
frank.food company closed its Kent, Conn., location during the COVID-19 pandemic but new larger version is now open in West Cornwall — and becoming a social hub as well as popular restaurant. Photo courtesy Frank Way
Frank Way has found success in his newest venture, called simply frank. It opened May 12 on the West Cornwall, Conn., property that was known for many years as the Pink House (although it is now a more subtle shade of cream).
The new eatery is in a barn space/carriage house behind the formerly pink building; its owner is a former New York City “branding” executive whose first food venture was frank.food on Main Street in Kent, Conn.
Previously a creative director for major brands, living in California and New York, Way decided he “wanted to do something with more integrity, something more related to being in Connecticut.” So, when a friend suggested Way open a food shop in Kent, he did.
“I’d never owned a shop like that before,” he said. “But, I was just building a brand, and I’d done that my whole career.”
In 2017, frank.food company opened its doors as a breakfast and lunch place and was a wild and immediate success, with long lines out the door. The restaurant maintained its popularity even as the pandemic closed down other restaurants and put an end to “dining out.” With COVID-19, Way adapted by reducing the size of the staff and by catering gourmet meals.
“We survived the pandemic by reinventing ourselves so did not close as a result of it,” Way said.
“I ended up closing the location after Thanksgiving last November because Kent became an over-saturated market. And that gave me the time to fully focus on getting the restaurant open.”
Moving to West Cornwall
In the time before frank.food closed down, the West Cornwall Development Group had asked Way if he’d like to open a restaurant in West Cornwall. He did and began planning for the new, larger eatery.
But as with all renovations during the pandemic years, there were supply chain interruptions that kept pushing back the date of the restaurant opening.
A particular refrigeration glue from China never seemed to come, for example.
However, Way said, “I just got really patient and focused on building the space and making it beautiful.” All in all, he said, “there were delays, but only for about 3 months.”
When you enter the new frank.food, the space opens to a high vaulted ceiling with a welcoming 3-foot tall “HI” in carved letters. Taxidermy and hooked rugs hang on the whitewashed barn walls. For Way, it’s “very eclectic, homey and bright.”
A walnut tree cut down during construction has been transformed into gorgeous wood tabletops.
“I love the local story,” said Way. “We were able turn a tree we had to lose into something really precious.”
Along with 35 seats around the walnut tables, there are eight bar seats. Outside, on a flagstone patio perched above the Housatonic River, there are an additional 36 seats.
The long-awaited opening proved worth the wait, apparently. “I’m doing probably three full seatings each a night,” Way said. “Which is ridiculous.”
Happily, his staff has risen to the challenge. “I’m taxing my kitchen like nothing else, and they’re really performing well.”
John Carlson is the chef for frank.food. Some of the other staff are new to the restaurant world, and are learning together. But they’ve learned enough to stay open for a Memorial Day brunch that had to end at 1 p.m., when the restaurant ran out of food.
First, there is pizza
So, what’s on the menu? Way said, “We wanted to keep the menu really accessible.”
This starts with a Neapolitan-style pizza program, featuring three $16 pies: the classic margherita with just basil, mozzarella and tomatoes; soppressata with hot honey and oregano; and white pizza with lemon ricotta, asparagus and peas.
One favorite item on the menu is the kale salad ($13), which has had rave reviews.
“It was kind of how I paid my rent in Kent,” Way said of the winning appetizer.
Main course choices include the burger on brioche, made with grass-fed beef from Cornwall’s Hurlburt farm ($19); wild cod and chips ($24); and a buttermilk brined chicken ($24).
To finish, Way keeps his customers on their toes, often switching the dessert menu around. He said, “I’ll make devil’s food cake one week or High Five Pies another.”
Brunch keeps the local burger, adding a French toast casserole, avocado toast, a quiche of the day and an omelet of the day. Way plans to soon add a grain bowl with farro, spinach and a poached egg.
For now the restaurant is only open Thursday through Saturday for dinner; and Saturday and Sunday for lunch. The full future vision is to increase hours, and offer a coffee service, perhaps with a light breakfast or a lunch.
For now, Way is focused on establishing the restaurant’s rhythm and spreading the name.
“I feel it’s important that people understand that ‘frank food’ is not about my name,” Way said. “It’s about what it is to be sincere and honest. My food is honest to goodness food, it’s elevated home cooking.”
frank.food company is open for dinner Thursday through Saturday, 5 to 9:30 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Learn more at www.frankfoodco.com or call 860-248-3250.
Bill Dinneen, left, and Ivan Kotchoubey, age 7, place a recently restored grave marker at the headstone of David Mallery, a Revolutionary War veteran, in Cornwall Sunday, May 25.
CORNWALL — On Sunday, May 25, Cornwall held a powerful ceremony to honor local veterans of the Revolutionary War.
At the cemetery on Route 4, about 25 attendees gathered to witness the placement of 10 grave markers. Bill Dinneen of the Cornwall Historical Society and Warren Stevens led the ceremony.
“These markers had gone missing from the cemetery, we don’t know when,” Dinneen said, showing six bronze and four cast iron markers that were recently restored and painted.
He explained the markers were found in bushes at the edge of the cemetery by Gene Swanson, of Washington Depot. It was unclear why they were removed from the gravestones, and Dinneen said there could be more elsewhere in the cemetery.
