USB inter-

face if you can. There are more options for getting

decent sound from Zoom on a computer. Regardless

of your device be sure you have the latest update of

Zoom.

“Music is the shorthand of emotion.” - Leo Tolstoy

Visit All of Our Restaurants

The Vanilla Bean Café

Pomfret Connecticut

Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

Real Good Whole Food Since 1989

85 Main

Putnam Connecticut

New American Fusion Cusine

Full Bar, Raw Bar, Sushi Bar

Dog Lane Café

Storrs Connecticut

American European Café

Great Food, Coffee Drinks, Desserts

Fenton River Grill

Mansfield Connecticut

New American Comfort Food

Craft Beer, Craft Cocktails

VBC Review Quotables...

“Extremely Tasty” Food - New York Times

“Relaxed” Atmosphere - Boston Globe

“Truly Bizarre” Service - New London Day

“Maybe our sparkle comes from somewhere deeper

inside, somewhere so pure and authentic and real it does-

n’t need gloss or polish or glitter to shine.” - Mandy Hale

“The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot

be seen or even touched. They must be felt with the

heart.” - Helen Keller

Recipe Column

Dr. Kristen Groves & Dr. Kelly Hackett Coderre

Open 7 days a week including Sunday’s

Curried Chicken &Cauliflower

his soup was originally made with swordfish.

It was one of those mornings when I came to

work to find a whole case of cauliflower had

been delivered and swordfish that needed to be

used. Having made a curried cauliflower soup in the

past, I thought how bad could a curried swordfish

and cauliflower be? I made the soup and tweaked it

a bit for balance, and it was what we call a ‘winner’

(for reasons I cannot remember). The addition of the

Thai Chili Sauce is one of those tweaks – I do not

know why I added it, but I found it necessary for a

final balance to the overall flavor. This soup went

on to get rave reviews for numerous customers and

we made it a few more times. However, we do not

often order swordfish anymore and the recipe went

on to the back burner (pun intended). Until one day

we had a lot of chicken that need to be used and we

resurrected the recipe and rewrote if for chicken.

The result was an instant success with many people

asking for the recipe. I hope you enjoy it here.

Ingredients

2 oz Butter

1 oz Bacon fat

(use 1 oz more butter if bacon fat is not available)

1 small onion - diced

5 ribs celery - diced

1 Tablespoon grated garlic

1 Tablespoon McCormick curry powder

3/4 teaspoon cumin

3/4 teaspoon fresh ground coriander

3/4 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1/4 teaspoon turmeric

1 Tablespoon Thai Chili Sauce

2 drops Tabasco

1/4 cup flour

3.5 oz can coconut milk

1.5 quarts chicken stock

1/2 head cauliflower – chopped (½” – ¾”)

12 oz chicken – chopped (chopped ¾”)

2 cups diced tomatoes

Garnish

1/4 cup shredded coconut

1/4 cup chopped scallion

“Self-reverence, self-knowledge, self control — these

three alone lead to power.” - Alfred, Lord Tennyson

“Music in the soul can be heard by the universe.”

- Lao Tzu

Recipe Column

Curried Chicken &Cauliflower

Method

•Cook onion, celery and garlic in butter and bacon fat

•In a separate pan, cook diced chicken until

browned & set aside

•Deglaze chicken pan with ½ cup chicken stock –

reserve liquid

•Add seasonings and stir

•Add flour and mix thoroughly

•Add chicken stock and bring to gentle boil

•Add cauliflower and cook on high 2 minutes

•Add chicken, tomatoes, deglazing liquid, and heat

to 165°

Garnish with coconut and scallion

1. Total Dinner Specials 7425

2. Steak Burger 6361

3. Lunch Specials 4961

4. Total Appetizer Specials 3236

5. Total Sushi Specials 2910

6. DD Caesar 2870

7. California Roll 2141

8. House Salad 2043

9. Cup of Chowder 1956

10. Spicy Tuna Roll 1828

Top Selling

Menu Items

of 2019

Employee Shout Outs

“The mind is everything. What you think you become. ”- Buddha

hat began as a small café in 1989 has gone

on to become a 4-location restaurant group

that has created over 40 full-time jobs and

over 100 part-time positions in the area,

and has employed well over 1000 people since that

time.

Every company is shaped by the culture that is

created by the owner’s vision and daily execution

along with the attitude and passion that employees

bring to the table (pun intended). While it is the own-

ers who make the entire entity possible, it is the

employees who really make our restaurants the stand-

out places that they are, for both the customers and

their fellow employees.

We want to take a few moments here to shout out

to some existing employees and partners who really

make a difference to our organization.

James Martin, our managing partner at 85 Main

began as a dishwasher at the Bean in 1990. He went

on to work many other places until he came back to

us as a manager in 2000. After spending an additional

3 years with us, he moved to Florida to attempt a

restaurant of his own. That did not work out as he

intended, and he returned to Connecticut in 2005 to

open 85 Main with us. Fifteen years on, the place

speaks for itself.

