The energetic chef-restaurateur grew Chittenden County landmarks Leunig’s Bistro and Pauline’s Café, hatched Bristol’s Bobcat Café, and mentored many.
Melissa Pasanen
Melissa Pasanen is a Seven Days staff writer and the food and drink assignment editor. In 2022, she won first place for national food writing from the Association of Alternative Newsmedia and in 2024, she took second. Melissa joined Seven Days full time in 2020, 18 years after the paper published her first (and last, for a very long time) freelance story on church suppers. During the intervening years, she wrote — mostly about food, drink and agriculture — for outlets ranging from the Burlington Free Press and Vermont Life magazine to the New York Times, Saveur, EatingWell and foodnetwork.com. She also earned a master’s in food systems from the University of Vermont and authored or coauthored three cookbooks, including the New York Times notable cookbook, Cooking With Shelburne Farms: Food and Stories from Vermont and The Little Local Vermont Cookbook. Melissa eats everything but does not enjoy green bell peppers.
