Calling All Foodies

By Amber Michelle

DAM GOOD ENGLISH MUFFINS

Making delicious, artisan English muffins and celebrating their staff is part of the mission of Dam Good English Muffins. Founded in 2017 by Denise Weale and her husband Ross, Dam Good English Muffins started as a home business. The name was inspired by the New Croton Dam in Cortlandt, New York.

“Starting our company as a home business was a safe way to see proof of concept,” explains Denise Weale, who notes that the firm moved into their Peekskill location at 2 John Walsh Boulevard, in April 2020 at the beginning of the pandemic. It was also a time when food pantries were seeing rising levels of demand. 

“I worked for Feeding Westchester so I was aware of food insecurity,” says Weale. “I reached out to CHHOP because they are in Peekskill.” Weale connected with Arthur Holmes who runs Fred’s Pantry x CHHOP and the bakery now donates its English muffins to the food pantry. “As a food business I think that it’s important to remember that so many people are not fortunate enough to have food and they face food insecurity all year round. ”

Healthy Options

Dam Good English Muffins are not only delicious, but they are healthy as well. There are no preservatives or additives and all ingredients are non-GMO and soy free. Weale uses a sourdough starter because it adds flavor, but it also supports gut health through the fermentation process because it reduces gluten and encourages the growth of helpful gut bacteria. 

“People are looking for healthier foods and they also want to support small businesses producing these types of food,” comments Weale, whose English muffins are square instead of round. “The English muffins are square because we don’t want to waste any dough. When we were baking from home, we didn’t have big equipment, we were making everything by hand and it was easier to cut the dough into squares. That way we had no waste.”

What’s the best way to eat a Dam Good English Muffin? Growing up Weale enjoyed making English muffin pizzas and it remains a favorite. She notes that English muffins are very versatile and can be used for anything from avocado toast to burger buns. 

People Matter

Weale recognizes that Dam Good English Muffins is about more than baking, it’s about people and the company’s hiring practices reflect that philosophy. “We have open hiring,” comments Weale. “It means that we have no background checks and we don’t ask typical resume questions. We ask things like ‘can you lift a 50-pound bag of flour?’ We want to give opportunities to people who may have a barrier to employment. It can be a mom who has children, or someone who was formerly incarcerated. Other women gave me an opportunity to work even when I had young children. It gave me a place to go and be productive. It’s important to do that for other people.”

To keep the work environment positive and supportive, Weale celebrates her workers on a regular basis. She makes a point of showing her employees appreciation through buying everyone lunch, holding yoga classes with Marta Gil Yoga, painting pottery with A Maze in Pottery and other perks. Most of the activities that Weale brings to her employees are through women owned small businesses, so she is not only providing a service for her staff, but she is also supporting other woman owned small businesses. 

“Providing a healthy product and giving back to the community are an important part of what we do,” concludes Weale. “It is our responsibility to help. Everybody needs a little help sometimes. People who rely on food pantries don’t always receive the best quality food, which can cause or play into health issues. We’re giving them a premium product, because they should have the same food that we have.”

PEEKSKILL BREWERY

Keith Berardi, founder, Peekskill Brewery

A place for people to gather was the main reason that Keith Berardi opened Peekskill Brewery. An area native and Lakeland High School graduate, Berardi attended City College and paid for his education by running restaurants through-out the Hudson Valley. 

After college Berardi traveled west with some friends landing in Fort Collins, Colorado and San Francisco, California. While in those two place Berardi discovered community food hubs where people gathered to make artisanal beer, eat and talk. 

“I returned to Peekskill, knowing that they did not have a communal place,” says Berardi. “At the time, there were very few restaurants in town and it was cheap to rent a place. I wanted to have a neighborhood type of place. Before Covid people would come in and hang out.”

Neighbors



When they first opened, Berardi notes that there were very few businesses on the riverfront area where Peekskill Brewery is located. One of those neighbors happened to be CHHOP. 

“CHHOP has always been our neighbor and we view them as neighbors,” comments Berardi. “We’ve hired people from the shelter. We don’t pass judgement they are our neighbors like anyone else.” 

Berardi learned the spirit of service growing up. His father was a social worker and his mom was a school teacher. His mom has since retired from teaching and she runs a food pantry in the area. “We quietly do a lot of outreach and donations. We try to shine a light on people who need help,” observes Berardi. “We have events and leverage our following to collect money or donations for CHHOP.”

Once a month Peekskill Brewery provides dinner for the residents of CHHOP’s Jan Peek House shelter. “We have a family meal to feed the staff of the restaurant every day. We decided to extend that offer to CHHOP,” explains Berardi. 

Restaurants have been hit hard by the Covid-19 pandemic as people sheltered in place and avoided crowds. Even as restaurants have re-opened it has not been at full capacity yet and it has taken innovation to stay in business. Berardi has still found a way to build community, even if it is at a distance. “During the pandemic we participated in a drive for one million gallons of soup to feed hospitality workers who were out of work for free. We also make meals for essential workers. It pays a small amount of money and it keeps cash flow and jobs.”

Brewing the Best

One of the things that has helped Peekskill Brewery survive the pandemic-induced restrictions is its beer. The brewery makes its own beers and sells them not only in the restaurant, but they also distribute them through different channels in New York City and all the way to Albany. “We’re a world class brewery. We’ve won national awards including several at the national Great American Beer Festival and many at the New York State Craft Beer Competition including the Governor's Cup for the best beer in New York State,” says Berardi. “We use good ingredients we don’t take short cuts. We also have flavors that are accessible to people.” While Berardi mentions that he knows how to brew beer, he hires people with more expertise than himself to create the foamy beverage.

“At Peekskill Brewery, people can come to connect and talk, there is no gender or color,” concludes Berardi. “It’s just people enjoying space together.”

TAORMINA TRATTORIA