In the heart of the village of Knowlton, La Pantry opened its doors a year ago, slowly revolutionizing the way villagers do their grocery shopping by offering a range of high-quality artisanal products made with love by passionate local producers. The offer is also healthy, and the whole thing is impressive; among them Quebec sea salt ( Sel St-Laurent ), year-round vegetables ( Fruiture Urbaine ), local meats (including Brome Lake Pastures ), of fir honey , wines, ciders, and much more.
The project had been on the minds of owners Leila El Hamarneh and Benoit Morin for several years, but the pandemic accelerated the process. Between Dunham, Frelighsburg, Brome Lake and Sutton, the region was teeming with agri-food producers, many of whom were already friends (such as Les Jardins de la Grelinette ) and the idea was to offer a place where these producers could sell at a fair price and according to their available volume as small farms, offering another avenue of distribution to customers than the Saturday summer market.
It was also guided by a desire to participate in the revitalization of their region by creating more than a grocery store, but rather a place that we would visit daily to stock our pantry while contributing to the local economy.
The friendly couple also had the good idea of creating a café with benches to sit on and the place quickly became an essential stop and a social place for the villagers to meet.
The place is always lively, friendships are formed, and tastings allow us to discover food as well as wines, ciders, and soft drinks. These are taking an exponential market share, and the Pantry keeps up with the latest trends with always new arrivals.
The Pantry project was born out of a desire to showcase these products, but also out of an aspiration to participate in a profound change in cultures. We are increasingly aware of the imperatives of local food (see this episode Radical Ideas with Jean-Martin Fortier and his farm-to-table project with the Old Mill Space ) for the benefit of our ecology but also of our subsistence.
Foods that have to travel or come from industrial agriculture are fortunately becoming less and less popular and are costing our planet a lot, and La Pantry therefore has an educational mission: to demonstrate the importance of supporting local producers, eating food in season and practicing the circular economy by buying locally.
When Leila is asked to comment on the first year of her business, she spontaneously exclaims, "Happiness, happiness, happiness!" There are many challenges, but she considers the Pantry in Knowlton to be the logical culmination of more than 20 years of career and a return to her roots. DJs, a terrace, and tastings were offered to customers as a thank you. Long live The Knowlton Pantry !