Bill Dinneen, left, and Warren Stevens explain the history, discovery and restoration process of the grave markers to attendees May 25.Photo by Riley Klein
“Today we have 10 markers. We have 32 names” of buried Revolutionary War veterans, Dinneen said. “The bronze markers will go to ranked soldiers,” such as sergeants, and “the cast ones will go to the oldest” of the infantry soldiers.
The restoration process included sandblasting, priming and painting. He was not certain, but Dinneen said the markers may have been originally placed by the government around World War I, at which time the original tombstones were replaced with harder stone.
Stevens explained the symbolism of the markers: A big star in the middle represents one of the colonies, 13 little stars represent all the colonies, the years 1775 and 1783 show the duration of the war, the words “A Patriot’s Grave” and “E Pluribus Unum. From many, there is one,” he said.
Susan Hellmann placed a bronze marker at the grave of her ancestor Noah Harrison. Photo by Riley Klein
Attendees, some of them descendants of the veterans, assisted in the placement of the markers.
Susan Hellmann, of Cornwall, said she would be placing a restored marker at the grave of “my great, great, great grandfather Noah Harrison” who served in the Revolution. “I feel like I’m going to cry. It’s just very touching, very powerful,” she said.
Dinneen read the rank, company and lifespan of each veteran as the markers were being placed, then Stevens fired a blast from his musket. When all the markers were set, the names of the other Revolutionary veterans buried in town were read aloud.
Warren Stevens fires his musket.Photo by Riley Klein
The ceremony was held as part of Memorial Day remembrances in Cornwall. It also marked the first official event in town for the nation’s 250th birthday with more to come.
As the occasion came to an end, a light rain began.
A bronze marker was placed at the grave of James Bierce, who lived to the age of 94 after serving in the Revolution with Captain Smith's Company. Bill Dinneen noted many of the Revolutionary War veterans buried in Cornwall lived to old ages. "The average age that these veterans died was 72 years old," he said.Photo by Riley Klein
LAKEVILLE — The Hotchkiss School girls lacrosse won the 2025 Founders League championship with an 11-10 victory over Choate Rosemary Hall May 21.
The Bearcats battled back from behind by as many as four points.
MaryHelen McCooey scored the game-winning goal with about two minutes remaining.
The win marked the fourth consecutive Founders League title for Hotchkiss girls lacrosse.
The Marvelwood lacrosse team poses for a group photo May 20 after winning the HVAL title for the second year in row.
KENT — On Tuesday, May 20, Marvelwood School lacrosse defeated Woodhall School 15-9 in the Housatonic Valley Athletic League tournament final.
It was second straight HVAL championship win for the Pterodactyls and their fifth league title since 2018.
Marvelwood and Woodhall played twice this past season with Marvelwood winning both games. They met in the championship as the first and second ranked teams in the league.
In the pre-game huddle, Marvelwood Coach Zach Maizel pumped up his players and urged them to “be aggressive early.”
Eli Jamieson, No. 4, congratulates teammate C. Jones after a goal.Photo by Lans Christensen
Taking his message to heart, attackman Eli Jamieson scored in the first minute of game play. He scored twice more in the first period, which ended with Marvelwood ahead 6-3.
Woodhall played aggressively and stayed on the attack, but the first half ended 9-4 in favor of Marvelwood.
Jamieson was the key player on the Marvelwood squad, and he scored twice more in the final period to maintain the Pterodactyls’ lead.
Woodhall fought hard and possessed control for most of the final period, scoring five goals but falling to a final 15-9 Marvelwood victory.
HVRHS sophomore Ryan Segalla went three-for-three May 17 with Berkshire League gold in the 100m, 200m and 400m races. He was also on the gold-winning 4x400m relay team.
Berkshire League track and field wrapped up a season of competition with the league finals in Litchfield May 17. The BL festival followed with decathlon, heptathlon, steeplechase and hammer in Falls Village May 20 and Thomaston May 21.
The events included athletes from Housatonic Valley Regional High School, Gilbert School, Lakeview High School, Nonnewaug High School, Northwestern Regional High School, Shepaug Valley High School, Terryville High School and Thomaston High School.
In the gold medal tally, Nonnewaug led with 12 golds, Housatonic won 10, Northwestern won six, Thomaston won six, Lakeview won five and Shepaug won three.
For Housatonic, Senior Mia Dodge won the girls 300m hurdles.
Mia DodgePhoto by Riley Klein
Sophomore Ryan Segalla won the boys 100m, 200m and 400m races.
Senior Kyle McCarron won the boys 800m and 1600m races.
The boys 4x400m relay team of Anthony Labbadia, Patrick Money, Kyle McCarron and Ryan Segalla won gold.
Junior Anthony Labbadia won the boys triple jump by a margin of more than three feet. He also earned second place in the boys 400m race.
Senior Patrick Money won the decathlon.
Senior Gabi Titone won the steeplechase. Junior Olivia Brooks took bronze.
The girls 4x400m relay team of Mckenzie Lotz, Harper Howe, Mia Dodge and Maddy Johnson took silver. The same team took bronze in the 4x100m relay.
Harper Howe took silver in the girls 400m race.
Gabi Titone took silver in the girls 800m race.
The Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference Class S state track and field meet will be held in New Britain on June 2.
Patrick Money
Photo by Riley Klein