Iconic Sudbury Store, Duck Soup Celebrates 55 Years In Mill Village

SUDBURY, MA — A small business that opened in Sudbury's Mill Village Shopping Center back in 1971 is set to celebrate its 55th anniversary later this year.

Duck Soup, which was opened by Richard Ressler and Jim Barisano decades ago, is still thriving in town. The store, which sells unique coffee, food, gifts, and the almost-defunct Sky Bar, has been a longtime staple for residents of Sudbury.

Louise Mawhinney, a former biotech CFO who moved to Sudbury from Scotland in 1985, took over Duck Soup in 2014. The gourmet store on Boston Post Road offers unique goods from local artisans and international ones.

“People are now starting to say to us, I can't find that anywhere online,” Mawhinney told Patch. “The best way to shop is really to come in and browse and just be open to trying new things.”

Related: Beloved Sudbury Bookstore Begins Next Chapter Under New Ownership

A staple at Duck Soup is their coffee, available in a wide variety of flavors. Mawhinney said before the Sky Bar, Duck Soup's own coffee blend was the best-selling item for 50 years.

Duck Soup is a family-run business. Mawhinney’s son, Frank, who works at the store as a manager, is also the production manager for its sister company, Sky Bar Candy Co.

Sky Bar

Sky Bar, the first chocolate bar with multiple flavored centers: caramel, vanilla, peanut, and fudge, was first invented in 1938 by the New England Confectionery Company.

Now, nearly 90 years later, Duck Soup is the only manufacturer of the original Sky Bar, and the candy bar is the only NECCO product still made in New England.

"One of the reasons that the candy companies did not take it over is it's quite hard to make a candy bar with four different centers because they've all got to be at the same viscosity and temperature, or else it'll just burst through the chocolate," said Mawhinney. "So it took us a while to learn that, but now I think we're pretty much on a roll, and I have a fantastic team."

Related: Sudbury High Schoolers Launch Program To Teach Younger Students About Coding

Classes, Afternoon Tea

Duck Soup is home to Hallmark cards, toys, puzzles, and novelty sweet treats, and offers cooking classes and British afternoon tea. Mawhinney told Patch that she got a liquor license for the store in 2015.

Drawing on her experience, Mawhinney shares her background and memories of tea with her aunts while growing up. Participants have the opportunity to make tea, thin cucumber sandwiches, and "millionaire shortbread", a cake topped with caramel and chocolate.

“We make those three things in the class,” Mawhinney told Patch. “The participants sit down, and they eat what they've made, and it's just a delightful class.”

Those hands-on classes are held once every six weeks and accommodate only eight people.

The Store's 55th Anniversary

Now, Duck Soup is set to celebrate its 55th anniversary this summer.

While Mawhinney said they don’t yet have concrete plans for the anniversary, several events are scheduled at Mill Village in June, including an artist event.

The store is open from 9:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 12 to 5 p.m. on Sunday at 365 Boston Post Rd.

See Also: Sudbury Announces Newly Formed Department, Names Director