What's Going On: Popover Eatery to inhabit a prime spot in Mystic
Aug. 20—For all of those wondering when the old Grass & Bone building in Mystic would finally be filled, I've got a hot news tip: the Simsbury restaurant Popover Bistro & Bakery, soon to be rebranded as Popover Eatery, will be opening its second location there in November.
The 1,500-square-foot building at 24 E. Main St. on the Stonington side of Mystic has been vacant for a year and a half now in a prime spot with parking near the Mystic River Bridge. Ever since Grass & Bone closed, building owner James Castle has been looking for just the right fit, and Popover Eatery co-owner Pam Paydos has been negotiating to move her breakfast-and-lunch place into Mystic, this month with business partner Sara Allan signing a five-year lease with options to stay up to 20 years, she told me Thursday in a phone interview.
"I've always loved the shoreline," Paydos said, adding that she plans to move to the Mystic area. "I think it will be a good fit."
Judi Caracausa, now an associate broker at William Pitt Sotheby's Realty, said she arranged this deal through her previous firm, Market Realty LLC, which recently merged with Sotheby's. Caracausa said owner Castle was not interested in selling the building, though many people asked about it.
"In all of my 37 years in business, I never had so many calls on a property," she said in an email. "It was not an easy decision to select the actual tenant as there were many good candidates."
Paydos noted that before Grass & Bone moved in for five years, the building had served as a bagel place and a doughnut shop. Her restaurant would be a similar kind of place, though the rebranding will take out references to bistro and bakery.
"We're not really a bistro or a bakery," Paydos said, explaining the reason for the rebranding. "We make amazing breakfasts and lunches all day long."
While Popover Eatery does make its own scones, muffins and the like, it is not a full-fledged bakery offering cakes. And while its small 44-seat space would qualify it as a bistro, it offers a more complex menu than would normally be associated with that moniker.
While the restaurant makes popovers all day, the flaky delicacies are used largely as the vessel for various sandwiches, including scrambled eggs and corned beef. One of the favorite menu items, she said, is their Belgian waffles.
But for those on a diet, there is lighter fare as well, including salads.
"We're really focused on healthful eating," she said. "A lot of our menu is gluten free. We do vegan as well."
Paydos started her restaurant career running the Iron Frog Tavern in Simsbury, where she now lives. She later decided to simplify her life by starting Popover Bistro & Bakery, which she has run for nine years, opening at 8 a.m. and closing at 3 p.m.
She expects the Mystic restaurant will have extended hours, perhaps from 7-5. It will also have a liquor license, serving beer and wine as well as light cocktails such as mimosas, spritzers and bloody marys.
She will offer outside dining, curbside pickup and a grab-and-go area. A kiosk set up outside will allow people to order, continue shopping and then be informed via text that their food is ready.
Paydos said it will take a while to remodel the building to suit her needs, and there is a lead time of six to eight weeks to order the all-new equipment she needs. She has already started recruiting the 10 to 15 employees she will need to run the shop.
Opening in November may not be optimal from a purely business point of view, as she will miss the high season that runs through September. But Paydos said the November opening will allow her to work out the kinks.
Anyway, business these days always seems to be good in Mystic all year round.
"It just never slows down," she said. "I think we'll be good."
Lee Howard is The Day's business editor. Reach him with story ideas, tips and suggestions at l.howard@theday.com.
