Community Corner
NO ANCHOR food market to open in Noank
New business in the former Sherman's, Co-Op and Universal Store location
The following article is based upon a full feature in today's New London DAY, by E. Moser. For more info, go to theday.com
Groton — Amy Sarcia's Buddhist faith teaches
that coincidence means you're on the right path, and so a few events
leading up to the opening of her new market in Noank seemed auspicious.
There was the discovery that her landlord at the 17 Pearl St. site, Steve
Jones, had written a book about her great-uncle, Capt. Lawrence Malloy.
Then there was the synchronicity with which she and chef Andrew Fine
thought of a name for the market. Settling on No Anchor Fine Food & Provisions arose from thinking about the epithet for the locals: Noankers."We love that term, but we didn't want to use that, so No Anchor fits in
perfectly," Sarcia said, "and also it's kind of symbolic that with no
anchor, you can go wherever you want to go."
No Anchor will carry fresh produce, meat, seafood and
dairy, along with prepared foods. Sarcia, who also owns 2Wives Brick
Oven Pizza in New London, is aiming to open No Anchor this weekend. She
can "pretty much guarantee" that the store will be selling groceries by
the weekend but isn't positive about the timeline for prepared foods.
She expects the summer hours to be 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. seven days a week.
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Sarcia said that Noank and area residents "need to know they have their place
to come to get their milk, eggs and bread, and not necessarily just a
grinder."
Sarcia'family grew up in Noank, and the "everybody-knows-everybody" vibe was evident in Sarcia's mother knowing many people who attended the open house for No Anchor this past weekend.She also saw longtime locals getting to know new locals while sitting at the long community table.
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Sarcia knew Fine from working under him in catering. After seven years as chef at Mystic Seaport, he opened a restaurant in New Haven. Fine will make grinders, fresh salads and daily dinner specials.
Sarcia will be working with the Rhode Island-based wholesaler Belmont Market,
which works with a lot of local farms. Seafood will come from Sea Well
Seafood in Stonington, and shellfish from the Noank Aquaculture Cooperative. She also hopes to "do more than just be the local grocer" by holding community events, such as cooking classes or a movie night.
