SALEM — Maitland Mountain Farm will open its new home-grown restaurant — Maitland Farm, Kitchen, and Spirits — on Derby Street Friday, offering locally sourced breakfast, lunch, fresh produce, flowers, and the farm’s famous pickles.
Located at the former site of the Jean Louis Pasta Shop at 84 Derby St., co-owners Holly Maitland, Ward 7 City Councilor Andy Varela, and Dan Spacek have set out to show the local community the healthy, fresh goods that Salem has to offer.
“What we’ve identified with the Derby Street neighborhood is there’s a lack of food options, especially healthy food options, like fresh produce, prepared goods, and other options related to agriculture,” Varela said. “So I think that’s why we’re excited about opening up here, because the Derby Street neighborhood is one of the oldest here in Salem, it’s one of the few unique neighborhoods where it’s a very walkable community, and there’s a real identity here with the locals.
“Derby Street used to be a primarily Polish neighborhood, and there used to be a handful of grocery stores, delis and meat markets, and dozens of bars. So we really feel excited about trying to revitalize that and bringing that back to the neighborhood,” he said.
Maitland Mountain Farm has been offering the local community farm fresh foods, flowers, and produce since Holly Maitland and her father Peter started the farm in south Salem in 2009. Originally starting at the inaugural Salem Farmers Market, the farm has since become a fixture of the community and grown to cover 2½ acres of urban farm space.
“We’re thrilled to bring our farm to the Derby Street Neighborhood,” Holly Maitland said. “That is really something that we’ve always wanted to do. We also have several, several years experience working in restaurants, so we have always dreamed of opening an establishment.”
In addition to sourcing food from local partner farms, everything that Maitland Mountain grows next year will be fully dedicated to the restaurant. There will be farm-fresh meal options, such as a gluten free sandwich that uses pickles in place of bread, and the menu will also include a variety of unique foods from around the world.
“It seems like with the city, when it comes to our restaurant scene, it’s very much New England — with all the same burgers, lobster rolls, and chowder,” Varela said. “What we’re looking to do here is bring a little bit more of a worldly menu. We’ll be serving things like a pozole, which originate from Mexico. We plan on having butternut squash soup, grown locally from us, with fried sage and a lime crema.”
The owners are also still planning to secure a farmer’s distillery license, which would allow them to serve alcohol at the restaurant using distilled or fermented products from the farm. The restaurant has already received approval from the city’s Zoning Board of Appeals, but they must still go through the federal and state permitting processes in order to serve alcohol under the current zoning.
“We’re very excited to open up in the neighborhood,” Varela said. “It’s been a nine-month journey since we first signed the lease, and now we’re looking forward to serving the Derby Street community and the city of Salem.”
The restaurant, located at 84 Derby St. will be open starting Friday from 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Michael McHugh can be contacted at mmchugh@northofboston.com or at 781-799-5202