A palm-tree mural, rattan chairs and a buffet heavy on gluten-free treats greeted guests at Zest Café's grand-opening celebration this week at its new location on Stonington Road. The café at 829 Stonington Road marks the third outpost for the bakery brand in southeastern Connecticut, following its original Velvet Mill bakery in Stonington Borough and a coffee bar in Ledyard Center, according to CT Insider.
A Ribbon-Cutting With Local Flavor
The Greater Mystic Chamber of Commerce organized the October 13 ribbon-cutting ceremony, which was co-hosted alongside the Ocean Community Chamber of Commerce, according to the Greater Mystic Chamber of Commerce. Connecticut State Representative Aundré Bumgardner, who represents the 41st Assembly District covering Groton and Stonington, attended the event; Bumgardner was first elected in 2014 as the youngest state representative in Connecticut history, according to Connecticut House Democrats. Bruce Flax, president of the Greater Mystic Chamber of Commerce, described the opening-day spread to CT Insider as including cookies, blueberry cheesecake and a strong gluten-free menu.
Keith Padin, event director of the Greater Mystic Chamber and a regular Zest customer, singled out two menu items for praise in the same CT Insider report: the gluten-free brownies and the quiches made with produce from Ledyard's Full Heart Farm. The farm, operated by Allyson Angelini, grows more than 300 varieties of cut flowers, herbs and vegetables under a Community Supported Agriculture model, per the University of Connecticut Extension.
From Farmers Market Stand to Three Storefronts
Zest's story began in 2012, when pastry chefs Erin Morris and Gabriella Withrow co-founded the business as a local farmers market stand before opening a brick-and-mortar bakery that December inside Stonington's Velvet Mill, according to Patch. Zest Fresh Pastry has operated in the Velvet Mill for 14 years, the report notes, and Withrow, a native of Hawaii, now owns the café. The Velvet Mill itself was built in 1888 for velvet manufacturing and was later redeveloped into a multi-use complex housing dozens of small businesses, artists and food artisans, according to Preservation Connecticut.
The new Stonington Road café held a soft opening this year before its official ribbon-cutting, and it carries Zest's signature tropical aesthetic into a third space, with a palm-tree mural, potted greenery, rattan chairs and pendant lamps setting the scene, as reported by CT Insider.
Savory Toasts, Seasonal Lattes and a Thanksgiving Sandwich
The fall menu leans into hyper-local sourcing. Savory mushroom toast features sourdough, whipped goat cheese and mushrooms from Seacoast Mushrooms, a Mystic-based farm founded by Navy veteran Chris Pacheco that produces between 600 and 800 pounds of gourmet mushrooms weekly, according to Seacoast Mushrooms. A prosciutto toast with whipped fig ricotta, arugula, pear, hot honey and chopped pistachios rounds out the savory lineup, alongside a Thanksgiving leftovers sandwich built on brioche with house-roasted turkey, cranberry port aioli, Vermont cheddar and herb-and-sourdough stuffing, as reported by CT Insider.
Drinks lean seasonal too. The café's Chai-der blends house-made chai with cider from Maple Lane Farms, a long-standing agricultural property in nearby Preston, Connecticut, according to Schooners Beverage Company. Other fall drinks include a London Spice London Fog blended with spiced apple cider syrup and cayenne, a white chocolate pumpkin mocha, and a pumpkin meringue spice latte, as noted by CT Insider.
Riding a National Gluten-Free Wave
Zest's gluten-free focus taps into a fast-growing category nationally. The U.S. gluten-free bakery market reached $1.47 billion in 2025 and is projected to climb to $3.57 billion by 2035, driven by expanding celiac disease diagnoses and broader health-conscious consumer demand, according to market research from SNS Insider published in April 2026.
The Ocean Community Chamber of Commerce, which helped organize the Stonington opening, represents roughly 900 member businesses spanning southern Rhode Island and southeastern Connecticut, according to the Town of Westerly. That cross-border reach underscores Stonington's position as something of an economic bridge between the two states, with Zest's expansion feeding into the same regional network.
Zest Café is open Monday through Friday from 6:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., Saturday from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Sunday from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m., according to CT Insider, whose report on the opening was written by staff writer Susan Braden.