Tiffany Siefert, the General Manager at Dog Lane

Café, began working with us at the Bean in 2004. She

left to work at one of the Casino’s in 2008 and left

there to open her own business in Putnam in 2010.

She came back to work with us when we opened Dog

Lane Café in 2012 and has helped that restaurant with

its success.

Scott Fredrich, our Head Chef at Dog Lane Café,

began working at the Bean in 2008. And worked with

us for 3 years before moving into a Head Chef posi-

tion with a new restaurant closer to his home. He

came back to us in 2012 to help open Dog Lane Café.

He was also as our startup Head Chef at Fenton River

Grill for its first year of operation and then transi-

tioned back to Dog Lane Café because he liked the

fast-paced style of service that we offer at that loca-

tion.

Steve Smith joined our organization as a manag-

ing partner at Dog Lane Café, and he brought with

him a wealth of experience for his 20+ years with a

restaurant group in Mystic. Steve was instrumental in

..it is our employees who really

make our restaurants the

standout places that they are...

Employee Shout Outs

“Who are we but the stories we tell oruselves, about our-

selves, and believe?” - Scott Turow

the start up of Dog Lane Café and is now the manag-

ing partner of our newest location in Mansfield, Fen-

ton River Grill, that opened in 2018. Steve still over-

sees the operations at Dog Lane Café and you will

see him at both locations throughout the week.

Donna Ayres LaPointe has been our bookkeeper

since 1999. She makes it look easy handling the

books for 4 restaurants and 2 property accounts – all

in a part-time capacity.

While this space is too small to shout out to all of

our employees who have helped us become what we

are today, we want mention a few more here; Jennifer

Coomey, current Chef at the Bean who began work-

ing with us in 1997 and has worked for us on and off

both at the Bean and 85 Main throughout that time.

Lynn Poulin, lead server at 85 Main has been with us

since day 1 of the operation (2005). Diane Petre, head

of maintenance at 85 Main (2005). Dawn Hehir,

Event Coordinator and day bartender at 85 Main

(2008). Eric Marrish, Head Chef at 85 Main has

worked with us at that location on and off since 2006.

Sarah Matteau, Restaurant Manager at the Bean

(2015). Zack Brown, Sous Chef at 85 Main began

working with us at the Bean in 2004. We thank and

appreciate you all, and all those employees we have

enjoyed working with over our 30+ years in business.

Specail thanks to Kayla (Murphy) Densmore, who

just left us in March to begin a new job with better

benefits and possible carrer advancement. She began

with us as a babysitter when she was 13 years old.

She began working at the Cafe in 2002. In 2006 she

transitioned to 85 Main to be the Bar Manager. She

left that position to become the Restaurant Manager

at the Bean in 2010. She had been functioning as the

GM of the Bean for the past few years and acted as a

Regional Manager for all the other restaurants due to

her vast knowledge of operations. She was able to

function in just about every position at all the restau-

rants. Kayla is like family to us, she has been a huge

asset to our operations and a great advocate for all of

our staff - she will be missed dearly.

“Creativity is intelligence having fun!”

- Albert Einstein.

The

Vanilla Bean

Café

Connecticut’s

Best Country Café

Weekend Breakfast

full breakfast menu is served Saturday and Sunday

from 8:00 am - 12:00 noon. We offer a variety of spe-

cials including recent items like Bayou Scallop Benedict,

Roasted Mushroom Omelet, and Almond Joy Pancakes.

We use only 100% local maple syrup.

Entertainment

he Café is on the National Folk Music Circuit and

attracts talent from all over the United States while

featuring mainly New England performers. The majority

of the shows are on Saturday night and start at 7:30 pm.

Our Open Mic night is on the first Friday of each month.

During shows, a theatre curtain separates the listening

room from the tiled dining room and kitchen in an effort

to keep the music in and the kitchen noise out.

The Artwork Gallery

he Café displays artwork by local artists year round.

Some shows have openings and some do not. Most of

the artwork displayed is for sale and often prices are listed

with the piece or on a list located in the room. One hun-

dred percent of the sale price goes to the artist.

July – Nancy Barrett

August – Suzie Grassic

September – Laureen Hylka

Dinner

e are open for dinner Wednesday - Sunday. Each

night we run four or five dinner specials. Recent

items include: Seared Duck Breast, Thai Shrimp Bowl,

Seared Scallops, and Roasted Mushroom Mac’ n Cheese.

We offer a truly quality dinner at a great price, in a warm

and friendly atmosphere. If you haven’t tried us for dinner

yet, it’s time you did.

“Keep love in your heart. A life without it is like a sunless

garden when the flowers are dead.” - Oscar Wilde

“Imagination is everything. It is the preview of life’s com-

ing attractions.” - Albert Einstein

Goings on ... at The Bean

The Café Cash Card

he first Café Cash Card was introduced in 1997.

