Chester County Chef John Alff has announced he will open a brick-and-mortar store for his food business, Vesta Kitchen & Catering. It will debut in Spring 2024 in the Suburbia Shopping Center at 50 Glocker Way in Pottstown.

Based in Phoenixville since 2018, Vesta Kitchen has appeared at local farmers’ markets and various food stores in the region, showcasing an array of prepared food and a line of bottled sauces and condiments. Vesta Kitchen is also known for its catering services in Southeastern Pennsylvania.

The new space will serve as Vesta’s commercial kitchen operations, and the retail component will offer prepared foods, shelf-stable canned items, and ready-to-eat items for easy grab-and-go or reheat-and-eat at home. The menu will change weekly based on what the farmers have available and what is in season locally.

Additionally, pop-up events in the future will include special dinners featuring handpicked local purveyors, pasta-making classes, food demonstrations, and fermentation workshops. 

Furthermore, farm dinners will host local farms and spotlight farmers talking about their growing practices, while guests will enjoy a meal cooked by Alff and his culinary team using items from the farms.

Vesta was recently awarded a Local Food Promotion Program (LFPP) Grant from the USDA for $946,714.00, making the new retail shop and promoting local farms possible.

“The whole idea of the grant is to help local farmers,” Alff explained. “With extra staff and avenues to sell my food, I can buy more ingredients from local farms. I would also like to help reduce food waste. At the end of the farmer’s markets, I’ll go around to the farmers and ask for anything they didn’t sell. I’ll buy it instead of ending up in their compost piles. I’ll then take those ingredients and turn them into value-added products.”

He also added that he will use some of the grant money for marketing materials that feature local farms, which he hopes will increase their sales and help boost CSA memberships.

In the meantime, Alff continues to pop up at Eagleview Farmers Market, Downingtown Farmers Market, and Kennett Square Farmers Market. Vesta’s prepared foods are available at Dave’s Backyard Farms in Huntington Valley, Red Dog Market in Pottstown, Farmer Jawn in Westtown, and Corner Stoop in Philadelphia. Many of those locations carry Vesta’s bottled products, and they are available via online ordering.

John lives in Audubon with his wife and three children.