The Village Pantry Brings Locally Produced Food Back to Freeville, Grand Opening September 21st

Matt Brooks: Matt Brooks here on X101 Always Classic, and with me in the studio today is Brianne Grobauer, owner of The Village Pantry, a brand-new business coming to Main Street in Freeville. First off, Brianne, thank you for joining me today.

Brianne Grobauer: Thanks for having me in.

Matt Brooks: It’s always great to hear of a new local business putting down its roots in a small town like Freeville. Can you tell me the story about The Village Pantry?

Brianne Grobauer: Once I learned that Amy Dixon, my landlord, had a vision of bringing food back to Freeville, I knew that I wanted to be part of that. I’ve seen firsthand how much the community supports the farmer’s market, and I’ve had a bunch of people mention how much they miss having the farmer’s market during the off-season. So I started thinking, why not bring some of the farmer’s market feeling into a brick-and-mortar space and make locally grown and produced goods available to the community all year round?

Matt Brooks: You mentioned the Freeville Farmers Market. The Village Pantry wasn’t your first step into the Freeville community. You’re part of the Freeville Farmers Market—you’re a vendor. How has your perspective changed as you transition from being a weekly vendor to opening this brick-and-mortar store that’s going to be open daily?

Brianne Grobauer: Opening a brick-and-mortar has made me think much more broadly about how I can create a space that supports not only my own farm and bakery business, but other local farms and producers as well. The farmer’s market really showed me how much people value knowing where their food comes from and knowing who raised the animals or tended to the gardens of the meat and produce that they’re consuming. The Village Pantry has shifted my perspective simply from being a once-a-week vendor to really thinking about how I can make local food more readily available to the community throughout the year.

Matt Brooks: You mentioned that you’re going to have these local products. What kind of products and services will The Village Pantry offer? Because this is right on Main Street. I take the route every day to come here to the station, and you’re within walking distance to the school. It’s a great location. When people pop into the pantry, what can they expect to see?

Brianne Grobauer: On the bakery side of things, we’ll have breads, bagels, pretzels, Austrian 

pastries, stuffed cookies, and individual breakfast items like cinnamon rolls and breakfast stuffers. I’m bringing some Texas kolaches to Central New York. And then, of course, we’ll have coffee. On the grocery side of things, we will have meats, produce, dairy, and eggs from farms in the area. We’ll also carry honey, maple syrup, fermented foods, jams, seasoning blends, oils, vinegars, soaps, and tallow products from other local producers. So there will be a little bit of everything, and we’re really excited to bring all of the local products together under one roof.

Matt Brooks: It’ll be great, because you’ll have the parents that are walking their kids to school grab a cup of Joe on their way in or on their way out. But if you need those last couple eggs for the recipe that you needed, The Village Pantry is right there. Now, your soft opening is planned for September 14th, and the grand opening event is planned for Monday, September 21st. Can you tell me about that?

Brianne Grobauer: Yes. We’re excited to not just have a soft opening, but to have a big event in the community and bring everybody together. We will have door prizes with baskets filled with products from our vendors, so anyone who comes in during the grand opening event can enter their name into a drawing to get one of these baskets. We will also have a food truck set up outside so people can order dinner, come inside, check out what the pantry has to offer, and shop while they’re waiting for their food to be done.

Matt Brooks: It’s great to hear that it’s going to be an evening thing, being a weekday, because it starts at 5:00, right?

Brianne Grobauer: Yes, 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Monday, September 21st.

Matt Brooks: What better way to cap… I mean, Mondays are already Mondays. If you’re especially like me, who drives through Freeville every day, stop on by The Village Pantry Monday the 21st. Check out the grand opening event of The Village Pantry, see what local goods there are, and check out this brand-new, locally owned business that’s going to be in the heart of Freeville. Brianne, thank you for stopping in and talking about this brand-new venture for you, and I’m looking forward to stopping in.

Brianne Grobauer: Thanks, Matt.

Matt Brooks: This is Matt Brooks on X101 Always Classic.