The appearance of the card has changed since

then, but our card still works like the gift cards

available in most stores today. Café Cash Cards can be

purchased in any amount at the restaurant or online and

are reloadable -

add to the card

balance at any

time! Cards can

be used to pur-

chase any menu

item at Vanilla

Bean Cafe. Note:

A bonus of 10%

is added to the card balance when you purchase a

card for $200 or more*. The card must be presented to

redeem it at the time of purchase. The Café Cash Card

makes a great gift for friends and family members and

is ideal for students at the local schools. Café Cash

Cards have no expiration date. *VBC only

“Success comes not from having certainty, but from being

able to live with uncertainty.” - Jeffrey Fry

$9.95

Our Pricing Practices*

1. Sales Tax Included - Our prices include the

6.35% Connecticut Sales Tax + the 1% Restaurant Tax.

The prices listed on the menu are exactly what you pay.

Our prices may seem to be inflated; however, a $14.00

menu item is actually $13.04 + $.96 sales tax. Further-

more, this practice makes it easier for the customer, espe-

cially if that customer is a child who has exact change for

a cookie. What you see is exactly what you pay - what

could be simpler?

2. Not Market Standard Pricing - We are not

trying to fool the customer into thinking that $11.95 is

less expensive than $12.00. We find this type of pricing

insulting to our customers. However, the reason it is

used so extensively around the nation is that it works

effectively. We don’t like that practice, and we also like

to believe that our clientele is not so easily fooled.

3. No Pennies, Dimes or Nickels - Because our

prices include tax and we do not price in the standard

way, we do not have to use pennies, dimes or nickels.

This is a service to both the customer and to us. We

don’t give you lots of change, and we only have to use

quarters and fifty-cent pieces. This also helps our staff to

be more efficient performing transactions, which saves

time and money. An added bonus is that we don’t have

to count change at the end of the business day.

*The Vanilla Bean Café & Dog Lane Café only

This space is always reserved for our upcoming

concerts. Due to Social Distancing restrictions we

will have LIVE shows without audiences happening

in the music venue at the Bean this quarter.

Depending on what guidelines are issued by the

State, we may or may not have Live Entertainment

for the remainder of the year. We do have shows

booked through December, but they are all tentative

at this point. We plan to continue with Live Enter-

tainment in the future. In the meantime, we are

experimenting with broadcasting some con-

certs via FACEBOOK LIVE during the next

quarter.

So, we will be hosting what we call the

Wish You Were Here Concert Series. These

are LIVE concerts performed at The Vanilla Bean,

WITHOUT A LIVE AUDIENCE. They will be

broadcast LIVE simultaneously on FACEBOOK

LIVE. At the time of this publication, we produced

one of these events with Don White to benefit the

Pomfret Food Pantry. Our open mike happened via

ZOOM in June and we will host a second ZOOM

Open Mike on Monday July 13th with Peter Lehn-

dorff and Maria Sangiolo. You must sign up on our

email list to receive the Zoom ID and password.

Maria Sangiolo will present a LIVE virtual con-

All Facebook LIVE Wish You Were Here Concerts will start at 7:30 pm

Friday, July 10

Sing: Quiet Corner Song Swap with Sally Rogers and Friends, Zoom only

email: sally@sallyrogers.com to sign up

Monday, July 13

ZOOM open mike with Peter Lehndorf & Maria Sangiolo 7:00 pm.

Tuesday, July 14

Facebook LIVE Wish You Were Here Concert with Maria Sangiolo

Tuesday, July 21

Facebook LIVE Wish You Were Here Concert with Kala Farnham

Tuesday, July 28

Facebook LIVE Wish You Were Here Concert with Howie Bursen & Sally Rogers

Tuesday, August 18

Facebook LIVE Wish You Were Here Concert with Sally Rogers

Saturday, September 5

Facebook LIVE Wish You Were Here Concert with Atwater-Donnelly

~ Saturday, September 12

Tret Fure, TBA, if we can be in the room~

~ Saturday, September 19

Pierce Pettis, TBA if we can be in the room~

Saturday September 26

Facebook LIVE Wish You Were Here Concert with

Claudia Schmidt & Sally Rogers

cert on Tuesday, July 14th and Kala Farnham will

celebrate the release of her new CD streaming LIVE

on Tuesday, July 21st. Sally Rogers will also stream

live from the Bean performing a kids concert on

Tuesday August 18th.

Please be sure to sign up on The Vanilla Bean

Mailing List from our website www.thevanillabean-

cafe.com or follow us on Facebook to learn more

about any shows we will present in the late summer

and early fall.

The Wish You Were Here Concert Series

will take place on Tuesday nights. All will be

marketed through email and Facebook, as

well as being listed on our online calendar on

our website. They will all be 1 hour or less in

length and be Free to anyone who wants to tune in

and watch them. Donations will be accepted and

there will be links that will allow patrons to make

donations to the artists or any benefit that we may

include as part of the show. These links will allow

you to pay via PayPal, Venmo or other possible pay-

ment methods.

These shows will be broadcast with FACE-

BOOK LIVE and possibly be posted later to our

YouTube channel. Please find The Vanilla Bean

Café on YouTube and subscribe to our Channel.

What’s Happening at The Bean...

Wish You Were Here Concert Series

P O Box 206

Pomfret CT 06258