Copper Kettle To Go opens in Wilton
Chris and Megan Gordon really want you to feel at home inside their new Wilton cafe — they’ve even added their own kitchen table to the main dining space. But Copper Kettle To Go in Wilton, which quietly opened its doors on Sept. 17, is more than just a cafe. It’s also a grocery shop offering take-and-bake meals and a downstairs taphouse featuring a rotation of local brews.
Even though much of their preparation for the new cafe has taken place amid the pandemic, Chris Gordon said he and his wife, who previously owned the Copper Kettle Bakery in Brookline, have taken it in stride. After all, their mission from the beginning was to bring families back together around the dinner table at home with their offerings, which include pastas and sauces, fresh baked goods, spinach pie and other comfort meals.
“We wanted to bring something to the community here that we knew we were missing,” he said. “It’s difficult to find fresh vegetables that are already prepared and food that’s cooked in heartier meals, or just basic things like a nice homemade spaghetti sauce. … I think that one of the things with Covid that’s actually been almost a positive thing for us was that it taught people that our business model can exist and that it can be strong.”
If you’re visiting the space, which is directly across from the Wilton Town Hall Theatre on Main Street, just to shop, you don’t have to leave the upstairs level of the cafe. There are several designated areas across the space, including for raw meats, fresh produce, and seasonings and spices. A refrigerated case is stocked with prepared dinners in 8×8 or 13×9-sized pans (including comfort items like macaroni and cheese and chicken pot pie), plus dairy products like butter and cream and a small selection of canned beers. Across the room, a pantry section features various nonperishables like boxed pastas and rice.
“The floor plan was designed in a free-flowing path, with signs above that categorize everything, sort of similar to a grocery store,” Gordon said.
But if you’re sitting down to enjoy a meal, there’s space for that too. Gordon said a few lunch and dinner menu items are available for diners of either the upstairs cafe or downstairs taphouse. They’ll likely change all the time, with a few constant offerings, like the Bennington Railrolls, named after the Milford-Bennington Railroad behind the building.
“They are steak and cheese egg rolls served with a garlic aioli, and they’ve been our leading seller,” he said. “Nearly every customer ordered them when they came in the first week.”
Other recent items have included loaded baked potato soup; shepherd’s pie; a grilled vegetable sandwich on a sub roll, served with summer squash, zucchini, peppers, onions and mayonnaise; a pulled pork sandwich on a sesame seed bun with barbecue sauce from Tim’s Drunken Sauces & Rubs; a BLT with hand-cut smoky bacon, lettuce and tomato, served on rye or white bread; and a pot belly burrito with cilantro lime rice, wrapped and smothered in enchilada sauce with cheese and house espinaca on top.
“We’ll roll something out all the time that’s new, fresh and exciting,” Gordon said. “We’re big-time foodies, and we love nothing more than to bring something new in. So you can expect the menu to change quite frequently.”
Visitors can also venture downstairs to the taphouse, which includes additional seating on wooden bar tables Gordon built himself. Eight taplines, many representing local breweries like Henniker Brewing Co., Laughing Crow Beer in Amherst, 603 Brewery in Londonderry, Concord Craft Brewing Co. and the Contoocook Cider Co., are expected to rotate periodically.
“We’ll definitely keep the juicier IPAs in here, and then maybe bring out some porters or stouts in the winter months and some more lighter stuff as we get warmer again, to really match the seasons,” Gordon said. “Just like our food menu, it will be a really free-flowing kind of thing.”
A door from the taphouse leads outside to a deck overlooking the Souhegan River. Gordon said both the taphouse and the deck are also available to rent for private events or functions.
Copper Kettle To Go
Where: 39 Main St., Wilton
Hours: Wednesday, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., and Thursday through Sunday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Visit: copperkettletogo.com
Featured photo: Loaded baked potato soup. Photo courtesy of Copper Kettle To Go.