The historic building at 222 Hillspoint Road in Westport will re-open this summer with a new restaurant concept by TGB Hospitality Group, The Granola Bar's parent company.
Located in the heart of Old Mill Beach, one of Westport’s residential coastal neighborhoods, the original Old Mill Grocery and Deli has been operating continuously (under different names, including Elvira’s) for more than 103 years, making it the oldest food establishment in Westport, and perhaps all of Fairfield County.
The future of the historic building was at stake until a group of lifelong and longtime community members, led by Jim Hood, Ian Warburg, and Chris Tait, stepped in to lead a grass-roots effort to acquire and preserve the building in early 2022, via the formation of Soundview Empowerment Alliance (SEA).
"Once the building was acquired, it was critical to find a restaurant operator who shares in our mission not only to preserve the history of the building, but also to provide inclusive job training and employment opportunities. We met with more than a dozen potential operators and the TGB team was the obvious choice," Jim explained.
Ian added, “We couldn’t have done this without the extraordinary support of our amazing community, and we are both excited and delighted to be partnering with the incredibly talented folks at TGB Hospitality Group in pursuit of our mission of preserving history and serving good.”
"The dual mission of holding on to the history and spirit of the building, coupled with providing inclusive training and employment opportunities, is of the utmost importance to us," said Dana Noorily, Co-founder and Co-CEO of TGB Hospitality Group. "We're thrilled to introduce elevated beach food and a beautiful market to Compo Beach, offering fresh daily bread, coffee, fresh flowers, household essentials, and state-of-the art technology to create a streamlined ordering experience."
The new restaurant and market will operate under the name Old Mill Grocery & Deli, a nod to the original name of the building. Julie Mountain, Co-founder and Co-CEO of TGB Hospitality Group, added, "We are incredibly excited about this new venture and believe our loyal customers who know and love The Granola Bar will be delighted to experience a new concept delivered with the same love and attention they expect at our flagship store in Westport.”
For more information visit www.oldmillgrocery.com