The space at 88 Elm Street has been a lot of things over the years — a hardware store, a butcher, most recently a specialty grocery that closed in 2023. As of this week, it is a restaurant: The Root & Acre, which opened its doors on Thursday to a nearly full house and a menu that reads like a letter to the local farming community.

Chef and co-owner Leon Stroud spent the past two years developing relationships with eleven farms and two local meat suppliers within a 90-mile radius. Their names appear on the menu in small print beside each dish — a deliberate choice, he says, not a marketing exercise.

“People have no idea how close their food can be,” Stroud said, standing beside an open kitchen that dominates the rear of the dining room. “The arugula on that plate was in the ground three days ago, twenty miles from here. I want people to understand that’s actually possible.”

The menu changes weekly based on what is available. Thursday night’s opening service featured roasted root vegetables with whey-cured butter, a pork shoulder from a family farm two counties over, a mushroom broth with hand-torn pasta, and a dessert of warm apple cake with sorghum cream — the sorghum sourced from a small processor the team discovered at a regional food fair last fall.

The Space

The 1,800-square-foot room seats 54 diners at a mix of four-tops and a long communal bar that faces the open kitchen. The renovation preserved much of the original pressed tin ceiling and exposed brick, and a local woodworker fabricated the tables from reclaimed oak salvaged from a barn demolition.

The design is spare without being cold — warm lighting, plain linen, no ambient music during service. Stroud calls it an “eating environment, not an experience.”

Co-owner Preethi Ramesh, who handles the business side and front of house, said the space was intentionally designed to let the food lead.

“We didn’t want anything competing with what’s on the plate,” Ramesh said. “The room should disappear.”

Sourcing and Pricing

Entrees range from $22 to $34, which Stroud acknowledges is at the upper end for the local market. He attributes this directly to sourcing costs.

“When you pay a farmer a fair price, it shows up in your food cost,” he said. “We’re not apologizing for that. We’re trying to explain it.”

The restaurant is currently open Wednesday through Sunday for dinner service. Lunch is planned for summer once the team is settled in.

Local Roots

Stroud grew up in the region, left for culinary training and spent a decade working in kitchens in two larger cities before returning three years ago. He says the return came with clarity about what he wanted to do.

“I know these farmers. I know their kids. When I use their product, it means something different than when it was just a vendor relationship,” he said.

Reservations for the next two weekends filled within 48 hours of the website going live, according to Ramesh. Walk-in bar seating will remain available.