Writing about food has always been a big part of Seven Days.
Among the stories in the 28-page inaugural issue, on September 6, 1995, was an elaborate evaluation of local pizzas. Three weeks later, the cover story documented the proliferation of Vermont’s gourmet markets. The author, James Beard Award winner Jim Dodge, wrote: “Every chef — like me — will tell you that the secret to good cooking is the qualify and freshness of the ingredients … For those of us who live and shop here daily, the Burlington-Middlebury-Montpelier-Stowe area has become a trapezoidal treasure of special stores with special foods. Made-in-Vermont wholesomeness has met the ex-urbanite’s desire for diversity, and the result is excellent eating.”
Simply put, the 30-year history of Seven Days has tracked closely with that of the local food movement. As our readers’ appetites have grown for information about the state’s chefs, farmers and specialty food producers, the paper has served it up — course after course.
In 1996, we devoted an entire issue to Vermont food that included the state’s first-ever creemee map. In short order, we were producing two Food Issues a year.
In 2004, I started writing a monthly column called Edible Complex. That same year we launched a glossy, stand-alone annual dining guide, 7 Nights, that listed every eating establishment north of Route 4 — for free — back when that information didn’t exist online. On top of the weekly newspaper, the special publication took countless hours to compile and design.
The 30-year history of Seven Days has tracked closely with that of the local food movement.
After the third edition, we hired Suzanne Podhaizer as our first full-time food writer. In September 2006, culinary coverage became a regular section of the weekly paper, and we said goodbye to my column and the twice-yearly theme issues. Suzanne wrote a ton, but there was more to report than she could get to — so we brought on Alice Levitt as her editorial sous chef. They had very different tastes: Scholarly Suzanne is a foodie’s food writer, while Alice would eat anything — the more offal, the better.
Both were dishing it up in 2010, when Seven Days organized its first Vermont Restaurant Week. Our newspaper took on the promotion with zeal — but without compromising our journalistic integrity — and ran it every April for a decade until the pandemic put an end to both Restaurant Week and 7 Nights.
The paper’s weekly food section, however, survived intact and hosted some of the biggest stories of the public health crisis. Since March 2020, Melissa Pasanen and Jordan Barry have scrambled to cover the food-sector impacts of restaurant closures, hunger, the Everyone Eats program, inflation, ingredient and worker shortages, unruly customers, supply-chain issues, climate change, and flooding. The duo breaks plenty of good news, too — including the continuous openings of new restaurants despite the industry’s challenges.
We’re fortunate to have two knowledgeable writers: Before joining Seven Days, Melissa wrote about food, drink and agriculture for the Burlington Free Press and Vermont Life — as well as EatingWell, Saveur and Food Network. She’s written cookbooks and has a master’s in food systems from the University of Vermont. Jordan also has a master’s. Hers, from New York University, is in food studies. Their work has been recognized repeatedly with journalism awards and is some of the best read on our website.
Suzanne is still writing for us, too, as a freelancer; former food writer Corin Hirsch, newly returned to Vermont, also has a byline this week.
All of their coverage helps the entire Vermont food industry by educating and empowering readers to take action. Some restaurants are too financially strapped right now to advertise, but, in my view, those that are doing well enough should consider supporting Seven Days‘ weekly efforts. We’re the only media outlet in the state still providing consistent, unbiased food reporting and criticism.
Robert Fuller gets it. The former owner of Leunig’s Bistro & Café came to Seven Days a few months ago to propose an ad campaign that features business owners on and around Burlington’s Church Street, many of whom are restaurateurs. Fuller is doing the interviews and photography himself. The small, eye-catching testimonials have run in every issue since early April.
“I’m just trying to push back against the negativity downtown by pointing out that there are many people who are quite happy to be doing business there. I’m one of them,” he wrote me in an email. “Church Street and downtown Burlington in general have been very good to me, and I feel like it is my responsibility to give something back.”
Almost half a century ago, Fuller and I worked together at Mister Up’s Restaurant in Middlebury, and he was good to all of us lowly waitstaff. I’m not surprised the 78-year-old, who is paying for the ads with his own money and has no political agenda, calls his effort the Burlington Better Vibe Coalition.
Better vibes? We’ll take a double order of that.
The original print version of this article was headlined “Generous Helping”
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This article appears in The Food Issue 2025.
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