Seasoned Books & Bakery Expands

"The marriage of food and books has been well received at Seasoned Books and Bakery in Rochester," says co-owner Larry Plesent. Located at 30 North Main St., the locally-owned book business and bakery/café is open seven days a week.

Co-owner Sandy Lincoln started the business in 1996, after completing a long tenure in the book business at the Northshire Bookstore in Manchester Center. Branching off on her own, Lincoln’s new business concentrated on sustainable agriculture and homesteading skills and sold largely at conferences on agriculture, food politics, renewable energy, etc.

The business expanded into retail sales at the Rochester location in 2001, where it is housed in an old 19^th century building, offering three rooms filled with new, used and old books on all subjects. The bakery opened in 2006 in partnership with Vermont Soapworks entrepreneur Plesent, who is also Lincoln’s husband. They are currently refurbishing an additional 250 sq. ft. section of the building for an expanded book inventory.

The new space will allow expanded sections for children’s books, fiction, history and science. New sidelines made by Vermont manufacturers will also be stocked, such as wooden toys and games made by Maple Landmark in Middlebury, wool felting and spinning kits for kids by Singing Spindles out of Duxbury, dramatic handmade masks by Eric Reagan from Brattleboro, and numerous greeting card lines by local artists.

"Sustainable agriculture and rural enterprise is still our main focus," says Lincoln. "In fact, it has been a very natural development to include the bakery component, because it gives us the opportunity to purchase produce and ingredients from local growers and producers, thereby, putting our money where our mouth is, literally!"

Plesent notes that Seasoned Books & Bakery has a strong commitment to buying local. They contract with a number of Rochester and White River Valley farms for meat, honey, eggs, maple syrup, and produce, use Strafford Organic Creamery milk in all their baking and espresso bar hot drinks, and serve Vermont Coffee Roasters’ coffee and tea blended by Vermont Liberty Tea Co. They are members of the Vermont Fresh Network, Local Vermont, Rural Vermont, NOFA, VABA and NEIBA.

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