The Community of Vintage Restaurant
Colchester is a seemingly sleepy little town, located in New London County, but there’s a lot happening here when you look a bit closer. There are multiple lakes in the area which attract so many people over the summer that the population nearly doubles. And, the area is home to over 60 registered farms along with bakers, coffee roasters, cheese mongers, and other makers.
That last point is largely why Chef Tim Marotto chose Colchester to open his first restaurant, Vintage, in a small but welcoming space that lies within the oldest building in the Colchester historical district. Importantly, it’s also right across the street from the city park where the green market takes place throughout the season. Not surprising when you realize that fresh is what Tim and Vintage are all about.
At Vintage Tim has set out to create a simple, yet incredibly delicious menu made of the best foods he can find. All sourced in Connecticut and most within minutes of the restaurant. In the process he has truly created a community of farmers and makers that share his farm fresh vision.
While Tim originally wanted to do only “high-end” dishes, he realized his passion is making fresh food everyone can afford and enjoy. Because he loves tacos. Really loves tacos. And burgers are a staple now as well. “It’s kind of what we’re known for,” he says.
These are not ordinary tacos or burgers though. Every dish reflects Tim’s commitment to local food. Those tacos are wrapped in corn tortillas he makes fresh every day. The first taco we try is a mushroom taco, the corn shell crisped but still pliable, never deep fried. It’s covered with oyster mushrooms from Seacoast Mushrooms, which are seared quickly in rendered brisket fat, and grilled onions from Cugno’s Farm in Colchester.
The next taco? “That’s literally a ham and cheese taco!” he says excitedly. “The smoked ham is from JT Farms and the Black Ledge Blue cheese is from nearby Cato Corner Farm. It’s one of the cheeses we will always have in here no matter what. There’s a lot of thought in everything they do. The mold they use for the cheese is a gluten free mold.”
The burger too, is sublime. “Great taste isn’t mind-boggling when you use fresh food,” Tim says earnestly. Hamburger meat from JT Farm. Lettuce and onion from Provider Farm. Pickled beets, Blue Oyster and Shitake mushrooms from Maggie’s Farm, and of course, Black Ledge Blue cheese from Cato and buns from Red Rose Desserts in Colchester.”
Even the coffee is so fresh it’s a whole new taste. It comes from Craftsman Cliff Roasters down Route 2 in Norwich. “The way Matt talks about coffee and the roasting is so well thought out. He’s really passionate about what he makes and you can tell with every cup.
Lest you think this is a burger joint…don’t be fooled. The menu at Vintage changes every day based on what’s available. And there are often surprises. For example, “When tomatoes started popping a while back we went to get tomatoes. But the farm’s chickens had gotten out and pecked every single tomato. We had to change the menu up. Funny things like that happen a lot. And this morning, somebody came by and dropped off goose and duck eggs for us to try. We’ll do something with that. I’ve never even had a goose egg!”
What’s really telling is how Tim can’t talk about his menu or his food without constantly noting the providence of everything. It’s what sets the food apart but it also sets Tim apart. He thinks not in terms of providers or suppliers but of family and a supportive community. A community of people, connected to the land, who care deeply about sustainability and strive consistently to improve their products. And he puts them all front and center, on his menu, on his Instagram, and in his own words.
On our first visit Tim was basting a huge brisket he had been working on since 6:00 am. “It’s a whole brisket from JT Farms. I use them a lot. I go through about a cow a month. In the pot are also Asian pears from Easy Pickin’s Orchard, and the rainbow carrots and celery root are from Provider Farms. Now I’m just basting it on the stove to get those fats rendered down. Then I’ll put it back in and roast it down some more. I won’t serve it tonight. I’ll separate the burnt ends for tacos and then probably a brisket entrée with the pureed vegetables.”
For dinner service the next night Chef Tim was also looking forward to 28-day dry aged steaks from JT Farms. A more recent menu included “Suhm Life Farm roasted chicken broth with chicken liver pate, ground lamb meatballs in Cato Corner Dutch Farmstead cream sauce, and Cold Spring Farm pasture raised pork loin chop with hunter’s stew and house ground mustard.”
“A lot of people might be intimidated by the menu descriptions and expect higher prices, or even worry about what they should wear when they come for dinner,” he says. “But heck, I wear shorts and t-shirts year- round. We just want you to be comfortable.”
It helps that he lives nearby because family is important to Chef Tim. He says his wife Alicia is “the brains of the business” but don’t let him fool you…he knows the exact cost of every egg and every piece of brisket. You can’t be frugal when cooking with ingredients of this quality but you have to be smart as well to stay in business. “You have this idea of what you should be doing when you’re younger, but you figure out quick that you need to make what pays the bills too. We’re a customer driven business so we ultimately have to make what customers want.”
At the heart of it, Tim is really trying to create dishes that taste like food is supposed to taste. With some additional flair of course. “I feel like a lot of those flavors have been lost. I’m not a modernist chef. I went to culinary school in ‘96 when people were plating things big and tall. It wasn’t my thing. I use my grandmother’s cookbooks! ”
The genesis of the name Vintage can be seen in the restaurant’s dishes and cutlery which also come from Tim’s grandmother as well as his brother’s mother-in-law. But as your meal is served, you realize it’s really the food that influenced the name.
Reflecting his mission, Tim says, “One of the biggest complements is when I have like an 80 year-old woman or an 80 year-old gentleman tell me that their meal reminds them of their childhood. For me, that’s amazing because I feel like that’s what has been lost over the years.”
Vintage, indeed.
Chef Tim’s community of farmers and makers:
Cato Corner Farm - Colchester
Cold Spring Farm - Colchester
Craftsman Cliff Roasters - Norwich
Cugnos Farm - Colchester
Doughluv - Colchester
Easy Pickin’s Orchard - Enfield
JT Farm - Ellington
Little Acre Orchard - Glastonbury
Maggies Farm - Lebanon
Mystery Farm 2 - Salem
Mystic Cheese Co - Groton
Provider Farm - Salem
Red Rose Desserts - Colchester
Redneck Gourmet Donuts - Colchester
Seacoast Mushrooms - Mystic
Sugar Maple Farm - Lebanon
Tiny Acre Farm - Woodstock
Brittney @JTFarms - “I enjoy working with Tim, he really understands the the need to be versatile with his menu in order to support the local farming community. He is creative and inventive which is helpful on my end. I can sell him a variety of different cuts and not be pigeon-holed to just a few select items. One of the best things about our relationship is that get to put my dry age coller to use for someone other than myself! Time loves our 54+ day dry aged ribeye and strips, that I butcher in-house for him, exclusively for Vintage. There is nothing better than knowing where your food comes from, how it was raised, and that it lived the best life. My farming practices fit in perfectly with Tim’s mission: Fresh, local, natural, and sustainably raised.”
Matt @CraftsmanCliffRoasters - “Being a great chef is more than just being in the kitchen. It’s about getting out into your community. There is nobody I’ve seen do it better than Chef Tim. He spends the time to locally source the love he provides on the plate each night. I look forward to his visit every week.”
Vintage is located at 16 Main Street in Colchester.
Follow Chef Tim on Instagram @cheftim_m and the restaurant @vintagelocalct
